Soaking in a hot tub at the spa is a great way to relax and tone down, but it can be even more relaxing when you can relax in the comfort of your own home. Personal hot tubs are amazing to have however they can be quite costly to own and run.

Hot tubs can be considered a luxury item but this means that they come at the price of luxury goods as well. The costs that are associated with owning a personal hot tub are not only limited to the initial cost of purchasing and installing the home spa. The cost of running the hot tub can prominently increase electricity bills. Not only does this include heating up the water but it also includes other electricity consumption factors such as circulation of the water.

There are many different factors that can affect the cost to run a hot tub and that affect the electrical consumption and costs of a hot tub. In the following article, we will look at the various costs and factors that affect the electrical consumption and costs of running your hot tub.

Energy Consumption of Hot Tubs

Closeup of hot tub
Closeup of hot tub

Many modern manufacturers now claim that in their advertisements that their products are very energy efficient and inexpensive to run. In fact, manufacturers often also claim that their tubs and spas cost about a dollar per day to run and if they are on the higher end then they can cost up to fifty dollars per month to run.

Generally, the biggest source of energy consumption is based on the heater which is used to heat up the water. These heaters usually consume between 1500 to 6000 watts, or 12.5 to 50 amps. In addition to this another source of energy consumption is the pump which also on average consumes around 1500 watts of energy.

If you have additional features in your hot tub those may also factor into the consumption of energy overall. In addition to this, the actual cost energy consumption can also depend on your cost of energy per kilowatt-hour, the local climate, the frequency and quality of maintenance and the user habits.

The Cost of Running Hot Tubs

Essential Hot Tubs 20 Jets Arbor Hot Tub

Unless you’ve got an unlimited amount of funds then you probably want to be aware of any prior and ongoing costs that are associated with owning a home spa prior to purchasing one. Unfortunately, there are far too many factors that affect the power costs that it is hard to provide an accurate estimation.

However, on the positive side, if you decide to purchase a brand-new hot tub, it is expected to be fairly energy efficient as based on the recent advances in technology and equipment used for heating. Choosing the right tub will also come with guarantees and specific energy cost estimations for that particular tub which will help you visualize the overall cost of running your home spa.

In addition to this, another significant factor that will affect the cost of running your hot tub is your climate of where you live. If you reside in an area where the overall climate is colder, especially in the winter than it will be a lot more costly to run your home spa as compared to a milder climate. This is due to the fact that the heater will have to work much more to keep the water heated in a colder environment as compared to warmer surrounding temperatures.

But let’s take a look at how much energy is roughly used by the average home spa in a month.

How Much Electricity is Used by Hot Tubs Per Month?

How Much Does It Cost to Run a Hot Tub

The main consumption of energy is while using the home spa is the heater inside the unit, which will use around 1500 to 6000 watts and this is dependent on the voltage of the heater. The heater can be a 120- 240-volt heater. In addition to this there is also the energy that is used by the pump which is generally about 1500 watts.

In terms of the heater, it occasionally will run even as the spa is not being used in order to maintain the temperature of the water. But when the hot tub is in use it will be running more frequently, if not consistently. In addition to this, the pump will also be running constantly when the hot tub is in use.

The Approximate Cost Calculation

Therefore, based on this information we can approximate the amount of electricity that the home spa would use. If you have a hot tub with a heater of 120-volts, then while it is being used it should consume about 3000 watts, inclusive of the heater and pump running. Similarly, if you have a home spa with a bigger heater then it will consume 7500 watts with 6000 watts for the heater and 1500 for the pump.

blur image of people fixing house wall for background usage bitcoin
blur image of people fixing house wall for background usage bitcoin

These wattage measures can be converted into kilowatt-hours (kWh), which mean 3000 watts is 3kWh and 7500 watts s 7.5kWh. In order to approximate the cost of your tub’s electricity consumption, you can take these kilowatt-hours and multiply them by the kilowatt-hour rate that is generally on your electricity bill.

For example, if the rate is $0.15 dollar or 15 cents per kilowatt-hour then when you run a 120-volt hot tub for 3kWh at a rate of $0.45 or 45 cents per hour. Similarly, the 240-volt hot tub which consumes 7.5kWh would cost $1.125 or 1 dollar and 12.5 cents per hour.

However, this is still a very rough estimate as there are many other factors that will affect this price. Some of these include, the size of your tub as the more water there is the more energy used to heat it up, your tub’s thermostat settings, and the temperature outside and the quality and age of the water heater.

Conclusion

Prior to purchasing a home spa, it is important to know the costs associated with owning and running the unit. Although there is the base cost of purchasing the home spa there is also electricity costs, water costs and maintenance costs. Although a rough estimation of the electricity cost can be generated there are many different factors that can influence the actual cost of your electrical consumption.