Building a hot tub / jacuzzi

[Jason Green]

Hi folks,

I’m looking to build a hot tub/Jacuzzi here in Chiangmai. The ones at global house and home pro are just too expensive for what you get. I want something that I can customize. Thinking cement / tile. No jets needed, just hot water. 
 

Anyone know best place to get heater & pump and what kind to get? Gas or electric is better? I see a few options on Lazada. 
 

what about keeping it clean? Do I have to use chlorine or is salt or something natural an option?

 

what about keeping it hot? Can it stay hot all the time or will that cost too much? If so, how long would it take to heat up before use?

 

Any other advice or power tips from the experienced folks? 

 

attached a mock-up photo for reference. 
 

thank you! 
 

[ChakaKhan]

Can I bring a date?   The bubbles make her giggle she says......  rental slots available?

[Hank Gunn]

Looks like what you want to do is basically build a small, heated swimming pool but for the purposes of soaking (like a tub). Having grown up with pools, but doing minimal maintenance on them, I do know that you’ll need some mechanisms (I.e. pump, inlet, outlet) for circulating and filtering the water, as well as moving the water through whatever heater you end up using.
 

Personally, I’d ask the mods to move this to the House/Real Estate > Pools sub-forum. You’ll probably get much better advice there.

[HarrySeaman]

There is an unheated fresh water in-ground Jacuzzi in the courtyard of the house I rent.  The volume of water is about 150 ft³ or 4250 liters. The temperature is fine for at least 8 months of the year.  For the cooler months I bought a submersible pump and a shower heater from a local hardware store and thirty minutes of circulating the water through the heater warms the Jacuzzi up enough for even the coolest weather here in Pattaya.

 

To keep it clean I use chlorine, calcium carbonate, copper sulfate (blue stone), and a sand filter.  The chlorine keeps the water sterile enough, the calcium carbonate is used to regulate the pH so that the water doesn't irritate your skin, the copper sulfate is used to kill any algae that starts to grow on the sides of the Jacuzzi.  The Jacuzzi pump circulates the water from the bottom of the Jacuzzi through a sand filter to take out any debris such as dust, leaves, bugs, and skin that rubs off, then back into the top of the Jacuzzi.  If you have bubblers in the return pipes they will suck air into the water stream you can get bubbles.  There is also an overflow tank so that water that overflows when someone gets into the Jacuzzi can be recirculated back into the Jacuzzi.  There is an automatic filler (think toilet tank) in the overflow tank so that water is replaced as it evaporates.

 

The water in the Jacuzzi is treated just like the water in a swimming pool.

 

You nee a good design (internet) with a shell made of reinforced concrete then a tile lining.  The tiles used in a Jacuzzi or a swimming pool can be slippery, creating a fall hazard. Be smart and add hand rails right at the very beginning of the design process.  I had to add one to my Jacuzzi for safety.  If you have young children the think about a fence with a locking gate around your Jacuzzi to keep them from getting into the Jacuzzi without supervision.

[CanadaSam]

You design is just fine, if you want the water really hot, I would consider a solar hot water system, circulated by an electric pump.

 

[khunPer]

On 8/4/2020 at 12:39 PM, Jason Green said:

Anyone know best place to get heater & pump and what kind to get? Gas or electric is better? I see a few options on Lazada. 
 

what about keeping it clean? Do I have to use chlorine or is salt or something natural an option?

I would choose electric heater, eventually combined with a solar heater, if you need to heat up the Jacuzzi.

The pump shall be able to withstand the hot water temperature, also the pipes. For hot water circulation you might look at Danish Grundfoss pumps, they are made to work with (very) hot water for central heating, and they are available in Thailand. They costs from around 6,000 baht and last long time, I talk from experience, both from Denmark and here.

 

If you keep the water in the tub – it's not a Jacuzzi without the jets – you should consider it as a small pool, with circulation pump, sand filter, and extension tank. Look at your drawing, when somebody sits in the tub, where do the excess water go to, and how do you refill water after two of the three girls joining you walks out to get more cold drinks...????

 

I made a small almost 3 cubic meter outdoor Jacuzzi when I build my house, working like a small pool with chlorine, circulation pump, and sand filter. I made it infinity edge, so I have an expansion tank. I use a normal small 0.5HP pool circulation pump, and a small pool sand filter, installed in a pump room under a stair (left on first photo). I furthermore have two 2HP Jacuzzi-pumps for the jets. I don't heat the water, the Sun will do that job for most of the year, actually it's nice if it's not (too) hot, when it's warm weather (and yes, it's big enough for four-five girls, or me and three...????).

 

 

 

The total construction cost was around 100k baht including pumps and filters – I chose Cheap Charlie, Chinese "Emaux" pumps, with an average life-time of 5 years for a circulation pump, but at least 10-ears (so far) for Jacuzzi-pumps, as they run less time. My next door neighbor chose a five times more expensive Australian circulation pump for his pool, it however lasted just little over a year and was not covered by warranty when it died (I however don't know details).

 

For chlorination I just use a tab in the tank, you can buy chlorine balls including algae killer and chemical for clearing the water, I used that for a period, but a plain chlorine tab works as well where I live (might depend of water quality and weather etc.). You can of course also buy an automatic system for either chlorine or salt.

 

I also have an indoor Jacuzzi-tub for two persons only with jets, and a solar water heater on the roof with Grundfoss circulation pump, furthermore an electric water heater for cold cloudy days. I hardly use it, prefers the outdoor...????

[KClark]

Jason,

Recommend you have a look at jazzispas.com.  If you see anything you like send them a query and ask for a price delivered to your house, all costs included (jacuzzi, transport to Thailand (Bangkok), subsequent ground transport to Chiang Mai, and customs or related charges, etc.).  I was in the market for one some 5 years ago but didn't want to pay the ridiculous prices as you mentioned.  I found Jazzi on Alibaba and sent them a note asking if they would sell and ship to an individual.  A few back and forth emails and I ordered one, which I've now enjoyed for almost 5 years.  As I recall my total cost was about half of what comparable models were costing locally.  

I just looked at the Jazzi web site and they no longer sell the model I bought, but it was very similar to the SKT338 (about 80 jets, 2 pumps and 1 heater, LED lights, etc.).  I paid about Baht 140k total, delivered to my house (Ban Chang, Rayong Province).  Still working like a charm, and a helluva lot easier to maintain than my swimming pool.  Trick is to just change the water regularly, and perhaps throw in a couple tablespoons of chlorine after a heavy session with lots of folks.  Their jacuzzis have ozonators which are suppose to keep the water fairly clean.  I probably average 90 minutes of use per week, and I change the water every two months and change filters.  Kinda learned this lesson the hard way, as I got lazy once and didn't change it or clean filters for about 7 months.  Starting getting what they call white fungus.  Had to do some heavy cleaning to get things back to normal and since then with the regular water/filter changes I haven't had any issues. I clean the filters by soaking them in water with a bit of dish soap for a day or so and then rinse and let dry.  There are two cartridge filters on my tub and I've been rotating the same pair of pairs for over a year now with no trouble.  Not sure how much longer I'll get away with it but working fine for now.

The covers are/at least where sold separately and are/were around $100.  If you go this route recommend you add a spare ozonator (just in case) and some spare filters.  I didn't think/know to do this with the original purchase and paid about $100 shipping for a spare ozonator and 8 filters (which I couldn't find anywhere around here.  That package was $270 total to give you some idea.  No problems with the ozonator yet so still have a spare.

At the time I purchased Jazzi hadn't worked out an agreement with Alibaba for the payment protection plan.  I was very leery paying a company in China before delivery and inspection but after some research on Jazzi and numerous emails with Jenifer at Jazzi I did just that.  They import all the essential parts (acrylic from USA, Balboa control panels from AU, can't recall now where pumps and heater are from but probably one of the afore mentioned).  

The delivery guys they use from Bangkok didn't have a lift on the truck.  Luckily I had a large work crew at my house and plenty of metal pole scaffolding, so we just rolled it on poles to get it in position.

Good luck with whatever you decide.  I certainly enjoy mine.  

 

[Morty T]

We bought a bathroom (bathtub) kit from BIC Camera, Japan and had it installed outside. Simply dropped the whole thing into a concrete mold, hooked up the water and power and we were done. You do need an electrician because the display grid is 100v.

[sammieuk1]

Without jets its just a bath ????

[Iron Tongue]

You've described a Japanese soaking tub, or Onsen.  They can be made from cedar wood and won't need all that concrete or tiling and will look elegant. 

Look online for design ideas.  I'd suggest solar + electric heating system.

[Baht Man]

K.Clark.........Being in the market myself I started looking. HomePro used to have the skirted type on display a few years back but they've swapped them ouy for I-Spa versions and quite pricey as well.

Just sent an inquiry to Jazzispas, so I'll just wait and see what they have to say.

Thanks K.