What's Important To You..?

[d1dennis2009]

I was wonerding what is important to a consumer, when they buy a spa. I think we will all agree that price, efficiency and ease of maintenance are all key factors. But I wanted to see what "features" people find to be the most important to them. There are many things that I feel are nice to have but not must haves such as a stereo, tv's, coolers and a whole list of others devices that have somehow been incorporated into the new spas of today. I just wanted to see what you feel is a must have for a great spa, and this poll is for all manufacturers, consumer and technicians..!

What do you like in a spa..?

[shovelhd]

What do you like in a spa..?

I prefer the basics as there is less to break and dissapoint.

Open seating design with good ergonomics.

Multiple seating positions with different depths and jet compliments.

Some amount of jet adjustability but it doesn't have to be individual by seat.

One seat that will blast my old aching body when I need it.

Reasonable priced and easily obtainable replacement parts. I do my own work whenever I can.

Quality parts throughout.

A great dealer network to back me up that's close, reasonably priced, and available.

That's basically it.

[iflych52]

What do you like in a spa..?

I prefer the basics as there is less to break and dissapoint.

Open seating design with good ergonomics.

Multiple seating positions with different depths and jet compliments.

Some amount of jet adjustability but it doesn't have to be individual by seat.

One seat that will blast my old aching body when I need it.

Reasonable priced and easily obtainable replacement parts. I do my own work whenever I can.

Quality parts throughout.

A great dealer network to back me up that's close, reasonably priced, and available.

That's basically it.

I could not have said it any better. Can't wait for my Bullfrog to get here.

[reeffreak]

Minimize the electronics- no tv's radios / etc. that are prone to break. The 6 mo warranty that I've seen on most of these accessories should say something...

Non "Must haves":

As a consumer I thought the lights / fountains / waterfall were gimmicks, but the tub I bought had them and I really enjoy them. Especially how the individual colors of the multicolor LED lights are broken out in waterfall droplets.

Laser prices have really come down (especially in live production settings). What effects could be created underwater with lasers that would replace the spa light- motion / colors / etc.

Two innovations that I'd like to see:

Displaced water capture to keep the spa a consistent level. So the water is at the same level when there is 1 or 7 adults in the tub. I've seen this one brought up before. I don't know where there would be room to keep it without the cabinet being larger though.

Skimming of foam into some kind of collection system. In reef aquaria, we extract proteins and organic waste from the water in a bubble column. We don't even use filters anymore. Google protein skimmer to see what I'm talking about. With air injection systems, our tubs are basically giant protein skimmers, and the foam that forms is waste that should be extracted from the tub. Figure out a mechanism to skim that foam off and remove it from the tub, and you'll have something that has not been done before. Might be part of a "green" sanitation strategy. There is real potential here- free ideas.

[salp]

a backed warranty.... they all look good, but will the company back up their tub, or try and squeeze their way out of warranties and use the terms 'pump abuse' and 'chemical abuse'.

[d1dennis2009]

So far there are some good pieces of information here, and thank you all for the feedback. However, I would like to keep this as an opportunity to contribute ideas to a future project and we all agree here that a supported warranty is important. So with that, how about some more ideas on what make a great tub great..!