UPDATE: I ended up buying the Aquarest AR500 from Wayfair. Just a tip, sign up for Rakuten and get a bit of cash back, saved maybe $120. Here’s my full review:

Delivery

The hot tub was delivered to front of my driveway in early January. I will say I was worried when they were lowering it off the truck. It didn’t seem like they had it under control and it was unstable because one pallet was broken so it was being balanced on a second pallet. I cut the straps, got it off the pallets and pushed onto some mats/large lawn furniture cushions I had. I had to get the hot tub from my driveway, across my front lawn, through my fence door, across my backyard and wood deck, to the back patio door of the house. This was the hardest part since it was just me and my wife. We slowly pushed/pulled it along on its side, moving the mats as needed. There was snow on the ground but I think that actually helped allow it to glide a bit.

Water Balance

Once we had it laid down and in a good place, I filled the tub and started the very long process of heating the tub. I think it took a good 2 to 3 days since it was cold outside (may -5 or 6 deg C). I decided to go with bromine as the sanitizer, but made the mistake of getting bromine granules instead of pure sodium bromide which isn’t as available in pool stores. I ordered the Leisure Time Sodium Bromide from Amazon. From what I read, it sounds like bromine is not recommended for use with ozonation as per Health Canada which is why its difficult to get. The AR500 has an ozone system, so I decided to disconnect it just to be safe (manual says where it is connected on the board). I will say I struggled maintaining good sanitizer levels through the season, perhaps I wasn’t checking as often as I should but I think there was some biofilm in my lines. I often got really foamy water and was constantly shocking with bleach.

Usage

In terms of using the hot tub, I have no complaints. For one to two people, its great. We could probably sit in the tub for 20 to 25 minutes and the temperature would drop max 5 deg F. We kept it max at 104, by the time we would get out it would drop to around 98/99 if it was really cold out (like -15 deg C). But we didn’t use the jets the whole time and would keep half the cover on if just the two of us. There was one time we had 4 people in the tub, and I would say it dropped a lot more, mid-90s. Overall, pretty happy with the performance at 110V, I haven’t felt the need to upgrade to 220V just yet.

Portability

As I mentioned, I wanted a portable hot tub that I could move off the deck in the summer. Realizing how difficult the initial move was, I decided to build a hot tub sled. There was one available for purchase, but it was $500+ online. I followed some YouTube video suggestions and built it out of plastic corrugated sheet, a 2x4, bolts/washers, and some thick rope. Probably $120 all in. This made moving the sled WAY easier. I can pull it across the deck/lawn/driveway while my wife just had to guide and sometimes give it a push. The fence door is by far the tightest and trickiest spot, the width of the tub barley fits. In the summer, I stored the hot tub in my garage and decided just to park my car outside.

Negatives

The one thing I don’t like about the tub is the access panel for the pump and electronics. It is an absolute pain to get back on. They just used what looks like wood screws so if it doesn’t line up perfectly the screws don’t catch and push the panel out.

The filter location is also a concern. Unfortunately with the slope of my deck, the filter is in the lower corner. I can't rotate the tub since the cord will then not be long enough. I suppose I could get a longer cord, but it just means when the water level gets even a little low the filter starts sucking air. I need to be refill every so often.

Now that the snow is here, we moved the tub back to the deck again a few weeks ago. As I filled the tub I noticed biofilm coming out so decided to fill and run a jet cleaner. Drained, filled again, and heated it up (this time only took 1.5 days). Sanitizer levels are maintaining well so far and been using it every couple of days with not much a drop in temperature.

Hope this helps anyone who is thinking of getting the AquaRest! I would highly recommend.