If you have been thinking about investing in your own swim spa for your garden, you might be a bit confused by the range of prices that appear when you search for costs.
In this blog, we’re going to talk you through why prices can vary and what makes a swim spa cost jump dramatically.
Swim Spa Manufacturers
There are so many manufacturers of hot tubs and swim spas that it can be tricky to distinguish the good from the bad and the ugly.
As a general rule, the very cheapest swim spas that you only find online use cheap materials, with poor insulation and poor build quality. There are always exceptions to the rule so you need to do your research thoroughly. These can cost as little as £10,000 but be aware of all the other points to follow.
It is generally accepted that the best made hot tubs and swim spas come out of Canada and America – their populations have been enjoying the benefits of swim spa ownership for many years so their customer feedback and research have enabled them to develop a superior product. These acrylic swim spas tend to start at £20,000 for the smallest size, going up to about £50,000.
There are ranges that go even further, providing professional-grade power for a professional athlete, which might cost up to £100,000 and then there are hand-tiled, mosaic swim spas that have had a bespoke design, which might set you back anywhere from £100,000 to £200,000.
Insulation
The single biggest impact on your energy prices when running your swim spa is how well-insulated it is. There are many different ways to provide great insulation – let’s look at a few:
- Cabinet – the outer walls and floor of your swim spa can let heat out and cold air in unless they are well insulated. Ask to take a look inside the workings of the swim spa so you can see for yourself how thick (or thin) the insulation is and whether it includes any technological components such as reflective materials.
- Pumps – the pumps work hard to create the flow of water for you to swim against and produce a lot of heat that could be useful to help keep the swim spa warm. Some manufacturers will utilise this by making sure the heat is reflected back into the swim spa area and not out towards the cabinet.
- Cover – you could have the best insulation surrounding the walls and floor of your swim spa, but if your cover is flimsy and devoid of insulation, all that heat is going to seep through and cost you a lot of money. Make sure your cover is heavy-duty and well-insulated.
The extra care from manufacturers to insulate every area of the swim spa adds to the cost of your upfront purchase. But you will be saving so much on energy over time, it is definitely worth it.
Current
This is one of the most overlooked aspects of a swim spa purchase. It is really important that you have had a test swim in the swim spa you want to buy to make sure it provides all the things you’re hoping for.
Power, jets and pumps all play their part in producing the type of flow that you will be swimming against.
- Pump design. The pumps produce the type of power that is produced by the jets. If the flow isn’t powerful enough, you will find that you are always moving forward and having to reset your position within the swim spa every few strokes. At the optimum level, you will be feeling the resistance and staying in the centre of the swim spa and could keep swimming endlessly! Some swim spas also include a buoyancy pump to help you stay floating in the water while swimming.
- The jets are where the water is pushed out and they produce the flow that you are swimming against. There are huge differences in the types of swim that these produce and is another reason why you should always try before you buy. Think about swimming in a pool with no turbulence from other swimmers – you are able to focus on your technique and can breathe efficiently. Now imagine swimming in Niagara Falls with white water coming at you – that is what you want for some playful fun, but not for a serious swim.
- The flow produced is the current you are swimming against. Ideally, you want to be able to control the power of the swim jets so you can get exactly the right power for different swim strokes and different swimmers. Some swim spas only have an on/off button with no control; a more sophisticated model will allow you to programme the jet power for individual workouts allowing the flow to increase and decrease at intervals. This allows you to switch from front crawl to breaststroke and to do this as an interval training session. Swim spas with insufficient power tend to use a tether to add resistance and hold you in place while you swim.
Size
It may be obvious, but a bigger swim spa is going to cost more than a smaller swim spa! However, the key factors described above all contribute to determining the price. You may find that some larger swim spa models with poor-quality swim jets are cheaper than a small swim spa with excellent power and jets.
Warranty and Customer Care
Always check what warranty is included and who the warranty is with.
For a reputable brand with good build quality, they will offer warranties on the structural frame, the shell and the parts. The best brands will offer at least 3 years of free parts should something need repairing in the early years of ownership and 5-10 years on the frame, shell and cabinet. Your retailer will also offer a number of years of free labour too, which should be at least 1 year but could be up to 3 years to match the cover for parts.
Also, check the reviews for the retailer you are thinking of buying from. You want to find someone who is going to look after you during your purchase, provide you with everything you need to know before the delivery and also look after you once your swim spa arrives.
As you can see, there are many parts that add up to what determines the cost of a swim spa. Manufacturer reputation, good insulation to reduce running costs, a current flow that provides the swim you want and good protection from a long warranty.
Hopefully, we’ve helped make things a little clearer and you have a better idea of what questions to ask, making your swim spa purchase a little easier.
If you want to find out more about our swim spas, come and have a chat with us at Hydropool Surrey.