Thanks

[goofysteves]

I am another hot tub newbie and I just wanted to thank all the posters on this site for their info and opinions on hot tubs. When my wife first said she was interested in a hot tub, I ran for my Consumers Reports books and found nothing. I came upon this site while doing some internet research. AWESOME. I never felt the need to ask any questions since somebody else always seemed to have already done so and they received great feedback.

Thank You #1: We started off being awed by some of the lesser brands (we didn't know it at the time) but this forum quickly steered us to Hot Springs, Arctic and Sundance. Nothing against Marquis, D1, and any of the other fine tubs mentioned in the forum - we just wanted a dealer within 30-45 minutes of our home (southwest of Akron).

Thank You #2: We also started off thinking we wanted a lounger or two in the tub. Sure felt good during the dry test. But if I read it once, I read it 100 times - YOU MUST WET TEST. Hey, we actually didn't like the loungers. We either floated up or away from the sides of the tub. And the sittting seats felt better, especially from a theraputic standpoint for my wife's bad back.

Thank You #3: The dealer is as important as the tub choice. We liked the Sundance Hamilton and Cameo but the local Sundance dealer would not fill an empty tub to let us wet test. If that's how cooperative they are before the sale, how bad wil it be after they have our money!? Anyway, once we decided we didn't like loungers that eliminated those 2 models anyway. We also did a check with the Better Business Bureau to confirm there were no serious issues with any of our selected dealers.

Thank You #4: The never-ending discussion on insulation was very helpful for us to understand the pros and cons of each method. We don't know which one is the 'best' but we are sure that the insulation on the Arctic and Hot Springs would both be very good (OK, maybe excellent).

As for the decision, we narrowed it down to the Arctic Tundra Legend and the Hot Springs Grandee. We wanted a high quality cover, pneumatic lifter, CD ozonator, sturdy steps, multi-colored light(s), electric subpanel, chemicals and delivery/setup.

All of the Hot Springs dealers were willing to guarantee, in writing, that there would be no service/gas charge for any work done under warranty. The lone Arctic dealer would not and in fact wanted $35 per trip. Just out of principle, I don't see why I should have to pay the dealer's repairman a fee to come out and fix a 'defect' in the tub sold to me by the dealer. And $35 seemed excessive, even at $4/gallon for gas.

We had a slight preference for the Tundra because of the placement of jets for lower back therapy (my wife needed to sit on a booster seat to get the same benefit from the Grandee) and the cedar cabinets. On the other hand, the Hot Springs water seemed a lot cleaner (perhaps the Arctic dealer wasn't keeping up with cleaning his tubs) in the tubs we wet tested. It is kinda nice feeling you don't have to rinse off after getting out of the tub.

The package price from 2 of the Hot Springs dealers and the Artic dealer were about the same - around $11,500US. But the third Hot Spring dealer must have been a little bit hungrier as they came in $1,500 lower and they didn't even have one on their lot. The dealer was very cooperative (as were all of the finalists) throughout our decision-making process and even stayed late so that we could wet test (several times) after hours.

For us it was like choosing between a BMW and a Mercedes - 2 excellent options. But the lower price was the difference maker. We are placing an order for the Grandee tomorrow and look forward to may years of happy tubbing. We will be placing it on a 4" concrete pad inside a newly constructed screened room (with a removeable wall to insert/remove the tub), adjacent to our walk-out basement.

Thanks again for everyone's help in our process.

P.S. I was kinda bummed that I would not be getting Tom's excellent post-Arctic-sale service that I saw in may other posts. But there seemed to be some knowledgeable Hot Springs experts in here should I have any problems in the future.

[IL Parrothead]

Steves, congrats! You'll love your hot tub. You narrowed down to two great brands. I've been out of the soaking circle for almost a month (my tub got destroyed in a tornado), but my replacement was delivered today ('08 Marquis Epic) -- and I just got back from my first soak! Awesome!!!

The next couple of weeks of waiting will drive you nuts! Please post pics once you're up and running.

Congrats again!

[r5ran]

Excellent, well-written note, Goofysteves, and one I have been meaning to write and agree with totally all the way! My personal "thanks" to all the knowledgeable and unselfish readers out there. I too was in such an identical situation (even down to the exact same tub brands, lounger issue, and service call charge!) over the last year, and faced all the same decisions and questions. I agree with all your "Thank you' points 1-4 totally.

****NOTE***** Any newbies just starting there search for a tub, heed Goofysteve's advice!

Having owned my new H/S Vanguard now for just about a month, I can look back and appreciate all the help and info I received from this site, and shutter to think what I may have ended up with if I did not have this site available. Sure my H/S tub wasn't cheap, but my tub has been flawless so far, and I feel is a high quality item that will serve me well in the years ahead.

I read so many posts from Costco/big box store brand tub buyers here, adamantly defending their purchases, thinking they saved so much money and received the same tub other high end brand buyers got. Only to see countless posts from similar buyers after the sale, asking about assembly problems, adding insulation, energy usage, and missing or improperly installed components. Note how few posts like that you DON"T see from purchasers of high end tubs here.

I'm just as frugal as anyone out there (ask my wife!), but don't mind spending the extra bucks if there is value to go along with it.

I am sure you will love your new tub, the Grandee is...Grand! We didn't need such a large tub, so the Vanguard fit us perfectly, but the Grandee would of been our choice if we did.

(BTW, let me know what you think of the blue pillow LED's (read my other post!), and if your knowledgeable dealer out there has any suggestions!)

Good luck and welcome!

Randy

I am another hot tub newbie and I just wanted to thank all the posters on this site for their info and opinions on hot tubs. When my wife first said she was interested in a hot tub, I ran for my Consumers Reports books and found nothing. I came upon this site while doing some internet research. AWESOME. I never felt the need to ask any questions since somebody else always seemed to have already done so and they received great feedback.

Thank You #1: We started off being awed by some of the lesser brands (we didn't know it at the time) but this forum quickly steered us to Hot Springs, Arctic and Sundance. Nothing against Marquis, D1, and any of the other fine tubs mentioned in the forum - we just wanted a dealer within 30-45 minutes of our home (southwest of Akron).

Thank You #2: We also started off thinking we wanted a lounger or two in the tub. Sure felt good during the dry test. But if I read it once, I read it 100 times - YOU MUST WET TEST. Hey, we actually didn't like the loungers. We either floated up or away from the sides of the tub. And the sittting seats felt better, especially from a theraputic standpoint for my wife's bad back.

Thank You #3: The dealer is as important as the tub choice. We liked the Sundance Hamilton and Cameo but the local Sundance dealer would not fill an empty tub to let us wet test. If that's how cooperative they are before the sale, how bad wil it be after they have our money!? Anyway, once we decided we didn't like loungers that eliminated those 2 models anyway. We also did a check with the Better Business Bureau to confirm there were no serious issues with any of our selected dealers.

Thank You #4: The never-ending discussion on insulation was very helpful for us to understand the pros and cons of each method. We don't know which one is the 'best' but we are sure that the insulation on the Arctic and Hot Springs would both be very good (OK, maybe excellent).

As for the decision, we narrowed it down to the Arctic Tundra Legend and the Hot Springs Grandee. We wanted a high quality cover, pneumatic lifter, CD ozonator, sturdy steps, multi-colored light(s), electric subpanel, chemicals and delivery/setup.

All of the Hot Springs dealers were willing to guarantee, in writing, that there would be no service/gas charge for any work done under warranty. The lone Arctic dealer would not and in fact wanted $35 per trip. Just out of principle, I don't see why I should have to pay the dealer's repairman a fee to come out and fix a 'defect' in the tub sold to me by the dealer. And $35 seemed excessive, even at $4/gallon for gas.

We had a slight preference for the Tundra because of the placement of jets for lower back therapy (my wife needed to sit on a booster seat to get the same benefit from the Grandee) and the cedar cabinets. On the other hand, the Hot Springs water seemed a lot cleaner (perhaps the Arctic dealer wasn't keeping up with cleaning his tubs) in the tubs we wet tested. It is kinda nice feeling you don't have to rinse off after getting out of the tub.

The package price from 2 of the Hot Springs dealers and the Artic dealer were about the same - around $11,500US. But the third Hot Spring dealer must have been a little bit hungrier as they came in $1,500 lower and they didn't even have one on their lot. The dealer was very cooperative (as were all of the finalists) throughout our decision-making process and even stayed late so that we could wet test (several times) after hours.

For us it was like choosing between a BMW and a Mercedes - 2 excellent options. But the lower price was the difference maker. We are placing an order for the Grandee tomorrow and look forward to may years of happy tubbing. We will be placing it on a 4" concrete pad inside a newly constructed screened room (with a removeable wall to insert/remove the tub), adjacent to our walk-out basement.

Thanks again for everyone's help in our process.

P.S. I was kinda bummed that I would not be getting Tom's excellent post-Arctic-sale service that I saw in may other posts. But there seemed to be some knowledgeable Hot Springs experts in here should I have any problems in the future.

[Trigger]

Congrats Steve. Sounds like you did your homework, did the right shopping around and found the right tub for you.

Oh...I agreee with you 100% on trip charges. I understand the rising cost of fuel, but if a dealer or tech needs to recoup it's costs, then they should go back to the manufacuter for that, not the customer.

anyhow...enjoy your new tub. You're gonna love it.

[Tom]

As a moderator, I thank you for your excellent post which shows that the forum is doing a good job with its intended purpose of providing information and guidance to people looking for a hot tub.

As the Arctic Spas factory spokesman, I thank you for your clear and candid comments about the dealer and the buying process. Please PM me with the name of the dealer so I can discuss this with them. Also, I'd like your permission to use the parts of your post about water quality and trip charges in our dealer newsletter as part of our ongoing training program.

Happy hot tubbing

Tom