Hot tubs are a great way to relax, get some pain relief, spend quality time with your family, enjoy your friends, and so much more, but what about the impact they have on the planet? Not all hot tubs are created equal when it comes to home eco-conscious they are. Here are some things you should look for in a hot tub that make them eco-friendly.
Insulation
Insulation is a crucial part of an environmentally-friendly hot tub. The better the insulation is, the less your heater has to run, using less power and therefore being more sustainable. The best insulation is dense foam insulation around the perimeter of the cabinet. Insulation should create a border around the cabinet that prevents heat from leaving, but it also should not fill the entire lower cabinet.
Another important part of insulation that is often overlooked is the cover. Heat rises, so if you don’t have a great cover that does a fantastic job of stopping heat from leaving the tub as it rises, your energy consumption will increase significantly.
Your cover should be 4” – 6” thick and it should have a barrier that does not allow water to get into the foam of the cover. If the foam in the cover gets wet, it’s insulation value decreases significantly and you will need to get a new one.
Pumps and Heaters
Pumps and heaters are what consume energy in your hot tub. They need power to be able to heat your water, run your jets and filter your water. When looking for an ecologically sound hot tub, you should look for tubs that are equipped with energy-efficient pumps. An energy-efficient pump is able to move more water with less power, which is very important because pumps move hundreds of gallons of water every day.
Something to watch out for is smaller pumps, sometimes known as circulation pumps, used for filtration. These pumps are not usually used for running the jets and their sole purpose is to filter the water. These small pumps don’t consume a massive amount of power, but they are set to run 24 hours a day, which means over time they draw a significant amount of power.
When looking at sustainable hot tubs, it’s also important to look at the heater. Heaters are one of the most frequent pieces of equipment in the hot tub to fail. This is often due to chemical and mineral build-up within the heater. It is important that the heater is made of a strong metal that won’t corrode with any minerals and that also has a protective coating to stop chemicals from eating away at it.
There are so many things that go into making a hot tub ecologically sound. The most eco-friendly hot tub is the hot tub that consumes the least amount of energy. Good insulation and a good cover, a strong manufacturing process and energy-efficient pumps and heaters all help lower a hot tub’s energy consumption, making it better for the planet and less expensive for you!