OT: hot tub buying advise

dangler · Since 26 Feb 2006 1780 Posts WINDY SPOTS XTreme Poster

wE'RE ALL COMING OVER AFTER WORK!!!

Weaz · Since 23 May 2012 360 Posts Beaverton Obsessed

This is what I fear with nwkiter's and hot tubs....

http://www.redbull.com/cs/Satellite/en_INT/Video/On-The-Loose-Webisode-1-021242877242392

right at the beginning... leave it to Ruben Len10...

shred_da_gorge · Wed Nov 07, 12 4:21 pm

Jimbo, just got Tiffany's Hot Springs tub moved down to my house and now putting it in. Going by Santa Clara code (check Hood River's), for electrical you'll need a 50-amp or 40-amp GFI (depends on tub rating) in between 6' and 10' away with an accessible shut-off switch (can be the breaker itself). For 50-amp run 8/3 wire through metal or PVC conduit; I got a good deal online at Home Depot (http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-25ecodZ5yc1v/R-202206570/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053#.UJr0Tm9lG5I); it was ~$65 for 50' but looks like it's now twice that price. Unless you're within range of the panel you may need a breaker in it and one in an outside box (~$80-90 for a "spa box" w/GFI breaker), which I opted to do just for safety and wiring convenience (dragged along a 20-amp outside yard outlet). Let me know if yours is rated 40-amp and I'll send you two breakers.

Instead of doing it myself I opted to pay an electrician about $300 (mainly to dig the ditch in 90 degree sun in that hardpack shit we have for dirt). I think someone paying $1000 or more may have an insanely complex installation or just plain got rooked.

Chemical upkeep can be a pain, especially where I live now where the water is off-the-charts hard (literally - I ran out of test kit droplets measuring the calcium!). A bubble cover underneath is a good idea as it'll help preserve the main cover; my old covers were black which supposedly helped keep the tub a little warmer during the sunny day. I'll have to look into Hein's advice and float some balls on the top...

Good luck!
-P

4Stringer/KipWinger · Since 27 Apr 2005 541 Posts Hood River Addicted

Good-peoples-of-NWKite;
Thanks for the advise. I just bought a used Hot Springs Prodigy from a pilot who was moving, preached upkeep and had everything in it's proper place. Next step; pouring a concrete pad where it will reside and getting a cover.

Any suggestions for finding the right balance of quality/price for the cover? Definitely gonna get a floating bubble cover too.