Now its really lovely to lay back in hot bubbles in your garden of an evening, with a glass* of wine....BUT and its a big but, please consider these several points before you spend your hard earned cash on one!!
1: Where will you put your tub?...The best place for any hot tub is in the garden preferably on a good, solid concreate patio area (where I have mine) What must be considered here is the full weight of the hot tub which can be extreamley heavy. I have heard horror stories about people installing a 10k jacuzzi in their bathroom only to have the floor cave in under the weight. You must remember that your tub will weigh about 5 times the amount of your bath or more!! Folks who do install them in bathrooms, will almost certainly have to spend a small fortune on having the floor reinforced with steel!!!
2: Do you have time to maintain your tub once it up and running?...Hot tubs can be VERY time consuming as regards to hygiene and heath and safety!! Bugs like "legionaires" just love to party in your tub!!! Think about it!! Warm and wet is the perfect enviroment for them, so you have to wage a veritble war on the little buggers, so your tub dose not become a cess pit of disease!!
Daily: wipe tub and cover with a clean cloth, use an aquarium brush to clean the tub inside. Run the filter for half an hour to filter out residue. Clean filter in fresh water!! Test the PH of the water with a test strip and if the ph is to high or two low, adjust acordingly with chemicals! Add chlorine or bromine, if the level is too low! (DO NOT USE CHLORINE OR BROMINE TOGETHER)
Every week, clean the filter and every month change the filter compleatley for a new one. Change the water every 3-4 weeks and leave in about 2 inches of original water so you do not have to "shock" your tub with too much chlorine (when you first fill your tub you must shock it with a huge amount of chlorine, to kick start the cleaning process. You only need to do this once though!
3: Costs?....ok so you have laid out thousands for your posh tub...but wait....Have you considered the running costs?
I have only had mine for 3 months and already I have managed to double my electricty bill!!! I have had to cut down to using it once a day, and only turn it on at 4pm to begin heating for the evening! Hut tubs EAT electricty, if your not careful!!! Another consideration is the chemicals you have to buy for your tub and water maintinience. These include: pH plus, pH minus, chlorine (hot tubs EAT chlorine!) and De-foamer. You also must buy water test strips for testing, and learn how to read them properly! Reading test strips incorrectly, and you could turn your tub into an acid bath!!! Another consideration is your water bill! Hot tubs generally hold on average 1,000 to 2,000 ltrs or more and this ammount of water can cost a fortune if you change it too often. With careful water maintaining and a good, regular cleaning routine, and your water can be pristine and crystal clear every time you use it! I change my water about every three weeks, and am happy to say my tub water is perfect!!
4: Safe bathing?....so you have your water to perfection with a good hygiene routine, and you have your first "bubble session" ahhhh luveeeryly!!
Please note!!
Hot tubs can cause DISEASE!!!
Some of the little beasties are "hot tub lung" and "Foliculitus"
Grousome picture below is Foliculitus caused by a badly maintained hot tub/jacuzzi!!
photo from skincare13.wordpress.com
This disease is caused by bugs crawling into the base of you hair folicals and infecting them!!
NOT NICE!!! but the result if you don't clean and maintain your tub properly!!
Needless to say I did about 6 months research into them before buying mine. I figured that if I did something wrong or didn't understand something properly it could cost me a fortune!!! But as I find, there is more to damage to your health than your tub!!
Notes on safe bathing!
*NEVER take anything glass into the tub!!...if this shatters or breaks, shards can get sucked into the filtration system and cause irreparable damage!! use only plastic cups and things suitable for the spa!
NEVER let children under 12 in a tub, unsupervised!!
When at all possible bathe nude!!...I say this because bugs and germs can build up on swimwear and even freshly washed costumes can still have traces of washing powder on them which can effect the water quality, badly!!
NEVER wear make up, skin cream, perfume or any other beauty product when using the tub!! This too can upset the water ballance, and the overall cleanliness of the tub.
NEVER drink to access or take drugs while using the tub!!! Hot bubbly water makes you very sleepy!!! its VERY dangerous!!!
NEVER have anything electrical near the spa such as radios, tv, mp3 etc: Use waterproof electricals ONLY from a reputable supplier!!
NEVER overload your tub with people!! Think of all the unseen germs on everyones bodies and it will take you ages to clean!! Plus this will put extra strain on your spa's pump and it may burn out giving you a heafty cost for repairs. If a tub's instructions say "max 6 persons"...make it max 5, and so on!
NEVER have your tub too hot!! Your spa should have a digital temprechure display and thermostat (mine has). If not, you must use a thermometer and make sure the spa is between 35 - 42 degrees...anything hotter could burn you or you could pass out!! Be Aware!!
Saying all this though, having a tub can benifit your health greatly, if you have blood circulation problams. Hydro thearpy is fantastic and you really feel invigorated when you get out....But for such pleasure, it goes hand in hand that some very hard work must be done too!
However, if all this sounds too much perhaps consider a whirlpool bath? Much smaller and cheeper cousin of the spa with no chemicals and you change the water every time!!
I hope this info has been usefull to potential tub-uzzi-spa owners :) x