Chas

I agree with Roger- this is not a design flaw, a newbie made a simple mistake. The number of tubs I have had with leaks over the course of the two decades I have been selling them is tiny. That is a nice side effect of the better support full foam gives to the plumbing.

I have all three on my showroom floor. Have had for a few weeks.

The Classic series is made of the Endural - new name for Rovel. It comes in any color you want, as long as it's white. Comes with tile - you can order it without. It is the older mold, not as fancy as the new version. Comes convertible 110/220. No waterfall, I don't think it comes with ozone - check the specs on the web site. The regular one is the newer design, more cool stuff, more color options, better jet placement because of no tile.

Well, as you have already figured out I'm sure, there certainly was an air line running to the back of the moto. And there was one or sometimes even two small bleed lines as well as the water line. All of those lines are vinyl. And they are all coated with ten-pound density foam, so as you ae digging through the other foam sometimes they don't look at all like an air line and you can cut them, even pull them out. The air lines tend to run toward the top of the tub, so I would look there for the remains of a hard foam encrusted stub of small vinyl tubing. I'm not sure that having a plumbing schematic will help because there are so many routes to take from one jet to another.

The Caldera 'C' series are value tubs. They are simpler than the Caldera tubs from which they are derived, sell for less, but generally perform about the same except for a lower number of jets. Fine tubs - If you look carefully at the Caldera line, you can easily find which tub was the starting point for the C model you like. Then the question becomes - should you pay more and get the full line model? It is totally up to you. The fancy color-changing lights, waterfalls, outside lighting and sound systems may appeal to you, may not.

Could be as PS said above, but also could be low voltage. Get a meter on the incoming power right at the control board. See if it drops more than 10%. This can cause digital circuits to go nuts.

No, actually heat will go in any direction from hot to cold. Common misconception.

I had a beehive relocate itself to a spot near my warehouse last year, and I called a bee-keeper friend of mine to see if he wanted to come pick it up or something. He said no, just mix dish soap and water in a garden pump-sprayer and go squirt it down. It killed all the bees in minutes. The hive was so thick I had to 'attack' it several times as layer upon layer of bees fell to the ground. Natural, safe for pets, will not hurt foam insulation nor mark up your spa siding, and no, they didn't come after me as I sprayed. Nice lemon smell, and inexpensive. I bet it would work on Wasps, though I have no experience, it might be worth a try. Kill 'em all off - and post some pictures.

Well, here's what I know. Salt is not a sufficient sanitizer by itself, so 'Salt Systems' actually do not work the way you would think, given the name. Salt is split into Chlorine and caustic soda by an electric charge in a special chamber. So you add salt to the water, and the system turns that into chlorine - some systems turn it into bromine. You are soaking in salt and chlorine. They tend to balance the pH by themselves in pools, but the smaller water volume in spas makes that harder so you have to keep tabs on your pH and TA just like any other tub. They are not automatic. So instead of testing and adding chlorine, you test and turn a knob to make chlorine. Once you get it set, it can keep a good level for you, and some systems have a button to push for a one-time shock dose for those times you have a crowd in the tub. And the part of the system which makes the chlorine -the cell - has a very definite life. Some companies give you a five-year warranty on the cell, knowing it will have to be replaced in two or three years. They have the replacement cells ready to ship, and have built that cost into the price of the system. But you, as the consumer, have an expectation that since they put a five-year warranty on it the thing should last five years. Not so. Other makers simply lower the price up front and sell you the replacement as needed - the type of metals used determines the life, along with about a dozen other variables. I have owned pools and spas for most of my life - I have yet to find a system which works better than good 'ol Dichlor. A good Ozone system can help a ton - you still use chlorine or bromine but much less and it can be ignored for weeks at a time without going sour on you. Toss in a Nature2 cartridge and you have a very good system, for much less money.

Concrete is an excellent conductor. I have walked up to pool/spa equipment and put one lead of my meter on the hot wire, the other lead on the cement in front of the equipment, and shown full voltage to many unbelieving customers over the years. You can run the wire as you describe, or put it into a short section of PVC conduit for protection.

If you are buying from a dealer who will deliver it - and be there if issues arise - that is not a bad price. I would expect a good cover at that price.

They are smaller - so sometimes the tubing needs to be lengthened or adjusted. The ones we have put in fit but the tubing was no longer nice and straight looking. No effect on operations, just looks. One needed to have a new, longer section of tube installed to fit just right. As to performance, they do seem to move as much water as the larger pumps. I have seen a demonstration by the manufacturer's rep and with the two pumps side by side on a special display tank both pumps moved equal amounts of water, but the new pump did so while consuming less power. The new one employs an open-face impellor. That makes it less likely to clog. The performance is equal to or greater than the old style - so they must be using some of that sneaky engineering magic which seems to float around at Watkins. The one negative I have noticed -is that we have had a little trouble getting new spas with the new pumps to prime. But I got a message from the Mother Ship that this is being addressed. The best news though, is that the new pump only draws 50 watts. Compare that to 85 watts for the old pump. Can anyone say "CEC compliant?" BTW all Tiger River, HotSpring, HotSpot, Solana and Caldera spas meet or exceed the new CEC energy use requirements.

You must go with the same protection as what he had. You are right in that one breaker is for the heat and the other runs all of the rest of the spa - but it is important that each of these systems are protected with the correct breaker when you reconnect. One 20 amp GFI breaker and one 30. Depending upon the model and year, the heater may be on one or the other. If the heater is 4000 watts, it goes on the 20 amp breaker and has no neutral. If it is the 6000 watt unit, it goes to the 30 and has no nuetral. The other breaker has the nuetral wire. Look it over carefully and make notes - then download a wiring diagram from the HS site and be sure it is correct.

HotSpring are all electric - and they are some of the most energy efficient tubs on the market. Gas would not save you anything because you would have to run a larger pump to move the water through the heater and back to the tub, and that pump is electric. What part of LA are you in? We are up in Ventura but service all the way down to woodland hills.

I get a steady flow of email solicitations to become a dealer for Chinese spas and saunas. I don't know how many brands there are coming in from China, but I wish I had the money to buy one or two just to check them out. I don't know of any other way to see one - I'm sure not going to travel to China to see them - anyone have one I could take a look at? Picutures? Anyone?

Sorry if I or other HS dealers made it sound as if the Limelight was a low-priced tub, or if it was a second sister to the HS line. It is not. Yes, it costs less to set up the largest Limelight spa with sound compared to a Grandee or Vista, and yes, some folks who sell against it might try to make it out to be a low-end product, but as you have posted yourself - it has the goods. The stereo is the same as the one on the Hot Spot tubs - I have one on my La Palma on display, and it sounds very very good. It has four speakers up on the bar top. They are fixed in place - they do not pop up or have moving parts in that regard, but they do not stick up and interfere with the cover. They really sound good - I am looking into putting some in my boat! You could also put the 'Moonlight' system just about any Watkins spa. It has two flip-up speakers which can be mounted in a variety of locations, so that you can use them with the lid of the spa open or closed. By all means get the Icast - it is the way to go. No deck, and you can run an Ipod or other sound source of your choice.

If the spa is running on 110 volts - it will have a cord with a plug on the end - it will only heat when in the 'auto heat' mode. If it is running 220 - it will have an electrical box with some breakers in it near the spa- it will heat in both positions. If it is 110, it will heat at the slow pace of only 2 or 3 degrees per hour, so most folks simply don't wait long enough for it to get to temp. If it heated up by running the jets, that is just a side-effect of the jet pump - it puts a small amount of heat into the water as it runs with the lid down. Not controlled by the thermostat, so not a good way to enjoy your spa.

The few I have seen were on their way to the landfill - after giving much greif to the owners. Sorry. Even if you get one which functions for you, it is generally overpriced for what you are getting, at least in my opinion.

Jetsetter can be run on 110v (20amp) or 220v (50amp). I have sold a bunch of them and 220 is always my first choice. However, many folks have set them up to run on 110 knowing that they can change later. I live in a mild climate, and they stay warm just fine - so far few if any have ever changed over to 220 after living with them for a year or two. The reason they can stay warm even though the heater is off when the jets come on, is that they are well designed and well built. They have good insulation around the tub, the equipment and the plumbing, and they recycle the heat off the jet pump - so in effect the longer you run the jets the warmer the recycled air is which is blown into the jets. This has limits, of course, and you will notice some cooling in ice cold windy climates. How long before you notice it is up to the conditions, and the area in which you install the tub. You may be like many of our customers and only run the jets for five or ten minutes anyway, and then the heat is available again. The jets and all other systems are the same on this tub between 110 and 220, but the heat does jump from 1500 watts up to 6000 watts if you go 220. That will heat much faster, though our customers generally set it and forget it, so that is not a big deal.

I have heard people say this, but I have found it is not true. The Tri-X filter is tough enough to run through the dishwasher (without any 'jet dry' or similar product mind you) but even HS regular filters do not last very long if you put them in the dishwasher.

I would check that the ozone is actually on - does it have a power indicator or a little hole to see the UV bulb? The reason I say this is that our modern digital meters will tend to see voltage even when it's not there. This happen when the control system uses solid state realays, or when there are a lot of wires bundled together and a trace voltage is induced into the other wires. But while the voltage is enough to show on a very sensitive meter, it may not be enough to actually run the ozone. This is very easy to check - IF the unit has a power indicator or a view hole. If the unit is a low-end as Roger sugests - and he's right, the tub is built strictly to make a price point - they may have simply left out any controls for the ozone and made it 'hot' all the time. You may want to wire it over to the low speed pump if you want it to come on and go off with that pump.

Good advice, and I like that line...I may use that today. So sorry Dan, but I have applied for a patent, trade mark and copyright on that saying. You may, however, say it like this - "As Chas, the award-winning HotSpring Spa dealer in Ventura, Ca always says... Let your backside decide." That way we're all happy. And there will be a small percentage involved....

It sure seems to me that you need an on-site maintenence guy for this - to care for the spa in general. And it seems that such a person would be going to the spa on a regular basis to keep an eye on it and care for it. Couldn't that person simply take some measurements on their next visit and send them to you? If you don't have a regular spa guy, then pay the fee for a one-time visit. The safest way to order a cover and a filter is to have the exact dimensions you need - HTH

Hello and welcome. First, since you're new, let me say that I'm a dealer. I sell both of the brands you are looking at, so I can give you some insight from a person who knows them, fixes them, likes them, but can't sell to you. They both are made by Watkins manufacturing. There are plenty of simularities, and plenty of differences. The Caldera generally have more power, and you can shut off some jets to make it even more potent in the remaining jets. HotSpring doesn't do that. The Moto Massage has been around for 25 years or more, so I would say it is more than a fad. Will you enjoy it in the years to come? Can't say. Most do. I like it, and even though I could put Caldera, Tiger River, Limelight (new line from HotSpring), Hot Spot and Solana spas in my backyard, the Moto keeps me coming back to HotSpring. In fact I was just talking about trying a new Limelight this time and my wife mentioned the Moto. A wet test is in order! Take your suit, towell and go soak in the two spas. If your dealer doesn't have the exact model full, try one which is similar and you'll get the idea. Let your backsid decide.

Most major name brands have smaller 110v units. That is where I would begin.