Anyone Own An Infinity Laguna Spa?

[Roger]

Help please!

I just purchased a Infinity Laguna Hot Tub. I've got her all set up and ready to go. Once I fired her up I cannot turn her off. The jets run constantly. I tried to get her into the Economy Mode, but she ran all night, and I'm afraid that the motor will burn up. Can someone please walk me through the process from flipping the electrical power on to the point where I've got her in Economy Mode at 98 degrees. Thanks folks.

DRAT****

If your water is not at 98 the tub will run continuosly until it is. Your pump will be fine just let it run for a while until it reaches the set temp.

[R & R]

We bought our Infinity Laguna spa the first part of August... Costco said it had shipped a week later, yet Infinity said it had not shipped... Our hot tub arrived 3+ weeks after we ordered it... not a big deal as the cement slab was not ready yet... The guys that deliverd it from Spa Delivery.. they were total jerks... but our tub arrived and they delivered it to the curb.. there was NO way we were going to give them extra cash to move the tub onto our patio... We contacted our neighbor and he came over with his fork lift... moved the tub to our patio and there it sat for about 3 more weeks... we were looking for a hot tub placement party and trying to get enough people gathered at the same time to move the tub from its side to its bottom was not an easy task... we ended up hiring a hot tub removal crew for $175.00 to move the tub about 15 feet and place it on its bottom... once that was done, we ran the electrical and low an behold, the tub started right up... It has been running for over 2 weeks now and we have not had one issue with it...

When the tub was shipped they forgot the two crescent shaped pillows... like someone else had mentioned... we called Infinity and they shipped them out the same day and we recieved them within 3 business days...

What an Awesome hot tub we purchased...

I had a marquie spa 8 yrs ago... and paid twice what we paid for this Infinity... and I love this one more... there are a lot more jets and the lounger is a lot more comfortable.. I can actually lay in the lounger and not float away... LOL...

I feel sorry for those people that did not order this hot tub when it was on special... Thanks Costco / Infinity for a wonderful product...

[Roger]

We bought our Infinity Laguna spa the first part of August... Costco said it had shipped a week later, yet Infinity said it had not shipped... Our hot tub arrived 3+ weeks after we ordered it... not a big deal as the cement slab was not ready yet... The guys that deliverd it from Spa Delivery.. they were total jerks... but our tub arrived and they delivered it to the curb.. there was NO way we were going to give them extra cash to move the tub onto our patio... We contacted our neighbor and he came over with his fork lift... moved the tub to our patio and there it sat for about 3 more weeks... we were looking for a hot tub placement party and trying to get enough people gathered at the same time to move the tub from its side to its bottom was not an easy task... we ended up hiring a hot tub removal crew for $175.00 to move the tub about 15 feet and place it on its bottom... once that was done, we ran the electrical and low an behold, the tub started right up... It has been running for over 2 weeks now and we have not had one issue with it...

When the tub was shipped they forgot the two crescent shaped pillows... like someone else had mentioned... we called Infinity and they shipped them out the same day and we recieved them within 3 business days...

What an Awesome hot tub we purchased...

I had a marquie spa 8 yrs ago... and paid twice what we paid for this Infinity... and I love this one more... there are a lot more jets and the lounger is a lot more comfortable.. I can actually lay in the lounger and not float away... LOL...

I feel sorry for those people that did not order this hot tub when it was on special... Thanks Costco / Infinity for a wonderful product...

We will revisit this post in a few years. At this point it is meaningless except to say about one out of 10 runs when purchased yet still had pillows missing.

[R & R]

We bought our Infinity Laguna spa the first part of August... Costco said it had shipped a week later, yet Infinity said it had not shipped... Our hot tub arrived 3+ weeks after we ordered it... not a big deal as the cement slab was not ready yet... The guys that deliverd it from Spa Delivery.. they were total jerks... but our tub arrived and they delivered it to the curb.. there was NO way we were going to give them extra cash to move the tub onto our patio... We contacted our neighbor and he came over with his fork lift... moved the tub to our patio and there it sat for about 3 more weeks... we were looking for a hot tub placement party and trying to get enough people gathered at the same time to move the tub from its side to its bottom was not an easy task... we ended up hiring a hot tub removal crew for $175.00 to move the tub about 15 feet and place it on its bottom... once that was done, we ran the electrical and low an behold, the tub started right up... It has been running for over 2 weeks now and we have not had one issue with it...

When the tub was shipped they forgot the two crescent shaped pillows... like someone else had mentioned... we called Infinity and they shipped them out the same day and we recieved them within 3 business days...

What an Awesome hot tub we purchased...

I had a marquie spa 8 yrs ago... and paid twice what we paid for this Infinity... and I love this one more... there are a lot more jets and the lounger is a lot more comfortable.. I can actually lay in the lounger and not float away... LOL...

I feel sorry for those people that did not order this hot tub when it was on special... Thanks Costco / Infinity for a wonderful product...

We will revisit this post in a few years. At this point it is meaningless except to say about one out of 10 runs when purchased yet still had pillows missing.

[R & R]

We bought our Infinity Laguna spa the first part of August... Costco said it had shipped a week later, yet Infinity said it had not shipped... Our hot tub arrived 3+ weeks after we ordered it... not a big deal as the cement slab was not ready yet... The guys that deliverd it from Spa Delivery.. they were total jerks... but our tub arrived and they delivered it to the curb.. there was NO way we were going to give them extra cash to move the tub onto our patio... We contacted our neighbor and he came over with his fork lift... moved the tub to our patio and there it sat for about 3 more weeks... we were looking for a hot tub placement party and trying to get enough people gathered at the same time to move the tub from its side to its bottom was not an easy task... we ended up hiring a hot tub removal crew for $175.00 to move the tub about 15 feet and place it on its bottom... once that was done, we ran the electrical and low an behold, the tub started right up... It has been running for over 2 weeks now and we have not had one issue with it...

When the tub was shipped they forgot the two crescent shaped pillows... like someone else had mentioned... we called Infinity and they shipped them out the same day and we recieved them within 3 business days...

What an Awesome hot tub we purchased...

I had a marquie spa 8 yrs ago... and paid twice what we paid for this Infinity... and I love this one more... there are a lot more jets and the lounger is a lot more comfortable.. I can actually lay in the lounger and not float away... LOL...

I feel sorry for those people that did not order this hot tub when it was on special... Thanks Costco / Infinity for a wonderful product...

We will revisit this post in a few years. At this point it is meaningless except to say about one out of 10 runs when purchased yet still had pillows missing.

[R & R]

Still lovin our hot tub... everything is working just fine... Not a care in the world... Would highly recommend this hot tub to anyone needing relief from back / neck / hip / leg pain... Since there are only two of us using the tub... we only use 3 of the 6 seats most of the time... My husband and I play "musical chairs" every night... It is fun... The tub sure is a stress releiver...

We are running the temp at 101 and not using the air... We are in the tub 30 - 45 minutes every night... The heater does not run all of the time... it is a very well insulated tub!

Thanks Infinity for producing a wonderful product that the "Average Joe" can afford. There is no need to purchase a $6K spa... unless you are the type of person out there that needs impress your friends with how much money you can throw around...

[East TX Spa]

Infinity changed their name to "Fin".

Alas, we hardly knew ye.....

Terminator

[Roger]

Thanks Infinity for producing a wonderful product that the "Average Joe" can afford. There is no need to purchase a $6K spa... unless you are the type of person out there that needs impress your friends with how much money you can throw around...

Or...if you want one with a warranty, dealer backing and support and will last more than a few years!! Then paying more will be well worth it.

[Hillbilly Hot Tub]

Still lovin our hot tub... everything is working just fine... Not a care in the world... Would highly recommend this hot tub to anyone needing relief from back / neck / hip / leg pain... Since there are only two of us using the tub... we only use 3 of the 6 seats most of the time... My husband and I play "musical chairs" every night... It is fun... The tub sure is a stress releiver...

We are running the temp at 101 and not using the air... We are in the tub 30 - 45 minutes every night... The heater does not run all of the time... it is a very well insulated tub!

Thanks Infinity for producing a wonderful product that the "Average Joe" can afford. There is no need to purchase a $6K spa... unless you are the type of person out there that needs impress your friends with how much money you can throw around...

Infinity is no longer.....there are reasons the tubs are so cheap, no there are 200 unemplyed people in TN.

[tony]

Still lovin our hot tub... everything is working just fine... Not a care in the world... Would highly recommend this hot tub to anyone needing relief from back / neck / hip / leg pain... Since there are only two of us using the tub... we only use 3 of the 6 seats most of the time... My husband and I play "musical chairs" every night... It is fun... The tub sure is a stress releiver...

We are running the temp at 101 and not using the air... We are in the tub 30 - 45 minutes every night... The heater does not run all of the time... it is a very well insulated tub!

Thanks Infinity for producing a wonderful product that the "Average Joe" can afford. There is no need to purchase a $6K spa... unless you are the type of person out there that needs impress your friends with how much money you can throw around...

This is a completely irresponsible statement by someone who has owned a spa for just a couple of months. The tone sounds like a person insecure in their purchase and needing to validate the decision made. Anyone who looks past the number of problems with Infinity is just sticking their heads in the sand.

[R & R]

Nope, not sticking our heads in the sand and we are NOT making an irresponsible statement!!! This is our third spa (due to buying new homes)... and it is the best we have owned... Sounds like "Tony" has his head in the sand and is insecure about the EXCESS $$ he spent for his spa!

You don't need to spend over 3-4 thousand dollars for a hot tub... We still love our hot tub... Infinity may no longer be in business, but that does not bother us... there are a lot of other companies that have folded due to the economic downturn... their company folding is due to the economic downturn... NOT THEIR INFERIOR PRODUCT!!! Take a good look at the "BIG 3"... if it were not for the Government, they would fold too! Infinity and a lot of other companies did not have the backing $$ from the Government... I AM NOT TURNING THIS POST INTO A FORUM FOR GOVERNMENTAL ISSUES...! and will not respond to anyone who does...

Our tub is still running great with NO problems... Everyone that comes over for a "dip" says they love the jets and the great relaxation they receive from the tub... Only raised our electricity bill $30.00 a month... and we have had more extreme cold weather than normal here in the Pacific NorthWest...

Anyone out there that is in the market for a used hot tub and you see an Infinity Laguna that is for sale... please consider it... it is a great product!!!

[Roger]

Nope, not sticking our heads in the sand and we are NOT making an irresponsible statement!!! This is our third spa (due to buying new homes)... and it is the best we have owned... Sounds like "Tony" has his head in the sand and is insecure about the EXCESS $$ he spent for his spa!

You don't need to spend over 3-4 thousand dollars for a hot tub... We still love our hot tub... Infinity may no longer be in business, but that does not bother us... there are a lot of other companies that have folded due to the economic downturn... their company folding is due to the economic downturn... NOT THEIR INFERIOR PRODUCT!!! Take a good look at the "BIG 3"... if it were not for the Government, they would fold too! Infinity and a lot of other companies did not have the backing $$ from the Government... I AM NOT TURNING THIS POST INTO A FORUM FOR GOVERNMENTAL ISSUES...! and will not respond to anyone who does...

Our tub is still running great with NO problems... Everyone that comes over for a "dip" says they love the jets and the great relaxation they receive from the tub... Only raised our electricity bill $30.00 a month... and we have had more extreme cold weather than normal here in the Pacific NorthWest...

Anyone out there that is in the market for a used hot tub and you see an Infinity Laguna that is for sale... please consider it... it is a great product!!!

What was the longest term you owned one of these spas?

If you buy a 3=4 thousand dollar tub don't expect it to last longer than a few years.

Government help for the big 3 are you comparing spa manufacturers to auto makers?? I don't get it?

No such thing as a used Infinity for sale. When its time to sell them they are junk.

[spatech (the unreal one)]

Infinity may no longer be in business, but that does not bother us... there are a lot of other companies that have folded due to the economic downturn... their company folding is due to the economic downturn... NOT THEIR INFERIOR PRODUCT!!!

I know you want to believe that but it is simply not true. Infinity went out for the same reason Keys and HydroSpa did before them. They built a low quality spa and sold it through Costco and the returns KILLED them. An Infinity person came on last month and said what did them in was Costco didn't pay for spas sent and the reason was because Costco started debiting them for all the failing spas returned.

These spa companies that have been doing business with Costco have been unable to build a dealer network and turned to Costco volume as a quick fix. That will work ONLY if they send a quality spa to Costco and none of the 3 mentioned did.

Now Costco is in bed with Living Waters (previously know as Tatum and before that Gulf Coast) who has been building junk spas for years so their demise is probably around the corner unless they somehow start building a god product. Since I believe a spa leopard doesn't easily change his spots I think the clock is running on them too (there is a lag between when you first start selling to Costco and when the returned spas start to roll back but its coming IMO).

[Matt87109]

Costco tub suppliers possibly bad, but Costco good. Dealer tub suppliers good, but dealers possibly bad.

I would say a 3000 dollar tub from Costco is a 1500 dollar tub that needs a little bit more attention to be a solid product, while a 6000 dollar tub from Hot Springs is a 2000 dollar tub with a high dealer mark up.

I bought a Sundance/Jacuzzi made cheaper spa from Costco a few years back. After a month water started dripping out the side. A slow leak had filled the entire pan with water and the wood on the interior floor was separated and warped. I called Costco and was pleasantly surprised by their excellent service. They told me I could let the manufacture try to convince me they could fix it, or I could could just say the word and they would extract it from my backyard and refund my money. I opted to to have it extracted. I liked the product for the price, but noted the lack of full foam insulation. At the time I was arranging to have it returned I told the Costco person I had spent 650 dollars hooking it up and they refunded the full amount surprisingly rather than the lower price I paid (500 dollars off). I almost wonder if that was a mistake because it really was unbelievable. At delivery I gave the driver and helper 50 dollars to set it down in my back yard, but when Costco arranged to have it picked up the same crew showed up and took care of everything with no additional cost. I would buy another tub from Costco in a second if I was so inclined because I believe Costco values me as a long term customer based on my prior experiences. When my tub had a problem, I just remained calm because I was aware of Costco's policy and it worked its self out in a week or so....... no big deal. I gave them a few days to call me back and things worked out just fine. I am not inclined to buy a Costco tub though because I don't want problems and am willing to pay a premium to reduce my chances.

This time around I'm more educated, am living less on the fringe, and am serious about having a quality therapy tub for back issues that will provide value over the long term. I'm going to wet test a jetsetter, Kauai, and Sprit. That being said I think the local dealer thing adds significantly more cost than value as I'm having a hard time wet testing anyway.

To all you dealers please don't be offended by this paragraph. I think you guys/gals are great and probably the exception to my observations, but in my local I'm just not impressed for the mark up I'll be paying. I don't think the current sales model has to be the case; Big box stores selling lower quality products and dealers selling higher quality products. I would be perfectly happy, in fact, I would prefer to buy a Hot Spring or Caldera from Costco given the quality remains. Beyond a wet test I see the dealers as an obstacle. I have to disagree with the comment that said something to the effect that a 3000 dollar tub from Costco is a 2500 dollar tub and a 6000 dollar tub from a dealer is a 6000 dollar tub. Generally consumer product manufacturers aim to build a product for 20% of the sales price. This enables the markups needed along the way and ultimately enables the dealer to sell the product for %100 mark up. I know it is not uncommon for HVAC people to mark up furnaces 300-400% over their wholesale price (criminals), so there is not a definite number. I'd love to see the dealer wholesale price for Hot Spring and Caldera, but I'm willing to bet you can't find it anywhere. While Costco tubs seem to be made with less labor and cheaper materials, the disparity in quality may be less than people realize. It is possible that a Costco tub costs 1500 dollars from the manufacturer and then Costco marks it up 100% and that a hot springs spa costs 2000 dollars from the manufacturer and then the dealers mark it up 300%. In manufacturing, spending 33% more on fabrication can easily produce a much higher quality product. In my fictitious scenario the Hot Spring tub costs 33% more than the Costco tub from the manufacture, which is only 500 dollars more. When building thousands of tubs, the price to add high quality components, more insulation, better materials, and a solid quality program that catches early failures and workmanship flaws could be accomplished by adding just a small amount to the per unit manufacturing cost. It's the dealers job to convince you that the tub is worth twice as much and their reward is a large overage/mark up. Again those are numbers I made up based on my experience in manufacturing/design engineering, not real numbers.

Now that I've pissed off all the dealers I will say that they are correct. They have the best products and I'll be giving a dealer a nice profit in the next month or so. While it is conceivable that a high quality tub could be sold by Costco, the current trend is that the materials, labor, and price point on Costco tubs leaves a little bit to be desired. If Costco said we don't need to be “this much” less than the dealers, we just need to be “this much plus 15%” less and then did a better job of courting decent manufactures or manufactures that are not in trouble as Spa Guru excellently points out, then maybe they could get a good thing going. In other words it seems the current choices are high mark up on good tubs and not enough quality control and manufacture integrity in the Costco line up. It's entirely possible that Costco could offer a tub that is 5k that is every bit as good as a 7k tub sold by a dealer, they just don't appear to be doing it.

If you read all that you are as big as a loser as I am for writing it

[Roger]

Costco tub suppliers possibly bad, but Costco good. Dealer tub suppliers good, but dealers possibly bad.

I would say a 3000 dollar tub from Costco is a 1500 dollar tub that needs a little bit more attention to be a solid product, while a 6000 dollar tub from Hot Springs is a 2000 dollar tub with a high dealer mark up.

I bought a Sundance/Jacuzzi made cheaper spa from Costco a few years back. After a month water started dripping out the side. A slow leak had filled the entire pan with water and the wood on the interior floor was separated and warped. I called Costco and was pleasantly surprised by their excellent service. They told me I could let the manufacture try to convince me they could fix it, or I could could just say the word and they would extract it from my backyard and refund my money. I opted to to have it extracted. I liked the product for the price, but noted the lack of full foam insulation. At the time I was arranging to have it returned I told the Costco person I had spent 650 dollars hooking it up and they refunded the full amount surprisingly rather than the lower price I paid (500 dollars off). I almost wonder if that was a mistake because it really was unbelievable. At delivery I gave the driver and helper 50 dollars to set it down in my back yard, but when Costco arranged to have it picked up the same crew showed up and took care of everything with no additional cost. I would buy another tub from Costco in a second if I was so inclined because I believe Costco values me as a long term customer based on my prior experiences. When my tub had a problem, I just remained calm because I was aware of Costco's policy and it worked its self out in a week or so....... no big deal. I gave them a few days to call me back and things worked out just fine. I am not inclined to buy a Costco tub though because I don't want problems and am willing to pay a premium to reduce my chances.

This time around I'm more educated, am living less on the fringe, and am serious about having a quality therapy tub for back issues that will provide value over the long term. I'm going to wet test a jetsetter, Kauai, and Sprit. That being said I think the local dealer thing adds significantly more cost than value as I'm having a hard time wet testing anyway.

To all you dealers please don't be offended by this paragraph. I think you guys/gals are great and probably the exception to my observations, but in my local I'm just not impressed for the mark up I'll be paying. I don't think the current sales model has to be the case; Big box stores selling lower quality products and dealers selling higher quality products. I would be perfectly happy, in fact, I would prefer to buy a Hot Spring or Caldera from Costco given the quality remains. Beyond a wet test I see the dealers as an obstacle. I have to disagree with the comment that said something to the effect that a 3000 dollar tub from Costco is a 2500 dollar tub and a 6000 dollar tub from a dealer is a 6000 dollar tub. Generally consumer product manufacturers aim to build a product for 20% of the sales price. This enables the markups needed along the way and ultimately enables the dealer to sell the product for %100 mark up. I know it is not uncommon for HVAC people to mark up furnaces 300-400% over their wholesale price (criminals), so there is not a definite number. I'd love to see the dealer wholesale price for Hot Spring and Caldera, but I'm willing to bet you can't find it anywhere. While Costco tubs seem to be made with less labor and cheaper materials, the disparity in quality may be less than people realize. It is possible that a Costco tub costs 1500 dollars from the manufacturer and then Costco marks it up 100% and that a hot springs spa costs 2000 dollars from the manufacturer and then the dealers mark it up 300%. In manufacturing, spending 33% more on fabrication can easily produce a much higher quality product. In my fictitious scenario the Hot Spring tub costs 33% more than the Costco tub from the manufacture, which is only 500 dollars more. When building thousands of tubs, the price to add high quality components, more insulation, better materials, and a solid quality program that catches early failures and workmanship flaws could be accomplished by adding just a small amount to the per unit manufacturing cost. It's the dealers job to convince you that the tub is worth twice as much and their reward is a large overage/mark up. Again those are numbers I made up based on my experience in manufacturing/design engineering, not real numbers.

Now that I've pissed off all the dealers I will say that they are correct. They have the best products and I'll be giving a dealer a nice profit in the next month or so. While it is conceivable that a high quality tub could be sold by Costco, the current trend is that the materials, labor, and price point on Costco tubs leaves a little bit to be desired. If Costco said we don't need to be “this much” less than the dealers, we just need to be “this much plus 15%” less and then did a better job of courting decent manufactures or manufactures that are not in trouble as Spa Guru excellently points out, then maybe they could get a good thing going. In other words it seems the current choices are high mark up on good tubs and not enough quality control and manufacture integrity in the Costco line up. It's entirely possible that Costco could offer a tub that is 5k that is every bit as good as a 7k tub sold by a dealer, they just don't appear to be doing it.

If you read all that you are as big as a loser as I am for writing it

I read it all so I am a looser just like you! I think you understand the Big Box Store business model but you overstated how much they pay for the tubs they buy and understated there markup. You also understated what the dealers pay for there tubs and overstated there markup. The seperation is more like 1500 for the Box tub cost selling for 3 grand and 4-5 grand for the 7-8 Dealer tub.

[Matt87109]

I read it all so I am a looser just like you! I think you understand the Big Box Store business model but you overstated how much they pay for the tubs they buy and understated there markup. You also understated what the dealers pay for there tubs and overstated there markup. The seperation is more like 1500 for the Box tub cost selling for 3 grand and 4-5 grand for the 7-8 Dealer tub.

I'll be the first to admit I don't know those numbers for real. I'm willing to bet we are both wrong. You are stating that Costco marks up their product 100% and the dealers only mark up their product 66%..... I find that hard to believe, but then again I don't really know. I get your point that Costco makes 1500 bucks on the sale of a tub and a dealer makes 500 more for their extra trouble and service. I don't believe that Hot Spring spends twice as much making their spas as others. I find it hard to believe that a dealer doesn't have to charge considerably more than Costco when you look at their overhead including building, employees, stock, fluctuations in the market. I guess many of them sell other products as well to even the sales during different times of the year like stoves.

Anyway do you know for sure or are you speculating like me? Unless a buyer for Costco can ring in and a dealer will let us know the wholesale prices we won't really know. I don't think Costco is like Wal-Mart in that they put margin over quality to the ultimate degree, but I get where you are coming from.

Do you have an option between Hot Spring, Caldera, or Marquis? I'll be buying one in the next few weeks.

[spatech (the unreal one)]

I don't think Costco is like Wal-Mart in that they put margin over quality to the ultimate degree, but I get where you are coming from.

Do you have an option between Hot Spring, Caldera, or Marquis? I'll be buying one in the next few weeks.

In the case of hot tubs, Costco DEFINITELY has put margin over quality, totally IMO. They have sold Hydro Spa, Keys, Infinity and now Living Waters and ALL of those have been known as low quality hot tubs in teh industry and Costco either wasn't aware or more likely thsoe were teh onyl ones willing to meet the Cosco price requriements. Costco has a price point which the supplier MUST meet and the only way to meet it apparently is at the cost of quality. Costco saw the first three companies fail because of this and still went to Living Waters who has been putting those awful Gulf Coast spas out for years. The price they sell them at is good but without the quality what is the point? The only selling point for Costco spas IMO is the fact that you can return them when their issues arrive (and they so often do with those brands).

As far as dealer spas go, not all are alike so its not as if you'd be better off with just any dealer spa. As far as Hot Spring, Caldera, or Marquis, I think all 3 are very good brands so just visit each, wet test and get a feel for the dealer.

[Matt87109]

I don't think Costco is like Wal-Mart in that they put margin over quality to the ultimate degree, but I get where you are coming from.

Do you have an option between Hot Spring, Caldera, or Marquis? I'll be buying one in the next few weeks.

In the case of hot tubs, Costco DEFINITELY has put margin over quality, totally IMO. They have sold Hydro Spa, Keys, Infinity and now Living Waters and ALL of those have been known as low quality hot tubs in teh industry and Costco either wasn't aware or more likely thsoe were teh onyl ones willing to meet the Cosco price requriements. Costco has a price point which the supplier MUST meet and the only way to meet it apparently is at the cost of quality. Costco saw the first three companies fail because of this and still went to Living Waters who has been putting those awful Gulf Coast spas out for years. The price they sell them at is good but without the quality what is the point? The only selling point for Costco spas IMO is the fact that you can return them when their issues arrive (and they so often do with those brands).

As far as dealer spas go, not all are alike so its not as if you'd be better off with just any dealer spa. As far as Hot Spring, Caldera, or Marquis, I think all 3 are very good brands so just visit each, wet test and get a feel for the dealer.

Yeah the experience I had with my Costco-bought tub verifies what you are saying. I'm wondering if many people don't use their tub enough for it to make a difference?..... kind of like a trophy in the corner? Anyway Costco has my respect even though they are not doing it quite right. I do believe that plenty of people get what they want when they buy a Costco tub, they are just not nerdy enough to want to get on the web and talk to other people about how happy they are. Also when somebody has a problem they end up on forums so the population sample is unrepresentative in these forums. I plan on making this tub a ritual in my life because I'm constantly looking for relief from back problems to the point that making time for the tub and maintenance won't be a loss of interest factor. If the tub will help even 5% I'll be using it religiously so I have no plans of buying anything other than a quality made therapy oriented tub.

[Ol' Philosopher]

We bought a Laguna model by Infinity through Costco last July, and got it up and running in August.

Let me state the obvious to avoid recriminations. We left a Costco tub behind when we moved, which we had enjoyed for 2 years. Ten years later, we kept an eye out for something we could afford, being retired. Costco offered the Laguna for $3K. The MSRP was $4K (LOL), but it had all the features we knew we wanted. Sure, I'd like a Toyota Tundra P/U, but I could only afford a Hundai. Nuff sed....

Within the first week, one of the jet nozzels popped out. No big deal, pop it back in. Then the control knob for the waterfall came off in my hand. No big deal, don't twist it too hard the next time. Comparing it to our previous spa, the pump sounded like a John Deere combine. I contacted the company and they replaced the pump, no questions asked, in September. Now, the 4-button control panel has Alzheimer's. Can't get if off Ecconomy Cycle. Called the company. Ooops, no company! Called the gentleman who replaced the pump for suggestions. He, along with about a jillion other service reps, had never been paid for any of his warrantee work. I tried to find out something about Living Waters Spas on the Internet, and ended up on an on-line ministry site. <sigh> I guessed someone was trying to tell me to pray a lot.

Finally called Costco. (Duh...) Wow! No problem, sir, we'll take care of your problem, including a 100% refund if that's what you want. Okay! Happy customer.

Now, I'm left with a choice: Take the money and run, "up grade" to another bottom-end spa, or get this one repaired and wait for the next malfunction.

What's the point of this post?

First, Costco Customers take heart! They will honor their customer satisfaction guarantee.

Second point is harder to swallow. There ain't no free lunch. If you can't afford a Cadilac, don't expect your ecconomy car to behave like one. There will ALWAYS be a market for consumers like me, for finacial reasons. In one respect, a marginal quality spa is preferable to no spa at all. It's just disheartening that the American work ethic of "quality merchandise at an afforable price" had been abandoned.

[R & R]

Amazing... we only see negative responses... how many happy customers are out there... if you are a happy customer you do not look for negative issues....

Our Infinity is still running strong and we still have a Cheshire grin from ear to ear.... You naysayers eat your hearts out...

Oh by the way... once upon a time FORD... meant Fix or Repair Daily... Hmmmm.... we still drive a 1949 Ford daily... 50 years and still going strong.... it was supposed to self destruct in the mid 50's. Not like the Oldsmobile, Plymouth, Desoto or REO... too bad... guess they were not meant to last for this long....

You negative prophets do not like to admit there are good things in life even tho the dollars spent were not to your liking... too bad... sometimes qualtiy comes whether you like it or not... eat your hearts out

[Ol' Philosopher]

R & R:

You bring up a good point, and if my reply is slightly off-topic, sorry 'bout that.

You are 100% right about negative attitudes. The Law of Attraction says that we usually get what we don't want, because that's what we think about and expect. Your positive attitude is going to bring you positive results, every time. (Well, almost every time)

We bought an inexpensive tub knowing (and expecting) there might be quality issues. Guess what? We got what we expected.

Rock on, R & R, rock on!

[Roger]

Our Infinity is still running strong and we still have a Cheshire grin from ear to ear.... You naysayers eat your hearts out...

Not once has any of the "my Infinity is running stong" guys mentioned how old there tub was????

My expectations for a good quality tub start at 10 years and go untill 20 or more. I have disposed of a 22 year old tub. That guy got a GREAT value on his tub. I have disposed of a 5 year old tub, not so good a value in my mind.

Please quantify your experience with years for us naysayers thank you!!

[R & R]

Master Naysayer we defer to you and your infinite wisdom... It is quite evident no matter the experience that you will dispute even the best of things... we saw a brand new (not even licensed yet) Cadillac alongside the road broken down... in your mind does that means that Cadillacs are not reliable or a very good product...…It is very difficult to have an intelligent discussion with persons of your mindset...

We will not be here again...

[Roger]

Master Naysayer we defer to you and your infinite wisdom... It is quite evident no matter the experience that you will dispute even the best of things... we saw a brand new (not even licensed yet) Cadillac alongside the road broken down... in your mind does that means that Cadillacs are not reliable or a very good product...…It is very difficult to have an intelligent discussion with persons of your mindset...

We will not be here again...

If 10 out of every 15 caddys breakdown then it is not a good value. If 1 or 2 break down it remains steadfast (Cadillac is a bad example, luxury at it's unreliable best, the Thermospas of the auto world.) Same holds true for tubs.

[Huskytub]

Master Naysayer we defer to you and your infinite wisdom... It is quite evident no matter the experience that you will dispute even the best of things... we saw a brand new (not even licensed yet) Cadillac alongside the road broken down... in your mind does that means that Cadillacs are not reliable or a very good product...…It is very difficult to have an intelligent discussion with persons of your mindset...

We will not be here again...

R & R

I hope you get to read this reply, because you are dead on about this site. I have lurked and read many, many, posts in this forum and it is plain to see that the folks here giving all the "opinions" are tied to the business and what they sell and service is the "only spa to buy" while everything else is "junk"

I visit many forum sites to gain info and knowledge on many different products/issues and I have to say that this site is by far the WORST for finding a non-biased opinion/answer.