New Or Used Spa?

[Lifelong Longhorn]

Should I look at used spas to save a few Thousand dollars?

I've read some horror stories about Costco, Should I avoid them?

Should I wait for the State Fair?

We saw alot of them there the last few years.

What's usually the first thing that goes wrong with a spa?

[East TX Spa]

I'm assuming that you mean the Great State Fair of Texas! I go every year to check out the hot tubs, see the shows, and eat the latest culinary creations....best fair in the world!

Having been to the fair many times and seeing the ways that the spas are marketed, this is my recommendation (for what it's worth):

Never buy a hot tub at the fair. It is a great place to see the different spas, sit in them (dry), gather information, etc. After doing this, THEN go home and do the research on the various brands. Find out if they have local representation. Do a BBB check on the local dealer as well as the manufacturer. Read consumer reviews.

The folks selling spas at the fair are high pressure, high commission salespeople who will tell you ANYTHING to make a sale that day. Then they are never to be heard from again as they head to the next exposition.

Just remember, you can always get the same "deal" at the showroom that they are offering at the fair. In my experience, you will actually get a BETTER deal a few weeks afterwards once the guns for hire are gone.

Do not give anyone your name or contact information at the fair. If you go to the dealership later, they will charge you a higher price to cover the commission of the salesman from the fair. Deal directly with the local store and you will come out further ahead.

Good luck in your shopping.

Terminator

[spatech (the unreal one)]

Should I look at used spas to save a few Thousand dollars?

I've read some horror stories about Costco, Should I avoid them?

Should I wait for the State Fair?

We saw alot of them there the last few years.

What's usually the first thing that goes wrong with a spa?

1) As long as you are picky and thorough you can get good deals on used spas, just like used cars. Some people sell them for a good deal and others want too much. Some work well while others have issues or will soon after you get them (used spas don't like to be moved) so if you go that route NEVER buy a used spa unless you can see it fully operational and up to temp, no exceptions. You'll need to be patient to find the good deal and you should be handy as you can't always expect you'll simply be able to plug and play.

2) I don't avoid Costco, I shop there weekly. Seriously though there is much debate there relative to spas. Their selling point is the return policy so if you can see yourself hauling it back then that's a good thing to have. The prices are reasonable but there will be no local service so those spas are truly for DIYers IMO. The quality of the brands Costco has sold the past decade has been very poor (they push for pricing and the manufacturers who'll meet their demands have never been the ones who make top notch products or just cut corners to meet the prices required). Recent buyers may insist theirs are the exception and while maybe its true with this current supplier we've heard that before so time will tell.

3) The fair is great for being able to see different brands/models all at one time. However, those fairs cost them $$ and while they'll tell you about special fair pricing and blowouts blah, blah the reality is usually you can usually get just as good a deal at the local dealers but if you do buy from the fair I'd only do it if they are someone who is local. Ask where their store and verify it; you want to be able to go see them later if issues arise.

4) Any number of things can go wrong on a spa. That's why its important that you buy something made by a manufacturer known to back their product as well as from a local dealer who will be there for you after the sale when the need arises.

[Dnepr Dave]

I bought a used spa and have had no problems with it.

Dave

[THE SPA GUY]

Lifelong longhorn,

with repect to what spatech and Term state, the fair is a great place to go to see several brand spas in one place, yes there are dealerships that bring in showteam guys and are very high pressure, depending on the location of the fair the vendors do pay a huge amount for there space . so they have to sell lots of spas to make up for it. up in our neck of the woods are fair is 10 days long and actually a lot more reasonable then others i have seen, we go to the fair to show our face and to be seen, We personally do not use any show guys, it is me. Yes i want to sell spas, but i am not a high pressure guy even at the fair, We are up front and tell people to look around check them out , if they are ready to buy no problem, if not stop by the store after and let us know you were at the fair, we do not hike up our spas for the fair, we lower them a little bit, that is our big sale of the year, but if someone comes in a month or two after the fair ands want to buy we still honor the price, like i said we go to be seen ans since we are a small smaller area up here, we want to go head to head with our competition. But like Term and Spatech said you can go get info feel out the dealer go home and do more research to make your decision. But your second question (do i buy a spa at Costco) i am on the same boat as Spatech and term here, i shop the quite a bit , as tempting as it may be, i do not buy anything like mowers, cameras, computers, hot tubs etc. i want to buy those from a dealership that can answer technical questions as well as having parts and or service for them, IMO stick with D1, Hot Springs, Sundance, Jacuzzi, MArquis, to name a few.

[lena2350]

Lifelong longhorn,

with repect to what spatech and Term state, the fair is a great place to go to see several brand spas in one place, yes there are dealerships that bring in showteam guys and are very high pressure, depending on the location of the fair the vendors do pay a huge amount for there space . so they have to sell lots of spas to make up for it. up in our neck of the woods are fair is 10 days long and actually a lot more reasonable then others i have seen, we go to the fair to show our face and to be seen, We personally do not use any show guys, it is me. Yes i want to sell spas, but i am not a high pressure guy even at the fair, We are up front and tell people to look around check them out , if they are ready to buy no problem, if not stop by the store after and let us know you were at the fair, we do not hike up our spas for the fair, we lower them a little bit, that is our big sale of the year, but if someone comes in a month or two after the fair ands want to buy we still honor the price, like i said we go to be seen ans since we are a small smaller area up here, we want to go head to head with our competition. But like Term and Spatech said you can go get info feel out the dealer go home and do more research to make your decision. But your second question (do i buy a spa at Costco) i am on the same boat as Spatech and term here, i shop the quite a bit , as tempting as it may be, i do not buy anything like mowers, cameras, computers, hot tubs etc. i want to buy those from a dealership that can answer technical questions as well as having parts and or service for them, IMO stick with D1, Hot Springs, Sundance, Jacuzzi, MArquis, to name a few.

I did alot of research on Hot tubs and searched along time for a GOOD deal on a used one, and finally found one. I think hot tubs are so over priced and would never ever shell out that much money for a new one. It is ridiculus. I love my used hot tub, it was almost like new.

[spatech (the unreal one)]

I did alot of research on Hot tubs and searched along time for a GOOD deal on a used one, and finally found one. I think hot tubs are so over priced and would never ever shell out that much money for a new one. It is ridiculus. I love my used hot tub, it was almost like new.

...but you could say the same thing about cars. Compare a 1 or 2 year old used car versus a new one and you'll also conclude new cars are way overpriced. There will always be people who prefer a used hot tub just as there are always people who only buy used cars and there is nothing wrong with that.

[JimKW]

I bought a 2005 Sundance Optima for $2,000. Paid to have it delivered and paid an electrician to hook it up. Total cost less than $3,000 in March of this year. I feel as if I came as close to stealing it that you can come. I kept shopping until I found a deal I could not pass up. Had to buy it fast too becuase it was such a good deal. Luckily it was all set up for use and my wife and I water tested it, listened to why the guy was selling it (he was moving out of state) and bought it right on the spot. Two others were coming to look at it right after me so there was no time to think it over. Pretty sure the guy priced it too low and I was lucky enough to be the first one to look at it.

[dark rider]

We're wrapping up our shopping now, and looked at both new and used. A word of warning. If you buy private sale used, you're not getting any kind of manufacturer warranty whatsoever (none are transferable regardless of what the seller says!), so you better be darn sure of either your own knowledge or have a professional look the spa over to ensure it's the deal that it's made out to be. Not to say good deals can't be had off of craigslist, but it can also be a big gamble as well, so at least find a tech who is willing to inspect the spa for a reasonable cost.

If you buy from a dealer used, you'll likely get at least some type of minimal dealer warranty, and the reputable dealers typically won't peddle junk, but expect to pay a premium for a well gone through used tub. On average, I found used pricing for tubs 5 years or less old from dealers to be between 50% - 70% of new pricing (highly dependent on specific age and model changes). That's still a pretty significant difference over new, so if you can find exactly what you want used from a dealer, and still get reasonable warranty terms (make sure the dealer has been around for a while and will continue to be around), than I'd definitely say go for it. Several of the reputable dealers in my area sell a significant amount of dealer refurbished tubs. One of those dealers went as far as saying he had yet to see a tub that he took in trade or bought used for purposes of resale that didn't need some servicing, regardless of how new, clean or well kept they were. I'd speculate that the dealers costs on average come nowhere close to making up the depreciation hit, but if you're particular about colors, features, and maximizing life, and enjoying a full warranty than buying new isn't a bad deal either, once you get past the sticker shock at least

[Lifelong Longhorn]

I bought a 2005 Sundance Optima for $2,000. Paid to have it delivered and paid an electrician to hook it up. Total cost less than $3,000 in March of this year. I feel as if I came as close to stealing it that you can come. I kept shopping until I found a deal I could not pass up. Had to buy it fast too becuase it was such a good deal. Luckily it was all set up for use and my wife and I water tested it, listened to why the guy was selling it (he was moving out of state) and bought it right on the spot. Two others were coming to look at it right after me so there was no time to think it over. Pretty sure the guy priced it too low and I was lucky enough to be the first one to look at it.

[Lifelong Longhorn]

Where did you find your spa? Classified or Craig's List?