Chinese manufactured spas VS USA/Canadian manufactured spas
Before I start writing this post let me make it crystal clear.... I am involved with the distribution of Chinese,USA,Canadian,Mexican & European manufactured spas. People may feel I am biased as I am heavily invested in Chinese production which equates to a large portion of my business. However my views below are my honest views and my personal opinion and should be treated as such. I am aware this post will probably cause a heavy debate.
Chinese manufactured spas-Are they good or bad?
The answer to this is simple: You can buy both!
Traditionally many years ago Chinese Spas had a bad reputation. I have been involved in the import of Chinese Spas since 2011 and can honestly say at the time I started importing Chinese Spas the quality was not as good as the USA manufactured spas. In fact it was significantly inferior, spas came with Chinese control systems, Chinese acrylic and were poorly manufactured.
Nearly 10 years on this is not the case. All manufacturers in China have access to US components, US acrylic and the exact same components as the US/Canadian manufacturers.
The majority of US/Canadian manufacturers actually now import their components from China to assemble in US/Canada (Mainly jets, pipes, pumps, diverters etc)
There are good Chinese Manufacturers√
Some manufacturers in China truly wish to make the best quality product on the market. Some manufacturers in China already produce significantly higher quality spas than their US/Canadian competitors. (Yes I said it.... Chinese Spas of higher quality than US/Canadian spas)
There are some bad Chinese Manufacturers×
Some manufacturers in China are just that....... bad. They use poor quality Chinese systems, lack quality control and ultimately their build quality is sub standard.
What should I do as a customer??
Research, Research, Research..... My advice here is to speak to the dealership, ask them questions on the build quality, ask them to show photos of the factory and build quality of the product.
Avoid start up companies selling online with no showroom, engineers or backup support
The real danger for a customer!!
The real danger for a retail customer is not buying a Chinese hot tub. You can buy amazing quality Chinese hot tubs. The real danger is avoiding buying from a company that has popped up from nowhere, aims to sell hot tubs cheap online with small margins. There are many cases of this happening were online retailers have popped up, sold spas and don't have the support to back them up. Customers can then be left with a none functioning hot tub as the company they have purchased from have ceased trading.
USA/Canadian Manufactured Spas- Are they good or bad?
Same as Chinese spas..... the answer is both!
The famous line I hear from hot tub retailers "Make sure you buy USA/Canadian manufactured and not Chinese"
- This line is old news now and frankly a load of sh*t
As I mentioned 10 years ago this was a valid comment, now its just scare mongering
You can indeed buy high quality US/Canadian manufactured hot tubs, you can also buy very poor manufactured US/Canadian hot tubs.
Some use US pumps, some use Chinese pumps... 99% of them all use Chinese jets, diverters etc
Should I buy USA manufactured spas from online retailers?
Typically you don't have the same level of issues with online retailers selling US product in comparison to Chinese product. The manufacturing costs of US products compared to Chinese products are higher so the people selling US manufactured spas online in the UK are not trying to sell high volumes for low margins. There are afew reputable retailers such as The Hot Tub Superstore selling US manufactured product online and offering an excellent aftersales service to their customers.
Slagging off the competition
Having recently joined afew of the UK hot tub owners groups I am both shocked and disgusted in the "professionals" commenting in these groups.
I have seen comments like "Dont buy Chinese shit" etc etc
The worst thing is when a member comments with enthusiasm highlighting their new purchase and receives comments from "professionals" like "good luck" "Did you know its Chinese?" "What make is it?"
Can people take into consideration the following
1. Not everyone wants to spend the same amount of money as others
2. For some people they have saved for years to buy a hot tub for £3-4k
3. Your comments are not constructive in anyway, they are actually extremely rude and degrading to others
4. For most people... they do not care the hot tub is made in China
I've witnessed in these groups that typically the only negative comments regarding certain companies... for example BWS come from people selling US/Canadian hot tubs. From BWS existing customers it seems mostly they are happy.
BWS are my competitor but I don't slag them off in anyway as its unprofessional
Dealers who slag other dealers off are unprofessional and probably feeling scared of losing business.
Running costs
1. You can buy poorly insulated & extremely well insulated hot tubs from both the US/Canada & China.
Typically you find the US/Canadian hot tubs are better insulated than Chinese hot tubs. I have seen Chinese hot tubs with hardly any insulation on.
I've also seen people insulate their own hot tubs using Kingspan. I have seen the US suppliers argue that customers shouldn't have to insulate their own hot tubs and there is certainly an argument to be had with that. However if a customer chooses to spend £4000 on a hot tub and £50 insulating it compared to £8000+ on a US hot tub then that's their choice and a large saving.
2. The statement "Running costs are higher on a Chinese Spa" - Could be, Could not be - Depends on insulation. How many years will it take until your Chinese spa has cost more than your US spa?
My verdict
Choose the product that's right for you... Chinese, USA, Canadian, Mexican, European, UK or any other country in the world.
1. Buy from a reputable company
2. Forget about the origin of the product
3. Do not buy from a company who has just suddenly appeared and is selling online with no engineers, no showroom
4. Ensure you see the build quality of the product
5. Ensure you have a warranty that covers you should something go wrong
6. Avoid companies who slag other companies off - Unprofessional
The Future
Chinese manufactured hot tubs are currently already selling at a higher % than USA/Canadian spas in the UK. I believe the future to be very bright for Chinese manufactured hot tubs and believe within the next few years they will dominate the hot tub market.