AquaRest’s Affordable Hard-Sided Hot Tub Is Great for Soakers

You’ll want to make sure that you have a good level space that can handle the thousands of pounds a full hot tub weighs before you place this thing there: it’s not light, and it absolutely shouldn’t be placed on an unreinforced deck or a raised patio you don’t want sagging into the ground. My location was disused and very nearly level, with pavers over sandy soil that can take the weight. Make sure you investigate this before even considering a hot tub.

The only real assembly, apart from making sure you have enough power (either a standard 120V circuit or 240V dryer outlet will work, with 240 being noticeably faster to heat), is installing the lid. It’s a normal flip-top style hot tub lid with foam insulation. It comes with drillable clips so that you can make sure it stays secure on windier days.

The tub has 12 jets and four clear seating positions, with a common footwell for everyone to share once inside. It’s a bit tight with larger folks, but you can pretty comfortably fit four adults in the tub, and very easily fit two (and a baby, my wife and I discovered, if the temp is low enough).

Controls are simple buttons on the side of the tub, with a temp readout that tells you what the current temp is, with the set temp adjustable by arrow keys, as well as the small spa light, and the jets.

The jets themselves are easily turned on and off with said switch, unless the spa is heating, at which time they remain on to circulate the heated water. You can adjust how strong the bubbles are with clever little knobs on top of the tub rim next to the cupholders (essential for a hot tub).

Hot Tub Life

Photograph: Parker Hall

If you’re a new hot tub buyer, it’s essentially as easy as filling up the tub, then waiting the 24-ish hours it takes to heat up water to your desired temperature. I set the tub to its maximum 104 degrees Fahrenheit for a proper heat soak, and it took a bit over 24 hours to heat the tub from tap-cold water on 120V in the middle of winter. Your mileage will vary, but plan on a day or two until it’s properly rocking.