spillover spa may be one of the easiest add-on options to install on a package
pool — except for one small detail. Where exactly do you place it in
relationship to the pool?
“Not all package pool shapes are conducive to place a spillover spa as far as
the radiuses on certain pools,” says Robert Tarson Jr., package-pool installer
and president of Tarson Pools and Spas in Syracuse, N.Y.
“I wouldn’t place one on a corner of a rectangular pool because it would be
difficult,” says Tarson, who has been installing spillover spas for about six
years. “So instead of a corner, we would move it down more in the center.”
Once you get past placement issues and the excavation process, spillover spas
take only about two hours to install, according to package-pool veterans. They
say if you have a basic understanding of circulation issues regarding the hot
tub and how it interacts with the pool, it leaves you little room for error.
“Spillover spas are relatively easy to install,” says Michael Vassallo, another
package pool installer and general manager at Rising Sun Pools & Spas Inc. in
Raleigh, N.C.
“There are a bunch of companies that make pre-cast units, which are pre-plumbed
in pre-formed shells that hook into the main filtration equipment,” adds
Vassallo, who has been installing spillover spas for 10 years. Installers just
need to wire, and run plumbing lines to and from them.
For those interested in learning the installation process, remember to go to the
source, so you’ll never find yourself in a sink-or-swim situation, says Tarson.
“Just follow the manufacturer’s instructions,” he notes.
Here are five steps to installing spill-over spas:
1
Figure out the depth of the shell for the spillover spas.
This generally occurs in the middle of the construction process when the digging
and setting of the walls of the pool take place. “As you’re digging the pool,
you also dig out an area for that shell to sit,” Vassallo says.
The grading and leveling process may not necessarily be the same for each
project. “Each installation is going to be different based on the circumstances
of the yard and other factors,” Tarson says.
2
Pour the foundation, which is called a footer.
Depending on how high the hot tub needs to be raised above the pool beam,
installers should pour a concrete slab that’s between 8- and 30 inches deep.
It’s important to lay the proper foundation beneath the spa to support its
weight when it’s filled with water, so it doesn’t end up settling. “If you don’t
do it right, the tub can actually float up as the concrete cures around the
shell, or ground water can lift the spa up,” Vassallo cautions.
“We always put 200 to 300 pounds of sand bags inside of the spa during the
construction process,” he says.
3
Connect the plumbing from the spillover spa to the pool filtration.
This may be the most challenging part of the installation process. Be sure to
properly size the equipment for the pool with the spillover spa. “The farther
the pump system is from the pool, the larger the equipment has to be,” Tarson
says. “You may need to upgrade your pump system to accommodate the spillover
spa.”
4
Provide drainage for ground water.
If the ground under the spa doesn’t drain properly, it can cause shifting. To
avoid this problem, backfill with a stone-type base. This will provide good
drainage and a solid foundation for the spa.
“What I usually use to backfill around the spa is quarry or stone dust,”
Vassallo says. “It’s almost like a sand, but it’s made out of rock.
“It gives it a nice, solid base because you can’t adequately compact the soil
under all of the curves in a spa shell,” he notes. “Stone dust is 100 percent
compacted after it’s washed in.”
5
Connect the plumbing from the pool to the return jets on the spillover spa.
This is a Preplumbed, premade vessel, so it’s that simple.
