Going Green: Hot Tubs & Spas

Learn about green and eco-friendly hot tub and spa products, systems, and models. Learn what leading hot tub and spa companies are doing to provide more energy-efficient hot tubs that can save you money while also benefiting the environment.
Hot Spring SpasHot Spring® Spas
Vista, CA

Products Include:
Hot tubs and spas, featuring high-density foam, energy-efficient pumps, LED lighting

Custom-fit foam covers with high R-values

Hot Spring Spas offers hot tubs that are highly energy-efficient. Third-party testing confirms that Hot Spring spas have extremely low documented operating costs. Each Hot Spring spa has EarthSmart™ features, including multiple layers of high-density foam that minimize heat loss. The pumps and heater deliver maximum performance using minimum energy. The SilentFlo 5000® circulation pump uses less energy to operate than a 40-watt light bulb. Every Hot Spring spa comes with a custom-fit cover that has a high R-value and a dense foam core, forming a tight seal to maximize heat retention.

Recently, Hot Spring earned an ENVY Award for outstanding efforts in environmentally-friendly hot tub design by the Germany-based INDESIGN Institute for Innovative Design.

Hot Spring is continually searching for ways to conserve resources, reuse and recycle. Hot Spring produces its own power through onsite generators. In the manufacturing process, excess spa shell and siding material is recycled, along with all cardboard. Hot Spring is making green initiatives part of its long-term corporate strategy.

Lucite Acrylic SurfacesLucite® Acrylic Surfaces
Memphis, TN

Products Include:
Lucite® cast acrylic sheets

Lucite International continues to push forward in its determination to conserve energy and improve the environment. Lucite® acrylic sheets are formed into a spa shape through a process called thermoforming. This normally entails heating the sheets to about 400 – 420 degrees F and then forming them into the shape of a mold. Lucite International has adjusted the formulations of the acrylic in its labs, allowing manufacturers to form the spa shell at much lower temperatures. The reduced heating lowers energy requirements in the production of spa shells.

The company also buys back scrap pieces of acrylic from its spa manufacturing clients and resells these small pieces to companies that manufacture rulers, game tokens and other products, thereby keeping these scrap materials out of landfills. If the scrap pieces can't be reused, Lucite International sells it to companies that recycle it into the chemical raw material from which the Lucite® original sheet originated.
Master SpasMaster Spas®
Fort Wayne, IN

Products Include:
Hot tubs and swim spas, including the H2X swim spa, featuring Icynene® foam and EcoPur filtration

Four of Master Spas' product lines, including its swim spas and more than 30 different spa models, feature the Polar Wrap Insulation System with Icynene technology. Icynene is a 100 percent water-blown foam insulation that expands to 100 times its volume. This dramatically reduces the waste volume. Icynene is applied without any ozone-destroying gases, and there are no gas emission hazards. Icynene insulation also maintains its insulating value for the life of the product, unlike some other foams that can lose half of their R-value in as little as two years.

Master Spas' popular swim spa line, the H2X, consumes only a fraction of the energy consumed by a traditional swim spa. On the highest speed, its propulsion system draws only 6 amps of power to create a current over 7 mph. Some conventional swim spas use three to four large pumps, which often draw 16 amps of power per pump.

The company's EcoPur filtration system features multi-stage filtration, using up to 90 percent less chemicals than certain other systems. Its high-output ozonator destroys bacteria and can reduce the amount of required chemical sanitizer. Many of Master Spas' hot tubs feature waterline LED lighting, which uses significantly less energy and lasts longer than incandescent bulbs. Master Spas' hot tubs also meet the stringent energy standards of the California Energy Commission.