JimKW

I wet tested another Sundance model (can't remember the name right now), was really there to buy it and after wet testing did not buy it cause of the jets on the lounge seat hitting my calves so hard it pushed my legs out of the water. And they were either on or off, not adjustable. I would have hated to find that out once I got it home. Felt very weird I have to admit when my wife and I changed our clothes in somebody's bathroom to wet test the one we bought, but we did.

I just bought a used Sundance Optima and had it set up last week. I really wanted one with a lounger, but the price on the Optima was too good to pass up. My wife and I did wet test it and liked the feel quite a bit. We really like the hump in the middle with jets hitting your feet from anywhere you sit. I was doing some work on the paving stone patio, and I'm not a young man, which means I got pretty sore after bending over and working on my hands and knees for hours. Well I got in the Hot Tub for about 1/2 hour and moved from seat to seat massaging different parts of my back. When I got out the pain was gone. About 9 o'clock that night I started getting sore again so I climbed back into the tub for another half hour and felt fine. Mine is a 2003 model, but pretty sure the layout is about the same.

Anybody?

I have two jets that don't seem to be right and the guy I bought it from was not much help on what they are supposed to be like. Looking from the control panel one is on the opposite side next to the corner seat with the most jets. It's kind of right above your waist on your left sitting in the seat. The other one is in the foot well kind of under the filter area. Both these jets are kind of big and just have a chrome ring around them that I can not turn. Inside the ring there is just a big hole that your can move around a little, but it just shoots water out pretty hard when you have it turned on. What are these jets supposed to be like and how can I remove them if they need replaced, or are the correct the way they are? I can not get over how comfortable I am in this hot tub and my wife and I can not believe we got something this nice and well taken care of for $2,000. It did cost me another $1,000 though for delivery and the electrical hookup, but still I think I got one hell of a deal. I have been working on my paving stone patio by taking up quite a few low spots, taking out the sand (I put way too much sand in spots when I built it eight years ago), then puting in gravel in place of the sand and adding a very thin layer of sand. Well anyway I spent about three hours yesterday and probably six today working on this. I am not as young as I used to be and could hardly stand up when I finally finished. It was a fairly warm day, so I couldn't just get into the hot tub when I finished, so I sat in La-z-boy for a while then took a cool shower before getting in the hot tub. I moved from seat to seat working different areas of my back and my feet. When I got out 1/2 hour to 45 minutes later, not pain whatsoever. Started stiffening up again this evening so I got back in again and loosened right up.

I was not offended at all. I thought it was funny.

When I filled mine yesterday it went from a little over 50F to 100F in about 7.5 hours. Not sure of the exact time we turned it on so give or take a 1/2 hour. I have heard they should heat at a rate of 6-8 degrees F per hour.

I got in at 100 degrees and it felt great. When I got out it was 101. With it being a warm night that felt fine. That sure is a big hot tub when you are in all by yourself. My wife was not feeling well and got tired of waiting so she didn't get in last night. She'll be in today for sure though. Probably while I'm here at work.

Oh Man it's killing me! It's at 94 degrees and I don't know if I can wait another hour for it to reach 100. At 88 it started feeling warm to the touch, but I know from past experience that I want 100 even though it's not cold outside tonight at all. One more hour and I'll be in for sure.

TMI dude TMI

Hot tub is in place and looks good, but the electrician didn't show up. Should be here some time before 9:00 this morning. Sure hope to be in the tub tonight. I didn't realize how big the Optima is until we put in in place empty. Wonder how much it cost new in 2003?

I would be researching, shopping and testing too had I not found the Sundance Optima being sold for a good bit less than what I thought it should cost. So I felt like I had to jump on it. When buying used and find a good deal you can not hesitate. Done that too many times with cars.

My hot tub is being picked up and delivered between 2:00 and 4:00 today. Can't wait! I went ahead and hired a professional mover to move it and an electrician to hook up the electical. The deliver company and the electrician kind of work togehter and they will coordinate being at my house at the same time. Probably won't have it warmed up enough to get in it today though.

The moving of it and electrical hookup is probably worth about $1,000 by itself, assuming he is also paying for the electrician to hook it up for you.

A local dealer here sells both Sundance and Jacuzzi and they seem treat the Sundance as their top of the line and Jacuzzi as a step lower. Kind of like the Hot Srpings dealer steps down to Tiger River.

Does anybody have any idea how much the electric hookup should cost? I got an estimate of $710 and that seems very high to me. It's a pretty long run from the box to where the tub will sit, maybe 50 feet, but it's through an unfinished basement and it can run behind the framing that is not yet in place. A hole will need to be drilled through the brick also.

Found it on Craigslist yesterday morning, went with my wife to wet test it this afternoon and bought it. It's a 2003 model, with a fairly new cover and lift in excellent condition. Now I have to find somebody to deliver it, set it up and run my 220V power line to the porch. It's a bigger unit than I wanted and it doesn't have a lounge, but it was a deal I could not pass up. Got it for $2,000.

I looked at the hot tub last night, but didn't buy it. It was in great shape, but I'm not sure it's really a very good hot tub. The cabinet was plastic made to look like wood and felt kind of cheap and the insulation did not look like it was enough. I still have the option to buy it, but I think I really want a higher end hot tub.

I have found a Caspian made by Weslo. Serial # Q03150202 not too far from here. The guy says he bought it from his neighbor and has used almost every day since the Fall and wants to sell it to buy a bigger tub. He thinks it's about four years old. Any way to tell how old it is from the Serial #? Does anybody have experience with this model? In searching this site I found that Caspian is made by Tiger River, was that the case when this one was made? If so this might be a very good deal. It's the least expensive one I have found, but if it's some cheap hot tub I really don't want it. The guy is holding it for me to come and look at it tomorrow morning. Says he has already had 4 or 5 phone calls about it. Found it on Craigslist and it just came on today. He's wondering if he's selling it too cheap because of all the interest. It does not have water in it, and he does not want to fill it at this time. Says he just drained it because he thought it was better to sell that way. Now he realizes that it's just the opposite based on what the dealer and I ahve said to him. I said I might give you an earnest money deposit contingent on a wet test. I would hate for somebody to buy it out from under me cause they don't insist on a wet test, but I don't want to bring it home w/o wet testing and he knows that now. Basically I said I will look at and see where we go from there and he agreed to hold until I see it tomorrow morning. HELP

But does MSRP really mean squat? They never sell for anything near that price. Kind of like a sticker price on a new car. Nobody should ever pay that price. So if the so-called MSRP is $9,000 what would be a fair selling price and what would be considered a good deal? 20% off of that would be $7200, so is anything less than that what I should expect to pay. If so, the MSRP is a joke. If a Hot Tub normally sells for $7200 and I can get it for $6500 that is a good deal to me. I really don't care about the MSRP, I care about what the tubs are selling for in the stores.

I highly doubt the neighbor is making this up and if you were vibrating my bedroom between 9 and 11 at night I would be upset too. I like the idea of having the neighbor working with you to try and resolve the problem.

Luckily when I wet test the one on Saturday it was already on the showroom, filled and heated. Had it not been and I had them fill it, heat it and have it ready for me to wet test, I would have felt like a jerk saying I didn't like it. But it was uncomfortable enough to me where I would not have bought it. I can see the dilemma though about being fair to the dealer and how they can not have every single hot tub operating at the same time.

For me I want to enclose mine for privacy, but don't want a roof over it. I really want to sit in the hot tub with the snow falling on me. Not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I figure it will be a good bit less expensive to do somehing with privacy fence with some kind of door or gate as opposed to a complete enclosure. Just my opinion.

In my case, I'm not buying it unless I get to wet test it. The one I tested yesterday was on the showroom floor. I felt a little uncomfortable walking past all the customers in swim trunks, but I am glad I did. I ended up not caring for the feel of the jets at all. I was disappointed that I didn't like it because I thought it was a good deal. I want to buy used, so I'm just going to keep on looking and not be in any hurry.

Sounds like you and I are in the same boat. I have not been able to find anything like a consumers report either. The brands you mention are some brands that seem to be very good along with Hot Srpings and Sundance. I believe Tiger River is made by the Watkins company, the same as Hot Springs with Hot Springs being their top of the line.

I went and wet tested the Sundance today and didn't care for the placement of the jets on the lounge. Had two high pressure jets right under my calves that just felt way too strong. When I looked at the newer models they didn't have the jets there or they had about six jets going down the legs so that all the pressure didn't concentrate on one area. Last night I went and looked at the Hot Springs Prodigy and the Tiger River Sumatran. Could not wet test cause they didn't have water, but I relly think I want the lounge feature and neither one had that. I guess I just keep looking.