When we purchased our current home, it came with a pool, but no hot tub. We really want to add a hot tub, but don't want the inground version, but prefer one that has more comfortable seating.

We are working with a landscape company to create a faade/wall/landscaping surround that the hot tub can fit in. Our original plan was to take the travertine that is around our pool and use that same stone to create this facade with steps around the entire hot tub. We would then add some flower beds/shrubs behind the hot tub for privacy from our side neighbors. However, the hot tub company reminded us that you want to have access to the internals and it appears this access is on the front side of the hot tub where the controls and steps would be.

We could turn the hot tub to where the front doesn't face the pool, but can't turn it all the way backwards because the lid would then be coming off towards the pool and the back of the lounge chairs would then face a neighbor and not back towards the pool. If we turn it where it faces the house , then we would want to come up with a creative way to hide most of the front hot tub view from the pool and house.

Anyone have any suggestions or ideas on how to do this. I've seen a lot of ideas online, but most of them either cover up the components or have wood decking that is easily removed. Our pool style is an English/French country and the wood decking wouldn't vibe with that look.

One can't you order one that faces the right direction and two? Why can't the lid come off in a different direction?

Since today they make plant pot "dollies" that can move the HEAVY ones,
large potted plants in clusters would do what yuou need IF access is only 3 times/year.

If monthly access is the rule, then planter(s) on wheels partially recessed/hidden seems an option, either bought or built (redwood, cypress) then a veneer to match house. Also know that prefab forever metal planters are sold that have been fitted for wheels & veneers as well.

As always, best answers come from photos or links to them e.g. 1) house to match, 2) Hot tub

You can turn the hot tub however you want, except the controls and step into the hot tub are on the front side of the hot tub. The model we want has a high back on the back side (that is where the water fall is and where the back of the lounger is).

Right now the plan is to have a flower bed with privacy landscaping on the back side of the hot tub and the front to face our pool. This would mean if you are in the lounger you can see into our pool and your back is to the flower bed and side neighbor. But also included in that plan was a faade built around the front and two sides, leaving the backside open with a space to sit the cover when it is off.

We do not like the look of the hot tub casing - the wood look. We wanted something nicer looking to blend in with our pool. But, by adding the faade, it blocks the components, which according to the manufacturer are only accessible by the front panel.

We were told that people do facades all the time around hot tubs, but you need to add some type of access panel or be prepared to pull the hot tub out in some way when repairs are needed. The person I spoke to said its either that or be prepared to tear down part of the faade. I've included a picture of what was potentially suggested as a compromise. Steps were added here with rocks and a bench on the side that has the access panel.

we're getting ready for a swimspa install as we speak.

I am partially burying it in the ground (it's 5' tall, gonna drop it in the ground 3')
But my yard is a big slope, so I only will have retaining walls on two sides of it. The other two sides will be 'open', flush with the ground.
Hot tub company says if two sides are open, then they don't need 2' of access because they can empty it and move it.

not sure if you can work this into your design.

otherwise they showed us plenty of examples of it buried with a deck around it, but you can remove the decking easily and have a 2' access around the tub.

^
We are considering a swim spa too! Which one did you get?

Southlake said:

---

^
We are considering a swim spa too! Which one did you get?

---

a platinum brand Helios dual temp.
It's 20'x8'. It seems to have some pretty nice features like waterfall, fountains, Bluetooth speakers.
We got a (seemingly) good deal at the Denver home and garden show back a month ago.
I'm in planning phase now. Hope to have it set in place by mid to late may. Before then we have a lot of excavation and retaining wall work, along with electrical and slab.
Deck and landscaping can come a bit later.

I'm curious about how this turned out. Considering something like this at our house.

billyjack2009 said:

---

I'm curious about how this turned out. Considering something like this at our house.

---

it's done, for now. Ultimately we will put in artificial turf where all the compacted crushed granite is.
But we hit our limit of what we wanted to spend. So it's gonna have to be next year maybe. Don't feel comfortable taking on more debt and want to pay off what we have.


The before.

The after

That looks awesome!

billyjack2009 said:

---

That looks awesome!

---

Thanks.
There were several times during this process I thought I was in over my head for sure. I acted as GC and dealt with all trades directly. After tub was in and hooked up, the yard sat untouched for about 5 weeks from early june to mid july, struggling to find labor to get it ready for landscaping. Finally got some guys to come through, the landscapers themselves. 3 of them spent two 9 hour weekend days getting final grades correct, bringing in the 8tons of crushed granite, putting landscape borders in, completing irrigation repairs, removing remainder of sod and river rocks we had left over, trimming all existing items.. It was a ton of work that needed to get done to be ready for landscaping. They did it all a few days before we left for Mexico on July 5th.

Man did it feel good to come home from our Mexico trip 10 days later and the landscaping/mulch was all done the day prior. The timing worked out great. I gave him a printed plan of locations for everything, AND we flagged and labeled every item for an exact spot, so I slept well knowing it would all be done how we wanted it.

Like I said it isn't technically complete, but it is finally clean/presentable and use-able.

A few random pictures of the 'during'





And this is about when mother nature put me to the test, and I almost threw in the flag and didn't sleep really well for a while!

First a crazy amount of rain for Denver, on unprotected/unsupported 4' cuts into the dirt.



And, as it's still late april, so of course we need snow as well. This is a few hours after the rain started. I sat on my neighbors deck, overlooking it unfold with a big glass of whiskey and just crying inside!


Just a minor failure.. nothing too crazy.


Finally.. wall complete, no more worry of my patio falling into my yard.


Totally winging this area over here in the back corner. I knew I had to go up in elevation a good 5-7' from our new low grade to existing grades along fence. I leaned on my retaining wall guys to just make it happen.


Thinking ahead and putting in sonotube behind the wall before they backfill with 1.5" rock, for my deck supports.


Ready for slab. 6" concrete with #3s, over 6" 1.5" rock.

Finally, D-day (that's delivery day!)
Pretty good size crane to lift nearly 4klbs over 120' away.
And, in one more final attempt to derail our progress, as soon as crane shows up and gets his supports out, we get hail and winds pick up to 20mph.









Then it looked like this for 6 weeks.. ughh, mud every where, every time. Hard to get in the darn thing too.


Finally find time to get a deck frame up in Mid june.

and, as if the backyard wasn't enough, we concurrently redid our front flower beds too.. had the wall guys install the wall, then landscaped with all new mulch
We always hated how it was before, just sloping down towards the neighbors, weeds/grass growing into the river rocks that used to be there. plus our ninebarks were way overgrown, could barely walk out the front door to the driveway.