After three or four hot/cold exchanges you become extremely relaxed. A quick dip in the cold tank is invigorating, stimulating, and makes the hot tub feel even nicer when you get back in. After 5-10 minutes in the hot tub you start to get overheated. We have a 2'x4' galvanized soaking tub off to the side of the deck which we fill with cold well water from the hose. We also considered a 3’x8’ tub to accommodate four people, but that was a jump from 175 gallons (two hours to heat) to 300 gallons (four-plus hours to heat), so we stuck with the two-person tub. We think the 2'圆' is the perfect size for two people. But I'm 6'2" so when we got it home and I sat down in it we immediately realized it was too short for my long-ass legs and I had to drive it back to the hardware store to swap out for the 2'圆' tank. We got a 4' round tub first after seeing Tanner and Tess’s setup. Everything seemed to take me twice as long as it should. **This could be significantly less for an experienced builder who doesn't have a four-year-old and seven-month-old to take care of at the same time. Cedar in the same size & length was $50/board (which is why we used fir). For example, 2圆 fir for our deck was $10/board for an 8' piece.
TOTAL LOCKDOWN DECK FREE
*This would probably be closer to $3,000 without the cost savings from using salvaged siding, and free screws and nails, and could be dramatically more expensive depending on what materials you use. Total time: Approximately 60 hours (30 hours x 2 people)** I'd estimate it takes two hours heating time, and four to five pieces of cord wood (split into 2"x2" pieces) in the firebox to heat our 175 gallon tub from cold (50° well water) to 102°. This stove is incredible, high quality, very efficient, and weatherproof. What wood stove did you use, why, and how is it performing so far? Think everything through carefully, read the instructions for the tub hookup, measure twice, cut once, and you'll be alright. That said, if you're comfortable with that kind of stuff it's not rocket science.
TOTAL LOCKDOWN DECK HOW TO
You'll need to know how to level and square a deck, and have some familiarity with basic tools like a chop saw, table saw, drill, jigsaw, etc. It'd be a simple project for anyone who builds for a living, but if you've never built anything you might want to call your pal who knows what he's doing. For a job like this some basic building knowledge will be required-I'd classify it as solidly intermediate level. I learned a lot, but was still very much in the entry-level phase in terms of building knowledge. In college I had a summer job for several years with a home remodel construction company doing grunt work and basic building work alongside one of the company's primary carpenters. Another source of inspiration was the Soot House episode of Home on Apple TV, which features a home in Maine built by Anthony Esteves and Julie O'Rourke.ĭid you have construction or DIY experience going into the project? Jesse Lenz has a double stove setup for his huge open air tub and also shared some great advice on how to get the heat dialed in.Īlso, I've wanted to try the Japanese Shou Sugi Ban traditional wood charring method ever since watching The Birth of a Wooden House and we figured this would be an ideal project for it since it's supposed to be a highly durable, long-lasting treatment for exterior wood. We took that basic concept and adapted it to a 2'圆' tub. They let us come by their place to check it out and shared a few tips and tricks for proper setup.
They'd created a similar setup a few years back with a four-foot round tub and the exact same Chofu stove as the hot tub’s external heater that I've had my eye on for a while. Some friends in Sandpoint, ID (shout out Tanner Welch and Tess Howell) were super helpful early on.
Knowing we had access to a woodworking shop and tools that belonged to my late father-in-law, we figured we could make something just as cool for half or a third of the price if we were willing to put in the time and effort We've been talking about a wood-burning hot tub for years, and had been looking at Goodland tubs, which are very cool, but we just couldn't afford the $5,795 base price. What inspired your design? Can you share any reference projects, books, or IG accounts?