MD Hot Tub Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 This forum has been quite helpful to me in evaluating hot tub options. I would like to know if anyone has any experience in assessing an electrician's estimate for hooking up the hot tub. Here's my situation: I have a 50 year old house with a 100 amp service line to the main panel. When the electrician came out to estimate how much it would take to hook up the 220 hot tub, he said that I should consider doing a "heavy up" to the house so that my service line would be at 200 amps. According to his estimate, he would do all the work for the "heavy up" (new service line to the back of the house, new panel, grounding) for $2,200. The estimate for the "heavy up", hot tub hookup and two outdoor recepticles would be 3,400. I have no idea if this is a fair estimate. I live in the DC suburbs. The electrician seemed to be reputable and has been very responsive. If someone with more experience in electrical work has some comments about these costs, I'd really appreciate the advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTX1800CMan Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 If they are going to change out your main service panel from a 100 to a 200amp service plus do all the wiring for the spa, I think that is fair price in the D.C. area. But like anything it would not be a bad idea to get a couple more estimates, but remember the cheapest is not always the best one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwillard Posted February 12, 2007 Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 If they are going to change out your main service panel from a 100 to a 200amp service plus do all the wiring for the spa, I think that is fair price in the D.C. area. But like anything it would not be a bad idea to get a couple more estimates, but remember the cheapest is not always the best one. I also have a home built in 1950 and luckily for me I upgraded the service a year or so back so it wasn’t as bad. I always recommend getting at least 3 estimates and ask as many questions as possible. Also...as stated the cheapest isn’t always the best. In my neighborhood they have a flier that gets past out every month and there are local business that advertise in it. Its funny but out of 3 estimates here are the numbers quoted. All were on site and visually estimated the job. $450-$470 depending on the cost of copper wire. $620 this guy told me they may have to upgrade my panel...I already knew this was done so I didn’t even call them back, and the last one was $875 and he couldn’t get to it for a week I went with the $450 and the guy did an awesome job, but he also was the most personable of the 3. I always pay with credit card so if I have any issues I can dispute it on my visa. I honestly can say if your panel needs upgraded you should do it, if its in your budget regardless if you are having it done for the spa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MD Hot Tub Posted February 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2007 Thanks guys. I realize that my total estimate has other costs included, but it seems that anywhere between 450 and 900 is in the range for a simple hot tub hookup. J Willard -- Where are you located? I understand that electrical work can vary significant by locale. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmendoza17 Posted February 13, 2007 Report Share Posted February 13, 2007 If you buy a Hot Spring tub, they run 120v at 20 amp. Don't know how that affects anything else, but you might save a bundle on hookup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeM Posted February 14, 2007 Report Share Posted February 14, 2007 I was estimated ~ 650 by local electrician to hook up my 220 50amp spa. I am in Madison, WI and things here are probably cheaper than DC but not by much. Housing is through the roof lately, contractors as well. By the way, Copper went up about 150-200% in the past 18 months. I have an electrician friend who told me how i could do it on my own and I paid about $220 in materials (4x 30 feet of THHN #6 wire, 50 amp Circuit breaker, 30 feet of Liquidtight conduit and an external GFCI breaker box for outside.) When I moved in, I "upgraded" from a 66amp FUSE box to a 100amp fused box service. Since then, I have broken out many of the overloaded circuits in my home and brought everything up to code. I have 2 breaker panels free on a 32 breaker box WITH my tub. I probably am pretty close to overloading but I figure I dont use the A/C, and dryer much at the same time, nor will I have the hot tub @ 100 set temp during the summer A/C months. I think Ill be doing as RH suggests, and running mine in "cool water mode." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwillard Posted February 16, 2007 Report Share Posted February 16, 2007 J Willard -- Where are you located? I understand that electrical work can vary significant by locale. Orlando Florida!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim_The_Jim Posted February 16, 2007 Report Share Posted February 16, 2007 This forum has been quite helpful to me in evaluating hot tub options. I would like to know if anyone has any experience in assessing an electrician's estimate for hooking up the hot tub. Here's my situation: I have a 50 year old house with a 100 amp service line to the main panel. When the electrician came out to estimate how much it would take to hook up the 220 hot tub, he said that I should consider doing a "heavy up" to the house so that my service line would be at 200 amps. According to his estimate, he would do all the work for the "heavy up" (new service line to the back of the house, new panel, grounding) for $2,200. The estimate for the "heavy up", hot tub hookup and two outdoor recepticles would be 3,400. I have no idea if this is a fair estimate. I live in the DC suburbs. The electrician seemed to be reputable and has been very responsive. If someone with more experience in electrical work has some comments about these costs, I'd really appreciate the advice. The hot tub really has nothing to do with the fact that, in this day and age, a 100 AMP service is not adequate on most homes. Maybe a small under 900 sq ft home. It would be good to upgrade the service anyway. A 120 V spa is pretty worthless outside in your winter. $2,000 to $2500 in your area seems reasonable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Webini Posted February 17, 2007 Report Share Posted February 17, 2007 A 120 V spa is pretty worthless outside in your winter. Really? My Jetsetter is 115v and seems to be doing just fine during this winter in Maine. I've been soaking in 5 degree weather without an issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Spa Posted February 17, 2007 Report Share Posted February 17, 2007 It's always good to hear from an owner with experience, rather than a salesman with an agenda. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeM Posted February 18, 2007 Report Share Posted February 18, 2007 and my home (1400 sq ft) is doing just fine on 100 amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy_r Posted February 20, 2007 Report Share Posted February 20, 2007 I would add that you should look at the state of your current panel and what if any electrical additions you may be putting on your house in the future. If you have a fuse panel than it is worth it just to upgrade to a more modern panel. If your house has been running fine on the 100Amp panel and you have no plans for putting in new circuits well than you may be just fine. If you plan on kitchen remodels, additions to the house, etc. Than I would recommend upgrading the panel. Also research what panel gets put in because all panels are not created equal. Some are definitely easier to work on than others. You did not mention if you actually had room in your panel to put in a breaker to feed the sub panel for your hot tub. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim_The_Jim Posted February 23, 2007 Report Share Posted February 23, 2007 Really? My Jetsetter is 115v and seems to be doing just fine during this winter in Maine. I've been soaking in 5 degree weather without an issue. I ran one of the most energy efficient spas on 120 V and it was about as small as yours. The only way to get a long 30 minutes soak was to leave the thermal blanket on top of the water. Before that if the wind blew, it was less than 10 minute soak. This is in Colorado. I have talked with a lot of the old 120 V Hot Spring owners and typically they would have the thermostat set to 110 degrees so they could extend the soak time. Once the cover is off and the wind blows, the laws of physics kick in, like evaporative, convective cooling. How long do you actually stay in the tub at 5 degrees outside? and my home (1400 sq ft) is doing just fine on 100 amp. If it was built today, it would not meet code. There are a lot more appiances being used and if you run a dryer, stove, refrigerator, microwave, and spa at the same time, the lights will dim on 100 Amps. I went out on a service call on a hot tub and the owner was cooking on the stove while the dryer was on and several lights were on. I hit the pump to high and the 100 amp house breaker tripped. The NEC has load calculations based upon the square footage of your home and every so often the amps per square foot have gone up. The bottom line to all this is what is actually running in your home and what can potentially run all at the same time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Webini Posted February 24, 2007 Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 I ran one of the most energy efficient spas on 120 V and it was about as small as yours. The only way to get a long 30 minutes soak was to leave the thermal blanket on top of the water. Before that if the wind blew, it was less than 10 minute soak. This is in Colorado. I have talked with a lot of the old 120 V Hot Spring owners and typically they would have the thermostat set to 110 degrees so they could extend the soak time. Once the cover is off and the wind blows, the laws of physics kick in, like evaporative, convective cooling. How long do you actually stay in the tub at 5 degrees outside? What is your issue? I run my tub at 104. I've stayed longer than 30 minutes in 5 degree weather. The temperature drops a couple of degrees. We are perfectly comfortable. This is a fact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim_The_Jim Posted February 24, 2007 Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 What is your issue? I run my tub at 104. I've stayed longer than 30 minutes in 5 degree weather. The temperature drops a couple of degrees. We are perfectly comfortable. This is a fact. I don't believe you. Sorry the physical science does not agree. Nor do all of the 120V Hot Spring owners I have talked with, nor does my empirical testing. They all wanted the temperature to be set higher so that they could soak more than 10 minutes at temperatures like that. I know that you don't like me, so I have to think that emotion is talking. I have nothing against you except for your lack of reality. Everybody loves their hot tub, even a horse trough filled with 104 degree water is nice. But the surface area exposed and the temperature differential does not equate. 1500 watt heater are not capable of maintaining temperatures at 5 degrees out side. There is almost 100 degrees difference on the surface in contact with the mass of cold air. When you turn on the jet pump the heater is off. Next time you go out at 5 degrees do empirical data. Put a clock where you can see it. I am not trying to give you a hard time, I want the readers to know the facts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Webini Posted February 24, 2007 Report Share Posted February 24, 2007 I don't believe you. Sorry the physical science does not agree. Nor do all of the 120V Hot Spring owners I have talked with, nor does my empirical testing. They all wanted the temperature to be set higher so that they could soak more than 10 minutes at temperatures like that. I know that you don't like me, so I have to think that emotion is talking. I have nothing against you except for your lack of reality. Everybody loves their hot tub, even a horse trough filled with 104 degree water is nice. But the surface area exposed and the temperature differential does not equate. 1500 watt heater are not capable of maintaining temperatures at 5 degrees out side. There is almost 100 degrees difference on the surface in contact with the mass of cold air. When you turn on the jet pump the heater is off. Next time you go out at 5 degrees do empirical data. Put a clock where you can see it. I am not trying to give you a hard time, I want the readers to know the facts. -------------------------------------------------------------- I have a clock outside along with a digital probe in the tub. Facts are facts. If you don't believe me I really don't care, especially given your lack of credibility. Read my posts. Sure it drops a couple of degrees in those conditions. We are perfectly comfortable and so are our friends that have tried the tub. I know several other 115v tub owners that have the same experience. So we must be all wrong. I was simply posting a rebuttal to your post giving an absolute that a 115v spa cannot maintain an adequate temperature in a cold climate. It certainly can and does. I am an owner and my sole motivation was to give the OP my experience. Your statement "A 120 V spa is pretty worthless outside in your winter" is asinine. You are entitled to your opinion, but your statements like that don't help anyone. Your motivations are well known. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chas Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 Webini, For what its worth, I believe you. Even though I now sell mostly 220 spas, I have sold hundreds and hundreds of 110 volt tubs in the past twenty years. And I still sell plenty of 110 spas - Jetsetters, Prodigys and the entire Solana line. Before I go further, I have to say that I don't live in snow country. But many of our customers live in the inland valleys - Ojai as well as Moorpark and Simi Valley. Those areas get icy cold at night in the winter - see the recent news about massive crop losses to back that statement up - and even though they warm up in the daytime, many folks are out there using the tub at night. Jim loves to make blanket statements - "every tub of this kind does such and such, all tubs with this type of equipment, etc. " I could go find actual statements he has made and post them, but frankly I think we all agree he is not worth the trouble. But here he is, faced with simple truth, and he can't deal with it. I would say your statement about his "lack of credibility" is well taken. Enjoy your Jetsetter. I have had one in my backyard - a very old one - and we enjoyed it for about two months. Before I brought it home, I stained it, put a new cover on it and a new filter in it, and It did the job just fine for us. Looked like new and worked like new when we sold it. It is still working fine to this date. I would think it is about 15 years old at this time, and it runs 110 only. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim_The_Jim Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 Webini, For what its worth, I believe you. Even though I now sell mostly 220 spas, I have sold hundreds and hundreds of 110 volt tubs in the past twenty years. And I still sell plenty of 110 spas - Jetsetters, Prodigys and the entire Solana line. Before I go further, I have to say that I don't live in snow country. But many of our customers live in the inland valleys - Ojai as well as Moorpark and Simi Valley. Those areas get icy cold at night in the winter - see the recent news about massive crop losses to back that statement up - and even though they warm up in the daytime, many folks are out there using the tub at night. Jim loves to make blanket statements - "every tub of this kind does such and such, all tubs with this type of equipment, etc. " I could go find actual statements he has made and post them, but frankly I think we all agree he is not worth the trouble. But here he is, faced with simple truth, and he can't deal with it. I would say your statement about his "lack of credibility" is well taken. Enjoy your Jetsetter. I have had one in my backyard - a very old one - and we enjoyed it for about two months. Before I brought it home, I stained it, put a new cover on it and a new filter in it, and It did the job just fine for us. Looked like new and worked like new when we sold it. It is still working fine to this date. I would think it is about 15 years old at this time, and it runs 110 only. The simple truth is that at 5 degrees out side that is 99 degrees Delta T in the equation, with the surface area exposed and the time with wind added, there is no way it works. People will always embellish things like that, because it is human nature. I believe that soaking at 10 degrees above is a different equation., 15 degrees above is a different equation. But most of the time people are not aware of how short the soak really is, because they don't' take a clock with them., and most of the memories are at temperatures above that 5 degree example. Science does not agree with that embellishment and I am here for consumers and the truth. I have been in this industry a long time and I have helped many 120V Hot Spring owners to get longer soaks. Just because you sell Hot Spring spas, does not give you the right to mock the truth as you always do. Chas, you live in Southern California, you don't know crap about cold weather. If you think I am bad now, just wait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chas Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 No, the simple truth is this person has told us about their experience. The tub works for them. I have also told about my experiences with hundreds of tubs just like it. They work. Personal attack is not profitable, nor in keeping with the rules of this forum. Sorry you disagree. It will happen Jim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trigger Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 The simple truth is that at 5 degrees out side that is 99 degrees Delta T in the equation, with the surface area exposed and the time with wind added, there is no way it works. Perhaps there is a problem with your equation and understanding of the situation? It's amusing to see someone argue with reality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trigger Posted February 28, 2007 Report Share Posted February 28, 2007 OK lets put you money where you mouth is. Get one of those tubs and set it outside a 5 degrees in normal wind and I will make you sit in it for 20 minutes, until you balls freeze. Chas, You are evil. You sold you soul for dollars. Insane meltdown in 3...2....1..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.