RAINBOW HOT TUBS & SPAS

"We always advise that when buying a spa second hand it is best to see the spa operating. That way you may know of any issues before you invest the money. It is unfortunate that this customer purchased a spa second hand that had a motor that was discontinued. When this is the case, is is not unusual that the plumbing to the spa has to be redone to accommodate a different pump. As to needing a credit card before we come out, it is our policy because over the years we have not been paid when we try to bill. We do not run any charges until work is done and the customer does not have to pay by credit card. Unfortunately it is the few that do not pay that forced us to change our policy."

"This customer did not elaborate on the issues she had regarding her spa. So we will attempt to explain. [Member Name Removed] purchased a stainless steel tiled custom spa and equipment. It is one of the most expensive systems that we carry, and they are manufactured to order. We install and set the spa into a "prepared" site ( by a contractor hired by the customer). The customer would then have the electric installed. We try to reinforce with the site landscapers the requirements ahead of time as to what is needed. In this installation the electrician did not follow the proper procedure for wiring which caused issues. The site that housed the equipment was also later found to not be properly draining which also caused issues after the fact. We did work with the homeowner and the landscaper to finally take care of the problems."

"All of our communication on this job was done with [member name removed] (husband?). He inquired about having a spa moved off his patio then placed back. Once his patio work was done, he would call to have us move it back. We tried to give him an idea as to how he could do it himself (to save the cost) but he did choose to have us do the work. We would be billing for an initial service call and hourly labor for the first move. A return trip and hourly labor would be billed to go back and move the spa into the new position. He also needed a pump replaced. We gave him a rough idea of costs for most of the Cal Spa pumps. We also told him that if he had one of the dually pumps, it would be more expensive. (The dually pump is one which functions as two pumps and is not very common in spas.) He did need one of the several dually pump options. We went out to his residence on 3-18, 2013 and there were workers there doing his patio work. We moved the spa and also installed the new pump. We also talked with the patio guys about moving the spa back. We left our 2x4’s and piping and showed them how they could move the spa back. (This would save the customer almost $200) They agreed to call if they needed us to come back. We also discussed the electric with the patio guys. Because of the new positioning of the spa the old wiring to the spa would not connect in the same manner. There would be additional conduit and possibly wire to have to connection done to meet code. We are not licensed electricians. We are able to disconnect the electric but not do anything if the wiring has to be changed. I (Blake Wertz) called [member name removed] from his house to go over what we had done. I told him about leaving the 2x4’s and showing the deck guys how to move the spa back and he seemed pleased. I informed the customer that I could put an external heater in the spa to prevent any possible freeze issues. I went over the charges for the move, pump installation, and heater. He authorized me to run the charges on his credit card. If the customer informed me that he owned an external heater then I could have installed it for him. [Member name removed] called me (I believe) the next day to have me come back to hook up the electric. I explained to him that we cannot do that because of the changes that should be done for the reconnection. He understood and didn’t show any signs of dissatisfaction. On 3-23, 2013 [member name removed] came into the store. They said they were returning the heater we had left at their house. The heater was muddy and put back into the new box it came from. Lisa was the one who was helping them and stated that they were charged for the heater and that we don’t loan them out to our customers. They were not happy and seemed surprised of the charge. They stated [member name removed] was home when we were there, and they had their own heater we could have put under the spa. Lisa did credit the heater due to the misunderstanding. She did notice that their demeanor had changed at that point and it was somewhat awkward. She tried to see if there was anything else she could help them with but they declined. It seemed that everything was okay with [member name removed] when I had spoken with him earlier about how the job progressed. I left our parts there so that he could save money on our return costs. I went over the electric hookup and he seemed okay with that as well. I sold him the external heater for the spa in order to eliminate any possible freeze issues. If he had mentioned he had a heater I would have put that in place. When we realized he was not aware we were charging for the heater, we did issue a credit. We feel that we acted in the customer’s best interest throughout the entire process."