We use only the highest grade Canadian Pacific Coastal Western Red Cedar. It’s Clear Heart, Knot- free, very fine grained and contains a high percentage of Vertical Grain. These unique physical properties give it exceptional weather resistance, even in the most severe climates. We initially kiln dry our wood to approx. 12% moisture content. We then “season” it a minimum of 6 months through a very dry winter to “freeze-dry” out additional moisture. The result is a furniture grade product with 7% – 9% moisture content. This “Best of the Best” Cedar also has a unique natural resistance to decay and termite attack.With gentle precision machining and sanding, the wood has a nice smooth texture. It boasts a rich range of cedar colors and even with no finish applied, the wood gains a beautiful patina over the years. If desired, our wood readily accepts a range of finishes such as stains, oils, and varnishes to match your environment.No other Cedar Hot Tub offers the luxurious beauty, dimensional stability and proven performance of our tubs. With these impressive characteristics, it’s little wonder that architects and builders turn to Great Northern® for their most demanding hot tub projects.

Hot tub, spa, whirlpool, Jacuzzi, jetted bathtub. What do these terms mean? Many people use them interchangeably. Our buyer’s guide defines a hot tub as a deep wooden tub and a spa as a shallow, molded acrylic vessel. Both hot tubs and spas share the same hydrotherapy jets, heater, and circulating and filter equipment. The terms whirlpool and jetted bathtub mean the same thing. They are deeper than normal bathtubs and have hydrotherapy jets. Most of them don’t have their own heaters, and none of them have a circulating and filter system. A whirlpool or jetted bathtub is usually installed in the bathroom and connected to city sewer and water; you drain the tub when you’re done; you can use soap. You don’t save water or heat-it all goes down the drain. Jacuzzi is a trade name for a company that manufactures spas and whirl-pool bathtubs; it isn’t a special kind of spa. Great Northern® is a registered trade name for our company. We invented the Rubadub Tub® Hot Tub, OpuSpa™ Hot Tub and the Roll-Up® Cover.

We offer 54 standard sizes, more than any other cedar hot tub manufacturer. Whether it’s popular tubs that seat 4 or 6 people, small Japanese Ofuro sized tubs for one person or tubs for retreats and summer camps that seat 18 or more, they’re in stock and ready to go. Need a size you don’t see or something special? Just call or e-mail for a quote.

Portable spas have built-in (also called self-contained) equipment. They look like appliances. Like other hot tubs and spas, they have self-circulating systems. Portable spas appeal to people because it seems you can just buy it, plug it in, and go. No electrical hassle, no construction. The heaters on portable spas have about the same power as a hairdryer, only 1500 watts of output. Imagine heating 250 gallons of water with a hairdryer! In many cases turning on the pump that powers the jets turn off the heater. The name “portable” is somewhat misleading with some “portable spas” weighing 400-800 pounds empty!

Comfort and water depth are related. When you’re in water up to your neck, you’re comfortable. You have never been uncomfortable in a pool, because of its depth. The same thing is true in deep hot tubs. If the water is three to four feet deep, you will be comfortable. You don’t need to lay down trying to get comfortable.

Molded seats and loungers have a lot of dazzle and eye appeal. They look so comfortable! Be careful about buying a highly stylized spa with armrests, bucket seats, or other form-fitting shapes. Why? Bodies! We’re tall, we’re short, we’re big, we’re little. If a bucket seat fits one person, it’s much too small or large for someone else. Beautifully molded loungers look as if they’re really going to support your back and be extra comfortable. Remember, water supports you! Maybe the spa is so shallow you need to lie down to be covered in water. Your body weighs only four to five pounds in the water. It takes just a pound or two of jet pressure or bubbles to lift you out and float you away. Some manufacturers try to eliminate float-away problems by making stirrups or recesses for your feet and arms. You wedge your heels in, and you wedge your arms in, and there you are, all wedged in, ready for …comfort? Loungers also take up so much space that they limit the number of people who can use the spa at one time.

Where does your back hurt the most? How about that neck strain? You can position the jets in your tub at the best height for your aches and pains. The Rubadub Tub® allows you to place jets where you need them. If you want one jet on the small of your back and another between your shoulders, just install two jets vertically. If you want more jets, you can have them. You can have as many jets as you want, it just takes a larger pump to power them. Call with your specific questions. 763-566-3623 You can have any size tub you want. If you want a custom-size tub, a Rubadub Tub® is the easiest, most economical way to get it. All Rubadub Tubs® are made one at a time, so ordering an extra large or extra small tub is easy. Almost any size is possible. We have built tubs as small as 30 inches around by 30 inches high for one person, and as large as 28 feet in diameter for ski resorts. How can I recognize a good quality hot tub? Quality hot tubs have the following characteristics. They— • Are deep enough for soaking (35 to 44 inches); • Are lined with PVDF for long life and easy cleaning; • Are built from high-quality redwood or cedar; • Have poly-coated hoops to prevent rust, and • Look like high-quality furniture.

To operate your hot tub or spa safely and efficiently, keep it covered. There are three cover types: floating thermal insulator, Styrofoam hard spa covers, and structural. Floating thermal insulators float on the water’s surface. There are two types, bubble blanket and micro cell floating blanket. Both are lightweight, inexpensive, and stop surface evaporation, a major source of heat loss. You can use them indoors year round or outdoors during the summer. Neither type prevents people or animals from falling into the water. Styrofoam hard spa covers are made from three-inch Styrofoam wrapped in Naugahyde or vinyl. They are popular despite these disadvantages: They become waterlogged easily. A waterlogged cover is difficult for one person to lift and has substantially reduced R-value. These covers break so easily, children have fallen through them and drowned. Life expectancy is only one to three years, heat loss associated is monumental. Structural covers are constructed from solid wood, or a other strong material. Be wary of plastic covers because they warp in the sunlight. Solid wood covers are strong, but heavy, awkward, and bulky. Another type of structural cover is the rolling cover. Great Northern’s Roll-Up® Covers are made from solid wood slats bonded to insulating, flexible backing. The are strong, compact, and easy to use. You don’t have to lift them, just roll them up. Roll-Up® Covers retain their R-value because they don’t waterlog. These covers keep children, pets, dirt and debris out of the tub while the keep heat and moisture in. If you have a particularly inquisitive child, you can secure the Roll-Up® Cover with a hasp and lock. And only the Great Northern® Roll-Up® Cover features a Ten Year Limited “won’t waterlog” Warranty – longest in the industry!

Pumps in hot tubs and spas have two functions: Circulation of water through the filter and heater and to power the jets. Most hot tubs and spas use two-speed pumps; the same pump circulates water and powers the jets. On low speed, these pumps use as little as 150–170 watts and cost only a few dollars per month. The bigger the pump, the more power in the message, right! Wrong. What gives a firm massage then? Large volume jets. The larger the jet nozzle, the higher it is a GPM rating. We determine a pump’s size by adding the total nozzle area of the jets is expected to power. Because there are so many different sizes of hydrotherapy jets, there is no hard and fast rule concerning pump size. In general, large jets (15–20 GPM) require 1/4 Hp per jet. Manufacturers often use two or more pumps to power individual groups of jets if the total jet area is extremely large. This practice generally saves money for everybody. We match pumps to the size and number of jets they are expected to run. Once the hydrotherapy system has been designed, increasing horsepower has no benefit on jet action. Bigger pumps only operate more jets, they don’t increase pressure! If you need more vigorous hydrotherapy action, use high GPM jets. Expect to pay more for a large number of high GPM jets and the required larger pump.

Three kinds of filters are used in the swimming pool, hot tub and spa industry. Diatomaceous earth (DE), sand filters, and cartridge filters. DE and sand filters are used in cool-water pools and are not suitable for hot tubs and spas. Hot tubs and spas use cartridge filters made of non-woven, spun-bonded, polyester fabric. Avoid filters made from paper or cotton-paper blends because you can’t clean them. They must be replaced when dirty. Polyester cartridge filters are made from two or six-ounce fabric. There are two filtration methods available—suction and pressure. In the suction method, water from the tub is sucked through the filter to the pump, heater, and jets. Sometimes the filter sits right inside the hot tub or spa. Suction filtration requires about four times as much filter area as pressure filtration. If you don’t have a large filter, you have to clean it often. On some systems, a dirty suction filter can cause such flow restriction that there may be damage to the pump or heater. This filtration method is cheaper than pressure filtration because it does not require an expensive housing to hold the filter cartridge. This method is used on most spas. Pressure filtration is more expensive, but safer for the equipment and easier to maintain. The filter sits in a pressure housing located near either the tub or pump. A good six-ounce polyester fabric in a well spaced and sized filter affords good element life, excellent filtration, and little possibility of damage to pump or heater at reduced water flow. Great Northern® recommends pressure filtration. However, suction filtration is acceptable on budget sized and priced tubs. Manufacturers determine filter size by examining two factors—bather load (number of people, how dirty they are, the frequency of use) and circulating pump volume. If you had a very large pump, perhaps you‘d need a 100 square foot or larger filter. (This is large and expensive!!) If an average family used this large filter, they’d need to clean it only once a year. A more reasonably sized 25 square foot filter requires cleaning every six to eight weeks.