Aqua Paradise Featuring Jacuzzi Hot Tubs

After doing a great deal of research and comparing different manufacture's hot tubs we decided on ordering the Jacuzzi J-325. We went to the Aqua Paradise showroom in Carlsbad, CA and wet-tested a unit. I was impressed with the Jacuzzi?s design as well as its warranty. We were told numerous times, by both their sales person and the owner, Jay Gavin, that the J-325 was specifically designed to run on 110v and would ?work perfectly? in our desired. This was the deciding factor in our choosing that specific model. I emailed Jay digital photos of the location we planned to put the tub as well as close up shots of the outdoor outlet we would be connecting it to. He said everything ?looked perfect." On the delivery day I specifically asked our regular electrician (who has done a lot of high end work for us both indoors and out) to be there when Jay came to set up the unit. Once it was hooked up both Jay and our electrician checked the voltage going to the unit and both said it was fine. The first issue I contacted Aqua Paradise was several weeks later when we noticed at night that the LED readout was flickering slightly. This was not noticeable during the day but obvious and kind of annoying at night. Aqua Paradise sent out their repairman the following week to check the panel and said as far as he could tell everything was okay. We rarely used it in the evening so the flickering panel was not a big issue with us as long as it was not defective. We just covered it up with a towel. It was several weeks later when the real problems started. I got in the tub one day an noticed it was cold. I checked the temperature setting on the panel and it was in fact in the 80?s. I thought it might have somehow been accidentally turned down. However when I tried to adjust it the digital panel was ?frozen.? It displayed the temperature but none of the buttons were functional and there were multiple error messages flashing. Having some knowledge of computer equipment I asked Jay if the problem could be with the units logic board or the control panel itself. He didn?t think so.They sent their tech out again who did not disguise his displeasure in making the ?long trip? out to our home. He said that he felt the problems we were having were electrical and that it was not the Jacuzzi. He charged us $80 for the visit because he said there wasn?t a problem with the Jacuzzi itself. I then heard from Jay who said he had now concluded that it is wiring going to our outlet that was insufficient to run the Jacuzzi properly and that this would be a continuing problem until that was solved I asked why he never mentioned that this could even be a possible issue when we purchased the unit -- especially after we made such a big deal over the electrical specs with him. He responded, that ?he is not an electrician? and had no way of knowing what kind of wires were in our home. I asked him, if he was in any way concerned about the possibility that this kind of issue could arise -- why didn?t he bring it up with the electrician who I specifically hired to be there to insure that there would be no problems. His response was "that when he left everything was "operating perfectly? and of course, that ?he is not an electrician.? Very frustrated at this point, but trying to be a gentlemen, I just asked Jay if he could recommend an electrician who he trusted that could solve the problem. He gave us the name of an electrician who he said did most of their work and who had helped him out before with ?voltage issues.? Not a good sign. We just wanted our Jacuzzi to work reliably and so I agreed to hire his guy. His electrician was able to make it to our home a few weeks later but in the mean time we had a non-functional unit just sitting there in our pool yard. When he arrived he did extensive troubleshooting checking all the wiring from the electric panel to the outlet. Then after carefully measuring the distance of one to the other he said very clearly to us that he felt there was NO PROBLEM with the gauge wire that was used. It was on a dedicated circuit with a 40 amp breaker which was ?more than sufficient.? He then called Jay and I heard him explain that he found no issue with the wire gauge, the distance from the panel or the voltage that was coming out of the outlet. He restated the unit and reprogrammed the control panel and it seemed to work. The electricians invoice was $247. The next morning, I checked the unit and the temperature had not changed and the panel was displaying error messages again. I called Jay yet again and gave him the update. He repeated his mantra that it was our home?s wire gauge that was the problem. I asked him if he had spoken to his electrician as yet because that is something he specifically told me was okay? He said that he had and that?s what his electrician confirmed to him??? Okay, so now I realize that I am dealing with a liar. I contacted the electrician and left him a message informing him of what Jay had said he said. He did not return my call. I again contacted Jay (whom I no longer trusted) and it was now his position that based on his ?research? and speaking with a "Jacuzzi representative,? The ONLY way the unit would work properly was if we ran a dedicated line from the house's main electric panel, which is approximately 400? away. I informed him that that would require digging a trench through our mature landscaping (which is my wife?s pride & joy) and cutting into our concrete deck in order to achieve this. He said, ?I realize that, but it is the ?only way it will work.? Out of complete frustration I asked Jay again if it?s possible that the root of the problems might be the logic board or control panel. I reminded him that this was the very first thing I contacted him about. He said, ?Let me think about that.? I then heard from their repair guy who said that he was coming back out to replace the logic board and the circulation pump. This time I made a point of being home and when he examined the Jacuzzi. He continued to test things and finally in exasperation said that he was now certain it was the heater that was inoperative. He got very annoyed because he did not have one on his truck and would have to come back yet again. He called his boss and said, ?do you want the bad news or the really bad news." I asked him to please still replace the logic board and then I had to return to work. When I returned home that evening the unit still had not heated up. I called Jay yet agin the following morning and the conversation did not go well. He absolutely refused to accept any responsibility for this matter saying over and over ?you have to fix your electric!? I assured him again that I would certainly not incur the expense of doing a ridiculously long electric run that would require MUCH more labor and repair to both landscape and hardscape. At this point Jay rudely informed me that ?he has a store full of people? and that ?this conversation is over? and abruptly hung up on me! I don?t know what this disrespectful young man was thinking. This is the worst kind of bait and switch, shady used-car salesman tactics in the book. He is obviously trying to cover up his mistake of selling me a unit, guaranteed to work in our location and taking absolutely no responsibility when it didn?t. We were livid! I then had a senior tech from SDG&E visit our home at our request. He spent over an hour examining every panel connection in our home. He confirmed that we met or exceeded code on all of our electrical systems. He also assured us that there was no problem whatsoever with their connection to our home. His belief was that the problem was not with our home's wiring and that we probably just bought "a lemon!? I finally decided to contact Jacuzzi directly and spoke to a regional supervisor and explained in great detail the continuing problems we?ve been having. It took several weeks but I finally heard back from a senior tech support person there. I emailed him a video of how the control panel was frozen and just read out error messages. Within a week they sent over an independent repair technician. What a world of difference. He was polite and obviously very experienced. On opening up the Jacuzzi his first comment was how sloppy the work already done to it was. He said screws we?re missing and the heater connections were loose and seemed to be only hand tightened. He tested the voltage and confirmed that there was NO problem with out electric connections, or voltage to the unit. When he disconnected the ?supposedly? new logic board he showed me how a section specifically used to operate the control panel was blackened and had ?been fried?. He confirmed that this is the first model year Jacuzzi has used this specific control panel and he had seen this problem before. He replaced both the logic board and the control panel and the unit has operated perfectly since. The customer service rep from Jacuzzi was apologetic for our entire experience and kindly offered to send us the equivalent value in Jacuzzi supplies to cover Aqua Paradise?s electrician?s visit. The bottom line here is that we just had a TERRIBLE experience with this dealership. They gave us nothing but misleading information up front and incompetent tech support when we encountered problems. Then even worse, exhibited deceitful behavior by denying what their electrician had directly told us and continuing to insist our problems were as a result of our home wiring and not the units control panel as Jacuzzi's investigation discovered was the case. We felt deceived, and abused. What was supposed to be a purchase to inspire relaxation caused us nothing but tremendous inconvenience and grief. For months we had an unusable big box sitting in our yard and Aqua Paridise couldn?t have cared less. Jacuzzi customer support was friendly and solved our problem Our advise if you're considering getting one. Buy it elsewhere! Caveat Emptor!