Hot Tub Review
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HotSpring
Manufacturer: Watkins Manufacturing
Avg. Price: $5844
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Guest
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I did a lot of homework and read a lot of reviews before purchasing this hot tub, I thought it would be high quality and reliable and that the company would stand behind its product. I was wrong on both accounts. This is an absolute ***LEMON***.
I have only had it a few months, it’s indoors, and I only use it a few times a week (one person, no kids) but I have already had to have service out here twice. They charge you $49 for a service call, even if it’s a problem that is completely the fault of the manufacturer. The “bar top” lights started doing odd things and they were different colors at different times instead of all being the same color at once. The interior control panel has had a lot of problems; the lights stopped working and I had problems with a button on that panel not working too. They have also replaced the heater.
The servicemen are very kind and knowledgeable, they feel sorry for me and have never seen so many problems with a new tub. Be prepared for a lot of “attitude” when you call the service center though (these people are vastly different from the actual servicemen). They are so RUDE. He actually told me I was wrong when I told him what was wrong with my tub. Are you kidding me? I could not be more disappointed. If you had a new car with problems and you had to pay every time you had warranty work done, you would be furious. What a mistake. Caveat emptor. These are ***JUNK***.
Date Purchased: 11/30/2012
Price Paid: $7000
Recommend: No |
Pros:
Love the jets and power and mechanical aspects of the tub. It's also beautiful, inside and out.
Cons:
A lot of electrical problems and, even if it's brand new, you have to pay $49 for the service call. Customer service personnel are rude on the phone. This thing retails for $11,500, I expected better quality. |
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Guest
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Good thing I'm really handy at fixing things--because when the warranty's out on a watkins product the repair costs--even when the "authorized service technician" CAN'T fix the problem-- will be crazy!! e.g. The $400 control board stopped working that is normally "fixed" by the expensive replacement. I found the badly rusted/oxidized relay on the board and ordered just a new relay from the relay maker--but when it arrived its specs said it was made only for dry indoor locations! No wonder it went bad, watkins engineers are mis-spec-ing the control board to provide for a built-in obsolesence! Etc.
Date Purchased: March 1993
Price Paid: $4500
Recommend: No |
Pros:
Well-insulated. Separate recirc and main pumps.
Cons:
Poorly engineered. Built-in obsolesence. Poor service/support. Seller will NOT sell you a service manual to allow for repairs yourself (not all that hard to do). Pricey. Drain does not drain from the bottom--so one must 'bail' out the last two inches when replacing H2O.
[Don't buy a hot tub unless someone who's had one for some years can verify that brand will LAST!] |
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flostevematt
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We got our Hot Springs Sovereign in 2004. We've had nothing done to it other than that the air control valves had to be replaced (under warranty) and inside control panel (warranty, too). The recliner is great, and a wonderful assortment of jets to make everyone happy. It seats five comfortably, but we rarely have more than three.
It is so well insulated that snow will remain on top and around it nearly as long as the rest of the snow in your yard. But you'll want to shovel the snow away, because winter is the best time for the spa! We estimate it costs only a few dollars per month in electricity. Ours runs on 220V, but you could get 110V when we bought it as well.
We whittled our choices down to Hot Springs or Sun Dance, and found the Hot Springs to be more comfortable and the jets to be less harsh. We wet-tested both and decided on the Sovereign in pearl. Great choice!
Date Purchased: 2004
Price Paid: $7500
Recommend: Yes |
Pros:
Well-built.
Completely insulated.
Inexpensive to run.
Dishwasher-safe filters.
100% filtering with each cycle of water.
Cons:
Air Control Valves tend to go out of whack. |
This message was modified Apr 14, 2011 by
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wmccall
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After much research, we finally purchased the Hot Springs SOVEREIGN and absolutely love this spa! We looked at several Tiger River models, and also the Hot Springs Envoy. We wet tested both the SOVEREIGN (33 inch depth) and Envoy (36 inch depth) and went with the SOVEREIGN because of the slightly smaller size, and believe it or not, the extra 3 inches of depth in the Envoy made it hard to stay seated when the jets were on. We're both very tall (5'8" & 6'3"), and could not stay seated in the Envoy with jets full blast. That's one powerful tub!! If you're looking for a high-performance tub, the Envoy is it! We were really more interested in energy-efficiency than high-performance. The SOVEREIGN is just right depth-wise. You can put your arms up on the sides quite easily and if you have shorter folks soaking with you, it's easier for them to stay seated. The SOVEREIGN delivers energy-efficiency and excellent jet power/performance. Since we put this tub on a newly built (super-supported) deck, we figured the less weight the better! That was the major reason we went with the SOVEREIGN overall, and it seemed a better fit for our long-term needs, which was mainly hydro therapy for a variety of muscular problems.
We really struggled with our decision - afraid we might buy the wrong one! We were concerned that we'd regret not buying the more powerful Envoy. Our spa salesman said the 1 major mistake most first-time buyers make is that they tend to over-buy what they need. We took this to heart and are very glad we purchased the SOVEREIGN. We have been in it daily for the past several weeks and don't regret our purchase at all!
Date Purchased: 07/04
Price Paid: $6995
Recommend: Yes |
Pros:
Excellent arrangement of seats with nice variety of high-intensity and low-intensity seating. Cool off seat is nice. Quiet jets - we can carry on a normal conversation when jets are running full blast. Powerful jets - we are pleased with the power the jets put out. Great circulation of water during operation. Thoughtful placement of arm rests. Contoured seats. Interior control panel for lights & jets is wonderful.
Cons:
Wish that the SOVEREIGN had 1 more footwell jet! It's kind of hard for the non-lounge bathers to all use 1 footwell jet when it's on. The lounge has it's own, which is very nice, but the other 5 bathers all have to share 1!!! |
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wmccall
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The spa lasted 5 years and then everything started to break. The worst part is the company I purchased the spa from, Great Atlantic of Virginia Beach. They couldn't even fix the thing, but they sure knew how to bill me for $500.00.
Date Purchased: 10/1997
Price Paid: $5000
Recommend: No |
Pros:
Was nice till the problems started.
Cons:
The spa lasted 5 years and then everything started to break. The worst part is the company I purchased the spa from, Great Atlantic of Virginia Beach. They couldn't even fix the thing, but they sure knew how to bill me for $500.00. |
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