ExCalSpa

We quite carrying Cal Spas about two years ago. I wont' pull any punches but I will tell you like it is. Cal Spa makes as good a tub as anyone else in the industry. There are only a handful of suppliers left making things like acrylic, equipment packs, jets and other hot tub specific parts so many brands are built wit stuff from the same vendors. The biggest issue with Cal Spa is warranty support. You pay a lot less up front for the same quality tub but you get a lot less on back end support. If you're lucky and never have a problem a Cal Spa is a great tub at a great price. If it breaks you will probably wish you bought something else. Cal Spas likes to use proprietary parts (like GE motors and PowerRight pumps) that are sometimes backordered for weeks or even months even on brand new tubs with warranties. If they used something standard like WaterWay or Aquaflo pumps supply wouldn't be a problem. If there's a shortage new parts tend to go towards building new tubs first and fixing warranty tubs last. They're more focused on selling new tubs than supporting tubs already sold. Dealers sometimes have to rob showroom tubs to fix tubs they've already sold and delivered. Parts that have been ordered and paid for are sometimes sent out C.O.D. or to the wrong address (sometimes even to the wrong state). Finding the right part number for jets or pillows can be a nighmare because they've had so many models and so many vendors. New pumps are sometimes not packed well and get damaged during UPS shipping. Then you get to file a QA to return the damaged part and wait another month or two for a replacement. Payment for warranty work takes two months at best and three or four months is pretty common. The Warranty Dept. sometimes demands original sales documentation from a customer before they'll approve a claim. The only way a dealer can provide good service is to pay for things out of pocket and hope for reimbursement later. Many Cal Spa dealers have quit carrying the brand or gone out of business because they can't afford the warranty process. This leaves people with valid warranties but with nobody to do the work. It's not that Cal Spas break more than other tubs but fixing them costs a dealer money to stock parts, run service vehicles and pay service techs. Waiting four months to get reimbursed for warranty work you've already done is not an option in this economy. Even when you do get reimbursed you don't get a check in the mail. You get credits in an account that can only be spent at Cal Spas. It's like working for a coal mine while you rent a company house and can only shop at the company store. If a dealer pays for parts out of pocket they only get credits back. You spend real money and wait months to only get Cal Spa credits in return. That might work if you're selling a lot of new tubs but in this economy Cal Spa credits may as well be Monopoly money. You just about have to hire a full time employee whose only job is to track parts orders, back orders and warranty claims with Cal Spas. We figured each hour we spent in the field doing warranty work caused one or two more hours of accounting work just trying to get paid. They also make OC Hot Tubs sold through Costco and waranty reimbursement isn't any better. They mostly use independent service companies to work on OC because none of the Cal dealers will work on them if they didn't sell them. Dealers weren't happy to find out the factory was selling tubs at the local Costco barely above wholesale cost. Most independent service companies only work on a few OC tubs before they quit over the same warranty payment problems. OC does eventually pay with real money instead of credits. The only thing OC tubs have going for them is the Costco return policy. If you can't get anyone to work on it you can always return it to Costco for a refund. Word is Cal Spas will start making the Coleman brand later this year. That will be another one to stay away from if you expect warranty support. I don't see how they can take on a whole new line when they can't even support the brand they've been building for over 25 years. Honestly, they make a good product at a great price. Their tubs are as good or better than any of the big national manufacturers and way better than any of the smaller regional players. The just really need to work on their backend warranty support problems. If they could fix that we would even consider carrying the brand again.