WOOD FIRED HOT TUBS

An honest comparison of the four hot tub shell materials, including the tradeoffs we would want stated if we were the ones buying, and where an aluminum tub is not the right choice.

How sacrificial anodes protect an aluminum hot tub, why magnesium rather than zinc, how often to replace them, where to source them, and the four things anodes cannot fix.

The four numbers that matter in an aluminum hot tub, why calcium hardness is the one most owners miss, what order to balance in, and which common spa products are not compatible.

Aluminum doesn't rust the way steel does, but it is a metal and it reacts under specific conditions. What those conditions are, why soft water is the one most owners don't expect, and how the tub is built to handle them.

Three different things get called pitting, and they have different causes. What the deposits actually are, why soft water is the one most owners don't expect, and how a tub already showing them gets put right.

Clean, safe, long-lasting tub water comes from preventing problems before they start, not from correcting them after. Balanced water chemistry reduces the amount of sanitizer needed. A simple preventative routine, guided by regular test strip readings, keeps water comfortable for bathers and easier on the materials. The result is water you change quarterly rather than weekly, using far less chemical input at every stage.

This guide covers the parameters, the treatment sequence, the products, how to care for the materials, and how to use and conserve water responsibly.

The first year with a cedar hot tub involves a genuine learning curve. The tub itself will go through a break-in period as the wood swells, settles, and releases tannins. The water care routine takes a few cycles to become instinctive. And the seasonal transitions, particularly heading into the first winter, require attention that first-time owners often do not anticipate.

This guide walks through what to expect month by month, what is normal, what requires action, and where the experience differs between a traditional all-wood cedar tub and one built with a marine-grade aluminium interior.

The off-grid water access guide for wood-fired hot tub owners One of the first questions our customers with remote properties ask is, “How will I fill my hot tub with no running water, and no...

When a client wants their outdoor space to feel as considered as the interior, a wood-fired hot tub is one of the few features that delivers on both aesthetics and experience. For architects and designers,...

Hot tub water has four key parameters: alkalinity, pH, calcium hardness, and sanitizer. Each affects the others, so the order you balance them in matters. Test regularly, adjust gradually, and the water largely looks after itself. The goal is not to add more chemicals when things go wrong. It is to keep conditions stable enough that nothing goes wrong in the first place.

This guide covers what each parameter does, what range to target, how to test, and how to build a routine that keeps water safe without overcomplicating it.