We initially were not going to have a spa, but someone put the thought into my wife's head :). So we got one. We had one on our last pool. We used it a fair amount of time, then the LP gas heater broke. Spas are nice in the cooler weather because thay'll allow you to enjoy the view of the pool.

We were getting a heat pump for the pool anyway, so it cost us about 4K for the spa (non-raised), and another several hundred for coping.

When in doubt, get the spa... if financing it, and using an average of $6 per month per thousand you borrow, it'll cost you from $24 to $48 per month for 20 years. Not too much in my mind.

-Gorilla

I don't like Pool Spas. First, it forces you to add a heater and you end up having to heat "cold pool" water everytime you want to use it. That means, waiting an hour for the spa to heat up. Usually, when you want the spa, you want it now and its at a whim. Second, sitting on gunite and plaster is frankly "uncomfortable". For the same price, you can get a stand-alone spa this is "always" ready. Cost less and is more economical to heat. And have all kinds of extras like comfortable captains chairs with surround sound with 5-6 different jets and a more cozy atmosphere. More comfortable, more energy efficient. They generally cost the same or less than a gunite spa.

The only real advantage to a spa on a pool is it looks cool. I sold my neighbor on the same idea at my last pool and he built a rock enclosure for his spa so that his spa looked like it was part of the pool.

Prior to building our first pool this summer, we had a Hot Springs portable tub for about 10 years and LOVED them. We used them probably 4-5 times a week.

With our new pool I debated a long time at just getting another portable vs. integrating a tub with the pool. We were going to do a heat pump either way, so that was not an issue.

We ultimately went with the integrated tub with the ability to isolate it from the pool and use it year round (we live in SW Virginia).

What sold me was the concept of tieing it in with the pool, not having to take care of it separately (separate chemicals, etc.), the waterfall and the looks (looks much better than a portable setting on your pool deck). So far we are pleased. We keep our pool at about 83 deg, so it only takes about 30 min to heat it up. Kids love it.

I did not do any automation, so I have to manually swap some valves and the heater.

Ultimately, it was several thousand less than a comparable portable, but its never about the money with a pool (if it were, I wouldn't have built one!!) - it comes down to personal preferences.

Good luck!

Thank you everyone for your advice.
While "I" would like to add a spa to the plan, my husband does not for some of the reasons above-heating pool cold water each time you want to use it-plus, the quote came back $8100 for at level with pool and $1400 more raised 12" above pool grade. We are not financing but going out of pocket and this was just toooooooo much over and beyond what we are already shelling out for pool decking, pergola, fence, etc. Not to mention any replacement grass or any landscaping. I will have to live vicarioulsy thru others or get to know my neighbors really well ;) I might sneak over now and see what beverages they keep in the outdoor fridge, so I know what to bring over ;)

I'm with barco, we much prefer stand alone spas, always hot, no issue of waiting/heating, can be used year round, etc. I do think the flow over spas look cool, but IMO they are not worth the hassle/trouble/cost, whereas our stand alone spa is used daily, all year round.

We're on our second pool, have had a spa with both and love it. For this house, we replaced a stand alone as part of our newly finished pool. The stand alone was great but we didn't want to hassle with the chemicals and maintenance for both. Our spa is set up separate from the pool so it will be ready for use all winter, we'll keep the water heated to prevent freezing and using the pool heater, it will heat up quickly. Maybe we're not as spontaneous as others and the 30 minutes to heat isn't a big deal.

With the newer jets available for an inground spa, the new spa is much better than the one we built in 1993. You do give up some of the specialty jets but didn't find them that impressive in the stand alone unit.

I'm sure you'll get many differing opinions on this one but we don't miss our stand alone spa at all.

I have an attached spa and I wouldnt do it again. We never use it because of the time and expense of heating it. In the winter, it takes about an hour to get to 100 and costs $10(gas). Then, we are probably in it for 30 min. It's more trouble than it's worth and I'd rather have a larger pool.

If you want a spa, get a stand alone unit.

We don't have a pool (yet?) =) but I was working with my landscape guy today on a master plan for the backyard and he suggested doing a spa with the pool. One of the reasons was resale appeal (I won't say value) -- he is of the opinion that potential buyers want the spa with the pool. The second reason was for my elderly parents. He said that his 84 year old grandmother has really benefitted from using his spa. Just a thought -- like I said we are just contemplating the pool process.

We built our pool this year and included a raised spa. Our kids love it.

1. It creates another "room" in the pool area so that if kids want to play in a separate area then they can go to the spa.

2. It increases swim season for the family. When swim season is just starting, kids might get cold and be done swimming. If you heat the spa to just 90 degrees or so then they can alternate between the pool and the spa and increase swim time.

3. Looks great with the cascade!

4. We can now use our pool investment year round.

5. Therapeutic.

Our heater is a 400,000 BTU and it heats very quickly. We haven't gone through a winter yet but based on our Spring swimming I would estimate it wouldn't take longer than 20-30 minutes to raise the temperature

To be fair I probably shouldn't post since out pool is not finished...but hey, you did ask:) hee hee
We are absolutley putting in a spa and a firepit for the simple reason that we want to be able to enjoy this expensive little project all year long.
I actually cannot tolerate hot water, so I wouldn't heat mine as much as most people. But, knowing I can get in it in December for aches and pains or NOT heat it and use the jets for the same reason in the summer is well worth it to me:)
Good luck with your decision.
S

Initially, I did not really want a spa. I didn't see us using it except in the winter. My husband wanted it for relaxation, sore muscles, etc. Having one helped me sell the plan for the pool build with my husband. Now, I can't imagine not having it. First, it makes a huge difference for the overall look and feel of the pool. As an entertaining space, nothing beats the sound of the overflow. We enjoy our pool as much from the outside as the inside (of the actual pool). The kids use the spa all the time, alternating between it and the pool, while swimming. I would have never believed how much they love just getting in it as an extra place to play. We used the spa all winter. My backyard is now my favorite place to be year-round.
Without the spa, we would be missing a whole element of enjoyment.

My take on spas....

I'm a stunt woman and my husband is a stunt man.....we do physical stuff like falling, fights and car stunts so we pretty much require a spa to take care of my sore muscles. We have thoroughly enjoyed our spa and even if I wasn't a stunt woman I would still have a spa. It's kind of funny when we have a party and they're are a few stunt people here, they always seem to be in the spa instead of the pool, lol.

Our spa has 6 jets but, 10 people can comfortably sit in the spa. It's a large spa but, didn't cost me anymore than having a regular sized round spa. Had we put in more jets, that would have been a different deal. One side of the spa doesn't have jets which is great because sometimes I just want to feel the heat.

I use my spa daily and if not in the day it's used at night. During the summer it takes 10 minutes to heat and during the winter about 30 minutes even if the temp. is at 55 - 60 degrees. Although I'm in So. Cal. and the winters are mild here, our pool water will still go down into the mid 50s.

You don't have to heat the spa to enjoy it during the summer or during the day. I use it for the jets. I'll warm it up to whatever desired temperature I feel I need, if I heat it at all. It's nice because it's above the pool with a nice spill over so when the pool starts cooling down, we'll get a little heat spilling over into the pool.

I have an above ground Cal Spa which was great when I was using it but, I personally don't like the smell of the chemicals which caused me to not want to even go in it. My bathing suit smelled and so did my skin. I even put fragrance in the spa and it would temporarily help hide the smell of the bromine chemicals. I basically lost interest in that spa. I've tried to sell it...and I can't even give that spa away. I've offered it to several of my friends to come get it.

My pool spa doesn't smell of any chemicals what so ever but, I do have a SWG which helps.

So with that being said.....If I were to build another pool someday (and I'LL BE THE BUILDER!) I wouldn't go without a spa.

I agree with ncrealestateguy, he made excellent points.

i love our attached spa. I never have to worry about water quality because it gets treated (SWG) and filtered with the pool water automatically. I have solar heat and in 1 to 2 hours I can heat up the spa on a sunny day to 100 degrees plus, also automatically. I have PeebleTec in both pool and spa and find it a very comfortable surface to sit on.

We initially hesitated to take on the added expense of a spa but now are very glad we did.

This post is a little old but we are now debating if we should not include a spa due to maintenance and cost to heat. Does anyone have a spa in central calif. that could comment on what they are spending to heat their pool. Also a friend of mine complained that their 18 year old pool-spa never gets clean enough, they had to by a separate battery operated cleaner to clean it. Any thoughts on this, is there another way to set up the plumbing to make cleaning easier?

Spa drains are normally closed so the spa doesnt drain when the pump turns off.Therefore heavier debris just sits on the bottom. To clean, just put it in spa mode or spa drain to open the drains and then brush. It couldnt be easier or faster. Leaves are rarely a problem as the spillway acts as a skimmer.

Got it, thanks. By the way, is there an arrangement of piping in which 1) you can isolate the spa for winter use, perhaps trying to keep that water warm and separate 2) a way to isolate the spillway and return water without having to go through the pool. I would want to isolate the spillway for two reason, 1) being that I could clean the spa without returning water to the pool (i.e. winter mode), 2) I may not always want the water to spill into the pool through the spillway as it can make noise and over time it can stain the pool tile (spa is raised). It would be nice to have a bypass so that in normal mode I can have the spa water return to the pool without using the spillway. Any thoughts?

I chimed in back in July 2008... as a follow-up, I am really glad we got the spa. We are using it in a way that we've never used the spa in our first pool.

Here in Orlando recently, it was warm outside, but the pool was still at 72-74 degrees (too cold for me)... so we heat the spa just enough so that we can soak and cool of for hours.

-G