Hot Tubs Pros & Cons

[PistachioTiramisu]

Inspired by another thread, I am considering a hot tub. Would people please be able to give me some pros and cons? I like the idea of a warm, relaxing outside bath, but wonder if the reality is different. Are they a pain to monitor and clean?

Cons - Expensive to run, need draining, maintaining and cleaning regularly, noisy, freezing to get in and out of in this weather, full of dead skin and bodily fluids.

Pros - warm and bubbly for the 20 minutes your in it.

Litterally moved house to get away from mine...
Lock down purchase was brilliant then used ut almost daily relaxing in the garden which we got alone at the same time.

I had a rural garden so no neighbours annoyed

Christmas morning with a cup of tea was bliss....
Then it just became a headache. To clean you need to fully drain clean it down and refill- did this 3/4x a year and it costs alot of fill and reheat.
Expensive to run
Lost the thrill of using it.
Remember once we just cleaned emptied refilled and rehead and had a party friend asked to go in- yeah sure no glass please!! She took in a wine glass promptly smashed it and so next day drain clean try and get all bits of glass and I thought stuff this...

The novelty wore off after about a year really. Best time was Christmas morning or in the snow!

Same as others have said.

Lovely for the 30 mins or so you are in it especially on a cold evening with a glass of wine.

Great for aching limbs.

Also good in a heatwave as can keep water temp lower and use as a pool to sip in and out of or float/sunbathe using a water hammock which is great.

Needs emptying and cleaning/refilling every three months

Expensive to run.

I often think a dip would be nice and then remember that I washed my hair that morning and I don't want be have to re do it.

It's boring sitting in it on your own and no one else in the family ever fancies joining me for a dip.

Struggle to justify the expense when it's used so little.

Mine is now sitting there switched off and dormant ( topped up with chemicals ) while I wait for a free day to be able to empty , dry out deflate and pack away.

Bought it during lockdown and it's already had a year packed away in the loft before I got it out again last year.

Could you have what you've actually said you want - a bath? I really want one, I think it'd be cheap enough to do - lovely old bath from a rec yard, and as our kitchen sink is under the window I think it'd be easy enough to plumb it in. No chemicals, no noise, just a lovely hot bath outside.

That sounds fun! Don't think it would work here though as we have a lot of trees and I can imagine leaves, bird mess, etc. falling into it!!

I've never fancied it due to cost and faff. However I've appreciated it when friends have had it! I belong to a gym that has a jacuzzi and we've sometimes had one when we go on a self catering holiday. I get my fix at the gym and other people's houses!

I have a rotospa duospa. It isn’t the cheapest initial outlay but it is inexpensive to run and very quiet.

It is a 2 person tub so is quick to empty and refill and costs less to heat. It also has an app so I can choose when to heat it. Since moving to an ev tariff I have started hearing it overnight on the cheap rate and it now costs practically nothing to run.

It is really good for having chats with teen dc and much preferable to taking painkillers for sore muscles.

Before having the tub I would not even venture into the garden for months over the winter but now I get the use of it.

I don’t ever play music or have parties in it so my neighbours don’t mind.

Why would that be different to a hot tub though - you'd just get a cover for it?

It is not really that much to heat provided you take care of it, same for cleaning. Thing to note, try to shower before going in as it really does make a difference in how often you have to clean, change filter.

if you’re committed to checking it for chemical levels, keep cover on when not in use, shower before entering - it is easy and straight forward.

keep it situated away from your neighbour’s windows and you’ll avoid any complaints from the sound of it running as well as minimal complaints of the sound of you in it.

if you make it a habit to use it, it will be worth its weight in gold to you. If you don’t, can be an expensive waste if money. Think of it akin to exercise bike. Some people use theirs regularly and others it is a glorified clothes horse. Only you will know if you’d be committed to use it and to upkeep it.

I'd recommend you hire one for a week and see how much you actually use it and what it does to your electric bill.

They often seem to come up on the face book selling page round here ...

We have friends with a very good one- properly built in to a decking and pergola arrangement with lighting and steps etc. They are very generous with it and often have BBQs etc in the summer when it is lovely.

However, they switch it off and drain it for much of the year because the electricity bills were insane and it needed cleaning and refilling etc which took hours at a time.

I don't personally bother going in because although I love the half hour in the warm and bubbles I absolutely hate the slipping and sliding in and out, the dripping everywhere to get dry and then having to shower all the chemicals off. My skin doesn't react well after either.

I would never ever bother to buy one as its price per use would make booking Center Parcs or something look reasonable.

I had one for years and used it all the time, especially in the winter. Get home from work, put pyjamas on the radiator, switch the heating on. Hour in the hot tub and back into a warm house. Also used it for star gazing late at night.

and reading books in it in the summer.

I moved and miss it.

Thank you all for the info and observations. Will give it some serious thought.

I massively regret our purchase. Was ok at first but less then 2 weeks after it being installed someone (we think next door but one but cannot prove the bastard) put a carp in it and it didn't feel the same after

What the ACTUAL fuck?! That’s so creepy. I’m sorry (for you and the carp)

Thanks, it really shook me up when I removed the cover. We have a long running dispute with them but without any video you can't prove these things

We love ours. We spend a couple of hours in it most evenings through the summer months. It's really good for our relationship - no screens, no mindless scrolling, just chatting together.

We empty it in October. We aren't prepared to heat it through the winter. But I do miss it!