Spa Covers

Spa Covers in Canada Should Be Thicker

Because of winter conditions outside in Canada, spa covers can be subject to snow, ice and extreme weather, shortening the life of the spa cover to about 5-7 years. Taking care of the cover by keeping accumulating snow off of the cover during the winter, cleaning the cover regularly - especially on hot tubs that have a built in ozonator, since the ozone can damage the underside of the cover -, and allowing any moisture buildup inside the cover to air out during the nice summer months by opening the zipper that contains the inside sealed foam core.

Spa covers are usually made of weather resistant vinyl material. Factors that differentiate one cover from another is the density of the foam (usually 1 1/2 lb. foam or 2 lb. foam with the higher density being a better insulator). Most of the heat lost from a spa goes out the top, so it is critical that the cover fits well and is of the best density and thickenss as possible.

Tradeoffs with cover thickness are, yes you will get more insulation from a thicker cover, so why not just go a whole foot thick? Because it would be next to impossible to remove and put back on. On the other hand, some manufacturers out there are offering 2 inch thick covers which is substandard for Canadian or Northern U.S. winters.

Although many standard covers may be 3-2 inch taper, where the taper measures the falloff from the middle of the cover to the edges in order to promote rain runoff, it is better to go at least 4-2 or 4-3. Of course the 5-3 or 5-4 inch covers are even better, but they start getting more unwieldy and heavy, requiring the assistance of a cover lifting device. Cover lifters can be added to any cover for a little over a hundred dollars depending on the model.

Once a hot tub cover gets larger pits in the surface where water accumulates, it is time to start looking for a replacement cover. When measuring for a replacement cover, just measure the dimensions of the cover you had before. Make sure to get the corner radius measurement on any cover that has rounded corners. A radius measures the point where the corner starts curving away from the imaginary line that would continue if the cover were square or rectangular and did not have curved corners. That point in the air marks one side and the point where the cover starts curving is the other. That measurement in inches is one way to get the radius. Smaller radius, more material over the corner and smaller bend around the corner. A large radius leaves a more obvious rounded corner and less material on the cover at the corner.

The thing to get right is, make sure your radius is a tiny bit smaller instead of letting it be a tiny bit bigger. A bigger radius means less material, bigger bend around the corner and a tighter fitting cover. Too big of a radius measurement and your corners of the spa will not have enough cover to cover it as the cover will be too small.

Another measurement that is less critical is the skirt length, or length of the flap of vinyl material that hangs down around the cover perimeter. Usually it just covers the acrylic and is about 3 inches, but longer skirts can cover any lip around the spa or even portruding wood cabinet edges - so when in doubt, just measure the flap from the last cover for the skirt length.

Dimensions, corner radius, skirt length, cover colour, cover thickness, foam density - we have "covered" it all here. For the best deal on the best qualtity spa cover Canada, order yours at The Hot Tub Superstore.com.