Are you perhaps planning to add a hot tub to your garden area by building a hot tub yourself using a ready-made kit? Below are instructions and tips you can follow to make such a great DIY project!
If you want to discover a new dimension of wellness experience, you can build a hot tub yourself and save money. This is suitable for both the garden and indoors and can give these areas a beautiful rustic look. Regardless of the location, these wooden country bathtubs are a great solution for those who enjoy spending time outdoors. Some of these can be fired with wood, while others are simple bathtubs without a stove. In addition, there are various options in terms of shape, size, wood materials, etc. Here is an idea where you can either use ready-made kit or cut the staves yourself. So nothing stands in the way of your next DIY project.
What should you consider before you build a hot tub yourself?
If you have a limited budget, building such a hot tub yourself can be a great alternative, with wood being one of the most common building materials. You can build a wood-fired hot tub yourself, for example by using ready-made staves made of cedar wood. However, it is very important to choose such wooden staves carefully so that your hot tub is tight and no leaks occur. In addition, you should decide for yourself whether this will be an off-grid system or whether you will connect the hot tub to the water pipe. You canThere is also a solar system for heatingor use a power generator if you have one.
As an advantageous building material, cedar can add a touch of sophistication to a DIY project. It is also durable and you can experiment with it. However, prefabricated cedar hot tubs are often expensive, but you can go a cheaper route by getting a pre-made kit. This means you may end up paying much less for the entire project and save on supplies. So if you want to get started, below are some of the tools and materials you will need to complete this project. Then take a look at the step-by-step instructions to build a hot tub yourself.
What tools and materials to use for construction?
For the project described here, you will need a few tools that would make milling the staves much easier. For example, you can use a table saw, miter saw or hand router. You will also need a rubber mallet, a hammer for wood, a screwdriver, a drill and other carpentry tools such as wrenches. You should also choose wooden staves that are weather-resistant and of high quality. It is important when building a hot tub yourself to use high quality materials to prevent future problems. So don't skimp on the quality of wooden staves because they will serve you for a long time. As already written above, you can also opt for a ready-made kit.
Since cedar wood is rather expensive, you can opt for other types of wood such as oak, spruce or larch. These are just as reliable and well suited for such a project. You can find these in warehouses, although in lower grade lumber you could ask for logs with free sections. These should also be large enough to be able to cut staves off of them. For this reason, it would make sense to find a warehouse or a carpenter to better sort lumber. Last but not least, you will also need tension rings, or hoops, that will hold each stave in place. The tension rings should also be weatherproof and rustproof so that they can last for a long time.
If you want to cut the wooden staves
The next step if you want to build a hot tub yourself is to cut off the staves. Depending on the size you want, you will need to calculate the dimensions of each stave based on the size of the wood used and the circumference of your hot tub. Please also note that you attach the staves to the bottom of the whirlpool using a plug-in connection, so that the internal circumference of your whirlpool is reduced.
Additionally, when planning, you should think carefully about how you can get the most out of each board. Think about the order in which you need to make your cuts so that you can use as much clear wood as possible. For example, use a chop saw and a table saw to do the job with. Now it's time to put the staves together so that they form a circle around the bottom and can hold the water. To assemble the floor you need a tongue and groove connection. The hardest part is making a cove joint on each stave. Here are some steps you could follow.
Follow the step-by-step instructions and build your own hot tub
- You definitely need a floor that is flat and stable to support the weight of the water. You can also prepare a concrete slab, lay some slabs on it and place pebbles on it. So everything has to be flat and able to hold at least a ton of weight.
- You may need to run the boards through the router 4 times, although a planer could also be used. You may leave some gouges on the front of the planer, which you will then need to remove with a small shaping tool.
- How large each of your staves will be depends on the size of the wooden boards used and the circumference of your hot tub. You will connect the wooden staves to the inside edge of the floor, meaning the inside perimeter will be reduced as a result.
- First, start by cutting the edge bevel on the side of each stave. To help with the fillet joints, you can place shims on the top of the router table to adjust the 4.5 degree edge cut to vertical.
- Then run the staves through to make even cuts.
Build the soil
- Accordingly, for the floor you need to use boards that are cut into a tongue and groove connection. A thick bottom is a good idea. In this case, you may need to attach the benches with longer screws as they can sometimes come loose from the ground and float up.
- For support under the floor, use four-by-four beams, depending on the size at the outer ends, each placed under the floor at equal distances from each other.
- Now mark a large circle in the ground according to size and cut it out with a jigsaw. You can do this by attaching a pencil to the end of a load sticker, placing the screw 2 feet from the pencil, and rotating it around to draw a circle.
- You can then glue the wooden staves together with wood glue. The glue expands and you can then scrape it off.
- To attach the staves to the floor, you need to make one of the connections described above. Once you've done this, you can stick the staves into the ground. Keep a piece of the material you used for your floor handy to test the joints over time.
Install a drain and attach the staves
- Also install a floor drain with a tap, although you should not do this directly on the side walls. To do this, use a hole saw about 5 cm wide to drill a hole for the floor drain.
- Now you can attach the wooden staves and hold them in place with tension hoops or tension rings. The pressure of the water should cause them to swell and seal against each other, making the hot tub waterproof. If not, you may need to use sealant. Maybe cut a few extra staves just in case and do the joinery on them too.
- Secure the staves with tension rings, although a good rule of thumb is to tighten the tension fasteners halfway at the end, as the tub will swell when water is added and may shrink again after a few days in the blazing sun.
- As for the plumbing, these can include the simple floor drain with ball valve. You can use a 90 degree pipe for this and connect it to the drain.
- Then attach suitable connections so that you can connect a garden hose to the hot tub when you want to empty it.
Add benches or seats and build a complete hot tub yourself
- To attach seats or benches, all you need to do is screw the pre-cut parts into place. Try creating a hexagonal seating structure on two levels to allow for different seating heights and soaking levels for children too. An upper seat could also make it easier to get into the hot tub.
- Additionally, you can use leftover staves that have flaws and knots to make benches that form the four sides of a hexagon. Then you can place an oven where there is free space.
- In general, you should plan space for four people if you build a hot tub yourself.
- Now you can add the water, although it is important to keep the barrel full most of the time so that the water pressure on the joints keeps everything tight. To prevent evaporation, it may be useful to build a lid. Of course, you may need to use some sealant if leaks have occurred.
How to install a heater in a hot tub?
- There are a few options for heating the water, although you could also get used wood stoves. Furthermore, the installation is not too difficult, but you should secure the oven well to prevent any risks. This usually also includes a long stove pipe, which allows the smoke to escape high up.
- At this point it is important to mention that if you build a hot tub yourself in your garden and use a wood stove, you should also discuss this with your neighbors. Otherwise, you can look for a submersible stove or find an external wood stove that you will use for your hot tub.
- Additionally, you may also want to consider propane or electric systems, depending on whether your hot tub should be plugged in.
- The top of the stove should be just above the highest water level, but not too high to prevent heat from building up in the firebox.
- Ideally, you can build a fence around it so that you or your children don't accidentally touch the hot surface with their feet and injure themselves. It's best to leave a small gap at the bottom of the fence to help water circulate. However, this should only expose the bricks and not the oven itself, although you can also use leftover wood for the fence.
