Homemade Hot Tub Build
Discussion
Just documenting this for info. A work in progress.
I acquired an unused 1365L Balmoral Plastic Water tank very cheaply and have decided to use it as a basis for my hot tub project.
I'm going for maximum operating efficiency which means tons of insulation to encase the tub in a minimum 140mm of Kingspan.
The entire thing will be boxed in with decking boards and I have acquired the pump, filter and heater etc to build the system itself.
Seating will be plastic garden chairs sat in the tub and poly welded to the bottom.
Once I have the sides built up I will cut the top of the tank off and the top may form the basis of the lid.
There will be a lot of Screwfix expanding foam and loft insulation etc used to fill any gaps in the Facebook marketplace insulation board offcuts.
The tub and insulation will eventually form one solid fused mass. I'll have to chop the whole thing up to get it out.
I'll eventually acquire a heat pump to reduce operating cost even further, but for now I have a 3kw pool heater.
I have solar on the house so will divert excess electricity to the tub.
To get the tank into my garden we (me and the neighbours) had to do an 'up and under', sliding it up onto the garage roof on planks and down the other side. Luckily it's actually fairly light.
Anyway you get the idea. I'll update it as things progress.
There are a couple of videos. One discussing the idea and the second a time lapse of the initial construction.
I acquired an unused 1365L Balmoral Plastic Water tank very cheaply and have decided to use it as a basis for my hot tub project.
I'm going for maximum operating efficiency which means tons of insulation to encase the tub in a minimum 140mm of Kingspan.
The entire thing will be boxed in with decking boards and I have acquired the pump, filter and heater etc to build the system itself.
Seating will be plastic garden chairs sat in the tub and poly welded to the bottom.
Once I have the sides built up I will cut the top of the tank off and the top may form the basis of the lid.
There will be a lot of Screwfix expanding foam and loft insulation etc used to fill any gaps in the Facebook marketplace insulation board offcuts.
The tub and insulation will eventually form one solid fused mass. I'll have to chop the whole thing up to get it out.
I'll eventually acquire a heat pump to reduce operating cost even further, but for now I have a 3kw pool heater.
I have solar on the house so will divert excess electricity to the tub.
To get the tank into my garden we (me and the neighbours) had to do an 'up and under', sliding it up onto the garage roof on planks and down the other side. Luckily it's actually fairly light.
Anyway you get the idea. I'll update it as things progress.
There are a couple of videos. One discussing the idea and the second a time lapse of the initial construction.
Edited by peterperkins on Wednesday 25th March 07:21
peterperkins said:
Seating will be plastic garden chairs sat in the tub and poly welded to the bottom.
My favourite part of your post. It has all the hallmarks of a garden shed ‘back of a fag packet’ type project. It was back in the 1940’s that people like you built things like the spitfire and helped us win the war
But I think we all know it’s going to be a successful project and a brilliant thread. 
Douglas Quaid said:
I d think about the plastic chairs. We have a tub without seating and it s absolutely fine. We sit on the bottom and lean back against the side. We can move about in it and have never felt the need to change.
Try it without before fitting them in is my advice.
I will. I think they might be a bit big as well so likely need some smaller plastic stools..Try it without before fitting them in is my advice.
craigthecoupe said:
Despite enjoying the DIY element, are you sure the tank is big enough in the first place? it looks a squeeze, even for one?
This was my thought too - the chairs look to be 1 tile big and the whole sex pond only looks to be about 2 wide which means you'll have no room for your legs once you get the chairs in.Forum | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff