Skippyb Posted February 25, 2021 Report Share Posted February 25, 2021 Hello everyone. Newbe here. So I live in Toronto, ONT and I purchased a second hand hot tub and it's sitting in my driveway. I intend to use it during the winter time, probably with a canopy over it or something. In the summer I intend to put it in the back on a proper concrete pad or something more premanent. Anyways my dilemma: My driveway mainly drains water towards the street, but the back section of the driveway pools water/ice in the corner next to the garage. (please see diagram) Unfortunately that's where I intend to keep it until the summer. When flat on the driveway, as is, the tub dips about 1 1/2 inch in that corner. Option 1# I have leftover patio stones from a walkway project I could lay down underneath the tub temporarily, and level the patio stones with some left over gravel? Option #2 Put down 4 wooden skids and level it using the crushed stones or wooden shims or something? Option #3 Use shims and whatever else I have around the house?? Option #4 Leave it? - would I be doing any real damage by leaving it for 3-4 months? Currently, we had a warm snap and there's a pool of melted ice/snow touching that corner of the hot tub about a quarter inch. It's a beachcomber and has a perma-seal foundation to hopefully keep it a little dry. What do you all think I should do? Looking forward to your feedback. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted February 25, 2021 Report Share Posted February 25, 2021 I have all the spas I am working on on skids. A couple of them I block under the skid with wood shims/blocks to level. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDspaguy Posted February 25, 2021 Report Share Posted February 25, 2021 Flat is more important than level. Put it on a dip were the sides are higher than the center and you can crack the shell. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippyb Posted March 1, 2021 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2021 On 2/25/2021 at 12:24 AM, CanadianSpaTech said: I have all the spas I am working on on skids. A couple of them I block under the skid with wood shims/blocks to level. Hi CST Is the skids and blocks method sufficient enough to support the weight if you fill the tub with water? cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted March 1, 2021 Report Share Posted March 1, 2021 On 2/25/2021 at 10:52 AM, RDspaguy said: Flat is more important than level. Put it on a dip were the sides are higher than the center and you can crack the shell. A skid will work and a block under the skid if needed to level. A spa sitting on the skid will keep the spa flat and the underside supported. I would not suggest this as a long term solution. Skids are open and make a perfect spot for critters and leaves/debris. I use them during testing and the spas are usually only on them for a week or 4 while I make repairs before selling. It allows me to see under the spa for any signs of leaks. Most skids are made of soft wood and would degrade over time. My suggestion to you is to build a pressure treated 4x4 or 6x6 frame See video.. and block under it for a temporary solution in the drive way. Then you can use the frame as a permanent base instead of concrete...unless you want concrete. The video shows how I would build the base (not my video) frame. I would dig the top layer of grass off and down about 6". I would put down 2-3" of 3/4 crush gravel (for drainage) and then level on top of that with a couple of inches of limestone, tamp it down and level it out. Then place the frame onto the limestone and back fill the openings in between the frame work bringing it up and level with the top of the wood frame and pack it all down again. This will lock the frame in place and the limestone will bet hard over time. Ideally you want the side of the base to be 2" above grade when finished. I think it is important to measure the base of the spa and make the frame exactly to the size of the BASE so that the side panels overhang the base and any water splashing out or rain will go down the side of the panel and onto the ground outside of the base and not onto the base or back under the spa. If you do this on the driveway make sure to wedge it with wood and supported so it doesn't twist/deform and be all out of whack when you want to make it permenent Where in Toronto? I am just West of Milton. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippyb Posted March 1, 2021 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2021 That’s fantastic advice! Thanks a lot CST. I’m near the Jane and hwy 401. Do yo do service calls this way? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted March 2, 2021 Report Share Posted March 2, 2021 Absolutely....not.. I don't even go to Mississauga...lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDspaguy Posted March 2, 2021 Report Share Posted March 2, 2021 3 hours ago, CanadianSpaTech said: Mississauga Gesundheit. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cranbiz Posted March 4, 2021 Report Share Posted March 4, 2021 I know I probably start a new thread but this one is recent and related. So I have been busily preparing for my new tub. It's going on an enclosed porch that formally was open. It has a decent pitch to it, like 2 1/4" over 13' which I figured is too much out of level for the tub. From research, I understand that flat is more important than level. The area I'm putting the tub on has been pretty much leveled using concrete and self leveling cement (within a quarter to half a bubble on either axis). The patio itself that I leveled, is 4" of concrete and a finish layer of tera cotta tile in a mosaic pattern, so plenty of weight bearing capacity. Anyways, my base layer of quickcrete had some high spots that the self leveling concrete didn't cover. In total, I have one spot, about 3" in diameter that has aggregate sticking up about a 1/4 of an inch and several very small spots about the same height (like 2 or 3 stones). The tub will have an ABS base and the worse high spot is not on the edge. Is this good enough or do I need to break out the grinder to fix the high spots? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanadianSpaTech Posted March 4, 2021 Report Share Posted March 4, 2021 Are you asking if you should do the job right or are you asking for permission to cut corners. If you have a high spot under the spa in the foot well area potential for cracking acrylic is greater. Think about someone standing in the foot well and with the foot well being the lowest spot in the spa it carries the most PSI. Again flat is better than level. It might not be high enough to crack acrylic but it might puncture the ABS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cranbiz Posted March 4, 2021 Report Share Posted March 4, 2021 As an end user, a 1/4" hump somewhere between the edge and the center doesn't seem to be a big deal. I'm asking those who know better than me if that is a problem. A pro will think of potential problems that me, as an end user wouldn't think of. @CanadianSpaTech You provided me info that I didn't think of. This was of value so I'll break out the grinder to remove the high spots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cusser Posted March 4, 2021 Report Share Posted March 4, 2021 In 1988, we had our new 7-foot CalSpa put onto our 8-foot wide concrete patio. I never gave it a second thought, but we likely told the spa dealer that it was going on our patio, so we all just assumed it was level. It's still working. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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