-Which cover lifter is best?

[pantherkat]

Just took delivery of our new Caldera Niagara ( so exciting!!)    Still waiting on the electric connection, so we are high and dry for now  In the mean time, we are trying to choose which cover lifter is best and easiest to use - e.g. EZ Lift & Glide or Cover Cradle, etc.  Any recommendations or warnings against a particular product would be most appreciated -Thanks!

[Chas]

Cover Cradle is the way to go. It fastens into the metal plates which are designed into your cover, and doesn't hang the cover by it's hinge.

It has a single air spring which helps to move the cover as well as slowing it's motion down if you let go of the cover.

It's made of aluminum, and is powder coated.

It comes in any color you want. As long as you want black.

[mhraracing]

Sorry I dont know what cover lifter is best....I will leave that to the experts on this site.....but I see you went with the Caldera Niagra !!!!  

What was your final deciding factor ?

Fellow Caldera owner !!! Well almost...its not here yet  

[Vinny]

I'll going to get the Covermate III when I get the tub. It has gas pistons on each side and it was really easy to "lift" the cover off the spa in the showroom. It also has a locking mechanism on the side to keep it from falling on you if there's windy conditions.

It too is black powder coated aluminum but it does hang from the cover's hinge.

[Chas]

I'll going to get the Covermate III when I get the tub. It has gas pistons on each side and it was really easy to "lift" the cover off the spa in the showroom. It also has a locking mechanism on the side to keep it from falling on you if there's windy conditions.

It too is black powder coated aluminum but it does hang from the cover's hinge.

If you want that type of lift, I would go for the "Cover Upright" from Watkins. It also connects to the metal side plates, as does the Cover Cradle. But it has twin air springs and a latch just like the CMIII.

See it here:  

[Vinny]

Chas,

If that info was directed at me, my local HS dealer should wither up and close!

Or if you want to open a East Coast branch of your stores, maybe you can facilitate that closing!

It looked like the HS lifter was designed to be installed on the side of the cover - do all covers have this ability or is this unique to HS or maybe all Watkins tubs?

[Dr_Eclat]

Can't find anything on the "Cover Cradle" - picture or link?

[Chas]

It looked like the HS lifter was designed to be installed on the side of the cover - do all covers have this ability or is this unique to HS or maybe all Watkins tubs?

I'm not sure - I'll gladly check this out. I think that Caldera tubs use the same lifters as HotSpring and Tiger River tubs - the covers are made in the same plant, but I don't see anything about cover lifts on the Caldera site - other than the mention of a couple of lifts in the Pre-delivery Instruction book. One of those is "ProLiff Cover Lifter."

[poolboy34]

Chas,

The same lifters are offered and recommended by watkins for use on their Caldera Spas.  They are a nice lift, however we currently don't sell them.  We sell the cover mates with our Caldera Spas, and the EZ-Lifter with all of the other brands we carry.

Jason,
Store Manager for a D-1 & Caldera Dealer

[Chas]

Chas,

The same lifters are offered and recommended by watkins for use on their Caldera Spas.  They are a nice lift, however we currently don't sell them.  We sell the cover mates with our Caldera Spas, and the EZ-Lifter with all of the other brands we carry.

I'm curious - why don't you sell the Watkins product?

For Dr. Eclat:go to this page to see the whole range of lifters available for HotSpring, Tiger River and Caldera.

http://www.hotspring.com/Spa_Showroom_Hot_Tub/accessor_covers.html

[Chas]

Sorry, I meant to do this:

HS Cover Removal Systems

[poolboy34]

Our owner chooses not to sell their cover lifters, most likely due to cost.

[Chas]

That's odd. When I checked against the other brands of lifters, HS came in pretty close. I buy them in larger quantities to drop the price, and the the free freight (shipped with spas at no extra cost to me) almost made them the same, actually less than some.

But I like the fact that they don't hang the covers by the hinges - so that won out.

[Vinny]

Chas,

The HS dealer here "sells" the HS cover lift for around $450 (price in the book) and I was able to buy the Covermate for about 1/2 that.

The only cover that I ever saw with a "connection" on the side for the cover lift was the HS. Sundance uses their own version of the Covermate and most other dealers were selling the tub with a "deluxe" cover lifter. All of them supported the cover by the hinge.

[stuart]

The new CM3's have towel hooks!