Hot Tub Forum
Original => Hot Tub Forum => Topic started by: catfan9t on August 02, 2006, 07:25:24 pm
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I am about ready to pull the trigger on an Island Spas Captiva. The dealer is asking $6,200 out the door (that is tax included). Is anyone familiar with this brand and if so is the quality good? The only other option is our Hot Springs/Jacuzzi dealer who I hate to even talk to. They don't listen and keep trying to sell me something I don't want. Please don't turn this into a brand debate, I am just wanting to make sure Artesian (the parent company) stands behind the warranty and that the brand has a good track record.
Thanks in advance for the help.
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I own a 2005 Island Grand Cayman and it is a great tub.
I have only had 1 minor problem with the tub - the larger swirly jets kept breaking. They were being replaced by my dealer but after the 6th jet I was a little aggrivated. I called Artesian and they took care of me.
Apparently the jet manufacturer - Waterway - changed the composition of their jets and all the manufacturers that use them had that problem.
It isn't a major issue but I'm happy the way they treated me, their a first rate outfit IMO.
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There was a brand of spas named Island out of Fontana Ca...what are you looking at......and Island spa made by Artesian or the brand Island....?
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There was a brand of spas named Island out of Fontana Ca...what are you looking at......and Island spa made by Artesian or the brand Island....?
Hey I never thought of that! Artesian does make a Captiva but I forgot a lot of spa manufacturers use the same names ...
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I am referring to the Artesian line. The Captiva is branded as Island Spas but they are made by Artesian.
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There was a brand of spas named Island out of Fontana Ca...what are you looking at......and Island spa made by Artesian or the brand Island....?
Yes, there was an Islands (out of Fontana) spa dealer in my neigborhood. They went out of business.
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Yes the factory has closed is what I was told last week.
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Hey Cat -
For $6200 what's the configuration. # of Jets and Pumps.
I also have an Artesian and am very happy with it.
BTW, I bought an Artesian Opal for $6177. I have 3 pumps and 34 jets in mine.
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I own an Artesian Island Grand Cayman. I have had no trouble with it at all.
Seems that the Artesian Island line is quite flexible and customizeable and specifically priced towards the bottom end of the market, but they allow a buyer to add-on many options.
I was not interested in buying a $8,500 hot tub. I feel that I bought a very nice hot tub from a major manufacturer and stayed within my budget.
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I have had a Captiva for about a month. It is a 2005 model. I like it very much. I particularly like having one 1.5hp (3 brake hp) pump dedicated solely to the whirlpool jet in the footwell. That may have changed for 2006. As far as the brand, I have no reason to believe it is not on a par with Marquis, Sundance, etc. My dealer carried Sundance for many years. He is very service oriented, and when he parted with Sundance he chose Artesian over many other brands. He has sold Artesian for over a year and reports very few problems in the field. As far as price, I paid $6,500. That included tax, extended 5 year warranty, cover and cover lift, delivery and setup, circ pump and Propure ozone, steps, 3 jet pumps. chemicals, and stainless steel jet covers. Each model in the Island line can be ordered in many different jet/pump configurations and at many different price points. Your dealer should be able to explain all the options. If you like the tub and the dealer, you should be fine with an Island spa. Hope this helps. Jeff
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Cat, The Captiva will be a good spa for you. Artesian will stand behind the warranty, bt it's the dealer that executes it so make sure they are OK too.
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If there is an Artesian factory direct outlet near you, you might want to shop there. That way, you can save some more money by eliminating the middle man.
Good luck in your shopping. :)
Terminator
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Hey Cat -
For $6200 what's the configuration. # of Jets and Pumps.
I also have an Artesian and am very happy with it.
BTW, I bought an Artesian Opal for $6177. I have 3 pumps and 34 jets in mine.
The Captiva I am looking at is the 32 jet model with a circ pump, ozone, and waterfall added. It has on 6hp pump (can be configed with 2 smaller pumps instead) and the circ pump only.
When and where did you buy yours for $6,177? The Opal seems like more spa for only a few dollars more (mine is approx $5,800 before tax).
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If there is an Artesian factory direct outlet near you, you might want to shop there. That way, you can save some more money by eliminating the middle man.
Good luck in your shopping. :)
Terminator
How do I find out where the factory direct outlets are? I do have a place nearby called "STM" that makes hot tubs and sells directly to the public but I am not sure of the quality of their tubs.
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Cat - Are you located in the new england by any chance?
I bought from Artesian dealer about 2 hours from me, here in northern new england. I will certainly pass his info along if you're close by and interested.
For $6177 (out the door, no sales tax) last month I got:
A brand new leftover 05 Artesian Gold Series Opal(wrapped from factory). It has the tuape permawood cabinet, with the desert horizon color shell.
It has 1 6HP, 1 4.8HP, and 1 3 HP pump. These motors are all 1 speed but switchless. It also has a 24/7 circ pump. It has 34 jets and they controlled by variable control air/water flow, which is basically you control the speed/pressure like a dimmer switch. the variable control flow feature I really like BTW. It also has a CD Ozonator. It came with a cover, cover lifter, and startup chemicals. It has a full 5 year warranty from the day I took it home.
Only thing different than most others is that I picked it up and installed myself(including cover lifter), which was easy. He dropped it on my flatbed trailer with a forklift. I backed trailer up to concrete slab and tilted trailer with the help of 2 other guys. I did slab and all electrical work myself as well...
He did have a bunch of Captiva's by the way. All different configurations. In the low 5's if I remember correctly.
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Cat, The Captiva will be a good spa for you. Artesian will stand behind the warranty, bt it's the dealer that executes it so make sure they are OK too.
Well said.
We've heard several folks comment on how they had problems with their tub and the experiences with their dealers (good and bad).
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Cat, based on his past posts, Sledjunkie bought a 2005 model, paid no sales tax, and picked it up himself at the dealer. At that, he appears to have gotten a very good deal. I believe East Tx Spa is pulling your leg alittle. About a month ago, he did not like a local competitor advertising itself as an Artesian Factory Outlet with great savings available. There is a long thread on it with various interpretations of what "factory outlet" means and and the ethics of such dealer advertising. I think it is safe to say you are not going to find an "Artesian Factory Outlet" with prices lower than you dealer's. Jeff
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Artesian, from what I've read, has a solid reputation as being a "solid" manufacturer, just as the other "big names". If one of the local big name dealers doesn't give you a good feeling, then by all means go to another, which is what it sounds like you've done. Whatever brand you buy, your dealer will be your contact and help in fixing whatever may break in the future.
Don't depend on what someone else paid to be what you should pay (I found this one out, also), as the price of identical tubs can fluctuate WILDLY, depending on where you are in the country. My tub cost me just over $8200 for everything (in southeastern Wisconsin), but could run closer to $10k in another part of the country. The only thing you'll really get is a ballpark number, unless someone else bought the same tub very local to where you are.
In any case, best of luck, find a dealer that you feel will support you in the future, wether warranty, non-warranty or "stupid questions". ;)
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I called the "Factory Direct Outlet" in Baltimore for a quote on the same spa and suprise, suprise the price was no lower.
One question for all.
On the Captiva I can get it with (1) 6hp 2sp pump or (2) 3hp 1 sp pumps. Which is better? It will have a seperate 24hr circulation pump.
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Either setup will do the job, I guess I'd lean toward the 2 smaller pumps, though. This is all MY opinion, of course....now as to WHY I say this? Hmmm....well, my HS Grandee has 2 1 speed pumps, and it circulates water VERY well, plenty of power....I have many options on what jets will pump because each pump is dedicated to certain jets....
Best of luck on your choice.
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I called the "Factory Direct Outlet" in Baltimore for a quote on the same spa and suprise, suprise the price was no lower.
Hmmm, maybe it's because they also have a lease, employees and pretty much the same overhead.
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I know you guys are going to hate me for this, but as I've said before, IMO dealers are NOT that important as you would think when purchasing a hot tub. In the first few years during the warranty period it's pretty rare to have anything go wrong, after that you can get any local dealer to fix your problem, or even do it yourself if you're up to it.
Do this. Call up a local dealer that sells, oh say any brand, even the expensive brands like hotsprings and sundance. Tell them you think you have a leak or a pump that's not working on a brand that they don't carry. If they say they won't fix it because they don't carry that brand, ask them if they know anyone who will. They will probably ask you what brand you have and recommend you go to the closest dealership. But if there is nobody that sells your brand in the area I bet they will give you a name of someone local that fixes all brands.
Now obviously if my tub was under warranty I would go to the dealer where I bought it (if they're still in business) and they would do it, but any dealer that carries your brand will fix it for you even if it's out of warranty.
Boy I'm going to get some heat for this one.
But this is honestly how I feel. It kills me to hear everyone always post how important dealers are. Hey wait isn't this board full of dealers?
Doh!
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Cat -
Go with the 2 pumps.
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How do I find out where the factory direct outlets are? I do have a place nearby called "STM" that makes hot tubs and sells directly to the public but I am not sure of the quality of their tubs.
I am very sorry for the confusion. I would not buy a spa from "STM Factory Direct" as that is more than likely someone building a kit spa in their workshop.
Artesian makes a fine spa and has a fairly large dealer network. They also have several factory direct outlets where you can buy their spas for less money than going through their dealers, where the spas are sold at higher costs to cover the middleman's profit.
There is a factory direct Artesian store in Palestine, TX. It is one of the largest Artesian factory stores in the nation. Go to the Artesian website and request the locations of the factory dealer closest to you.
Terminator
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Sledjunkie,
how long have you owned your tub? Is this your first tub?
thanks,
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Cat, that is a good question. If you go to the Artesian website, click on Club Artesian, click on owners manuals, and click on 2006 Island, you will find in the manual schematics for the 32 jet Captiva in each pump configuration. With two pumps, you will not have a diverter and one pump will run a certain set of jets and the second pump will run a different set of pumps. With one pump, there will be a diverter. With the diverter set in the middle, all the jets will run. When you turn the diverter one way or the other, only a certain set of jets will run, but now with much more power (because the one 6hp pump is going only to those jets). I think the key question for the dealer would be how the power of the jets run by one of the 3hp pumps compares to the power of the same jets when run by the 6hp pump with (1) the diverter in the middle and (2) the diverter turned to those jets alone. In general, if you are looking for maximum power to one seat, I would think the one pump option would be better. If you are looking for the best performance with all the jets running, my guess is the 2 pump option would be better. Jeff
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I'm sorry for my lateness on the previous post. I was almost through writing it when I had two groups of shoppers come in and when I came back, I just hit send.
I am somewhat taken aback by the now revealed deception being perpetrated by this company. Although the spa itself is a good product, the shady selling method would definitely raise a red flag with me. To each his own.
I sincerely hope you get a great deal on your spa. :)
Terminator
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Couple of weeks with the tub.
My first time owning a tub.
Have two family members and a couple of friends with tubs.
Why do you ask?
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Couple of weeks with the tub.
My first time owning a tub.
Have two family members and a couple of friends with tubs.
Why do you ask?
I'm trying to get a better understanding of your expereinces and knoweldge of tubs as I read your replies and comments.
Thanks.
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I started a separate thread on this, but thought the information should probably be here also. I emailed Artesian about "factory direct outlets" and received a prompt response. In short, there is only one Artesian factory outlet in the US and it is in Las Vegas where the Artesian factory is located. Artesian is aware that some dealers advertise themselves as "factory direct". Artesian wishes this would not happen. These dealers get no different pricing than any of Artesian's other dealers. Jeff
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Couple of weeks with the tub.
My first time owning a tub.
Have two family members and a couple of friends with tubs.
Why do you ask?
I think he's impressed with the quick manner in which you've become so well versed in spas and the industry as a whole (along with your humility).
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Yes the factory has closed is what I was told last week.
Not Islander Spas Inc. (the manufacturer) out of Fontana Ca.... Just got off the phone with them.
DON'T SCARE ME LIKE THAT! We've been talking/negotiating with them to become their cover supplier for a while now.
Their cover supplier though, US Spa Covers, is no more.