How Much Does It Cost to Run a Wood Fired Hot Tub
A wood fired hot tub has no electricity running costs. The main ongoing expenses are firewood and water per use, with minimal annual maintenance costs. For most owners using the tub two to three times per week, total annual running costs sit well below those of a comparable electric spa, with firewood cost varying significantly depending on how it is sourced.
This guide breaks down each cost category honestly so you can plan with confidence.
How Hard Is a Wood Fired Hot Tub to Maintain?
For most owners, maintaining an AlumiTub is significantly less demanding than maintaining a conventional spa. The smooth, non-porous aluminum interior does not harbor bacteria the way a porous surface or a complex plumbing system does, so the baseline requirement is lower to begin with. How much effort water care actually takes depends on how you use the tub and what your property provides.
About the Hot Tub Journal
The Hot Tub Journal is AlumiTubs' guide to outdoor living with a cedar hot tub, whatever heats it. It covers choosing between wood fired, electric and hybrid heating; sizing a tub and what one costs to run; where to put it, from a city deck to an island cabin, and how it gets there; what an electric hot tub needs from a site and how the equipment is housed; how a wood burning hot tub works and how long it takes to heat; onsen rituals, cold plunges and soaking after a workout; and what it is like to own a tub for twenty years, told by the people who do. Most of it is written for anyone weighing up a hot tub, not only an AlumiTub owner.
Every AlumiTub is a riveted 5052 marine-grade aluminum structure clad in Canadian Western Red Cedar, handcrafted on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia since 2001 and backed by a 25 year structural warranty. Three heating systems share the same tub: the Electric, which holds a set temperature on a schedule and needs no fire; the Wood Fired, which needs no power and heats a Standard in about three hours; and the Hybrid, which does both. Water care has its own home in the Water Care Academy.
Start with the guide to heating options, hot tub dimensions and sizes, or the electric cedar hot tub.
