GingerK

We had a hot tub at our last home. The biggest change has been our electricity bill. It is down by more than half in the winter months. If you are away, for weeks at a time, you can turn down the temp but make sure you have someone checking a couple of times a week. We had one instance that the GFI had tripped while we were away. The water was cold and we were extremely fortunate that the pipes had not frozen. If you are thinking about draining the whole unit, make sure that is an actual option.

A hot tub is really just a big tub of water. Oils on our skin affect it just like in a regular bath tub. I hated cleaning the hot tub, even tho it was only done when we changed water--about every 3 to 4 months. Any soap at all (from your skin or from a bathing suit which has not been rinsed extremely well) will cause excess foam which leads to that dreaded hot tub ring of gunge.

When deciding on decking, roof etc, remember that a hot tub creates a very damp environment and decking can become icy in winter. The roofing can hold in that moisture and may be susceptible to mold, depending on materials used.

There are many specifics for hot tub installation, including location (remember that it is h-e-a-v-y and will need to be maneuvered into position ), type of base, licensed electrician for proper hook up, to name a few.

Iceblossom

Another thing I thought of is the cover. Yes, you need one. Consider that most likely you will be both un- and then covering your tub every time you use it. Even if you use it every day, its amazing the amount of dust and pollen that can collect or the energy costs left uncovered. Make sure you have sufficient room in your pavilion to accommodate what you choose, that may be placement from a wall or ceiling height or other issues.

I looked it up and I was surprised to find how affordable the cover lifts have gotten, even powered ones. So much better than the old days... I've seen hot tubs go from wood ones with wood stoves in my 70s Alaska youth, to swim spas, it's nice to see the covers move along with the times. It was always a problem on what to do with the cover, where to keep it, did it get wet, etc. in most older installations.

edit/ps: wood tubs took a tremendous amount of care and maintenance... not quite as much as a horse but a lot more than a fish tank.

juliasb

The only problem I can see is leaving in the winter time. You would have to drain and winterize the pipes. You can expect a much higher energy bill for keeping in going all the time especially in the winter so the pipes won't' freeze. Those are the kind of things I would be asking about to the showroom specialist. Especially in Ohio where you can get very very cold. Any thing that has to do with care in the winter months. The summer months maintenance should be relatively easy. It's those winter months that you have to watch out for.

osewme

This is an interesting topic. We have no desire to have a hot tub but I do have a question concerning the use in the summer. Couldn't you just turn the heat down/or off during the summer & still enjoy the use of the tub?

Up North

Yes we do turn the heat down in the summer but find there are to many other things to do we use it almost everyday in the winter tho.

Iceblossom

I know people who make seasonal adjustments, it just sort of depends on what you find nice. Mostly I go for excessively hot water and most hot tubs are cooler than I'd like as it is. In super hot areas you can get chillers for the water instead of heaters.

I do make seasonal adjustments on my water bed! Like a water bed, the amount of water in a hot tub is a lot of mass and it is a lot of energy exchange over time, not a quick fix or change for more than a couple of degrees.

That is one of the things to look up is the heat up time, for energy savings mostly you keep the water a bit lower and then warm it up before use. You can get timers to cycle through cleaning or heating automatically.

quiltingcandy

We are trying to get rid of ours. My DH was a basketball official for many years (part time) so we got the hot tub and he used it quite a bit at first. But it got to be a bother - just like having a pool of any kind. It has to be cleaned regularly - the chemicals can only do so much. (Also, we live in So. CA. so that may be a reason too - its warm all year round.) After he had his hip replaced, and with high blood pressure it was suggested he not use it. It cost us $80.00 a month to run it - but we have very high electric rates. Maybe you would be better off installing a spa bathtub instead.

aashley333

We had an above ground hot tub at our other house. Bought it at a hot tub Expo at the Convention Center.
When that thing got dirty, we just drained it and refilled it. It's like a big bathtub.
I didn't like the formed lounge type seating. I prefer the more traditional circular bench type hot tub that is attached to our current swimming pool. I would suggest climbing into the empty display models and checking for your comfort.

GingerK

Aashley333 a very good point. Definitely climb in to the floor models and check the comfort of the seating. In our last one, there was only one seat that I could 'lounge' in without half my head being submerged.

Osewme, we regularly turned the temp down to 95 or 96 degrees in summer. Still warm to your skin but definitely not hot. It was very refreshing.

aashley333

We use our hot tub in summer without the heat.