Common Myths in Hot Tub Sales

Open Cell Foam vs. Closed Cell Foam: Many hot tub salesmen will profess they have a particular type of foam insulation, typically closed cell foam insulation. This is not really an identifying feature, but for hot tubs, an industry standard. The fact of the matter is everyone who uses foam insulation in the hot tub industry uses closed cell polyurethane foam. Open cell polyurethane foam does exist, but in the form of "foam rubber", great for cushions, but for insulating hot tubs, not so much. The reason closed cell is used for insulation is that the foam is a cluster of trapped air cells that act as a poor conductor of heat. The quality and amount of foam insulation are factors that will effect your hot tub electrical usage.
For example, when a lesser quality closed cell foam is exposed to the chemically treated water of a hot tub, in many instances the foam's cells can "open" and allow water saturation. This can lead to a hot tub that weighs significantly more following a leak, and when the "dead air" inside the foam is replaced by water, a lowering of your hot tubs "R factor" occurs.
Horsepower equals Value?
This may be irrelevant, for what really matters when evaluating a pump's performance is the "head" of the pump, a rating that has more to do with flow than actual horsepower. So unless you salesman is familiar with flow or the nozzle math, he will be little help. Try to compare GPM (gallons per minute) and note the quantity and sizes of jets. Too many jets on too small of a pump will equal week hydrotherapy .
Power consumption:
Most hot tubs are used heavily in the first ninety days and then use tapers to "normal" after that. As a result, your first few months are a poor representation of the total cost of hot tub ownership. Also, higher priced tubs do not necessarily translate to lower costs of operation. Yes they may have higher quality components, but they may have little impact on energy efficiency. The best way to determine the average cost is to do the math...
A rule of thumb is to take each appliance that the hot tub uses and read the label, e.g.
115V 2.0 HP motor @ 3.6 amps draw
Now using the Volts x Amps = power (watts)
That translates to 115V x 3.6 amps = 414 watts or .414 KW
So at 10 cents per KWH and if you run the hot tub pump 8hrs a day
.414KW x $.10/KWH x 8 H = $ .3312 per day or $ 9.93 per 30 day month
Now that is just one component. Remember, you are told that "This hot tub will only run you $10 a month in electricity”. It is only partially true, for that one component (say one pump during daily filtering) will cost you $10/month in electricity to filter, but remember there is cost associated with lighting, heating, summer VS winter, and more pumps during use with the cover off.