Jacuzzi's

Inflatable spas and acrylic hot tubs:

the two share a name and little else. An inflatable from Bestway, Intex or MSpa is a PVC wall around a flexible floor, with one unit on the side that pumps, filters, heats and makes the bubbles. It goes up on a level patio in an afternoon. An acrylic spa is a moulded shell in an insulated cabinet, with jets driven by one or two pumps and a separate heater, and once placed it does not move without a crew. Jacuzzi itself is a brand, but here the word covers any outdoor hot tub, so ask for the label if the make matters to you. Neither is the bathroom hydromassage tub that is drained after every bath; an outdoor spa keeps its water filtered and warm for weeks. If you want something you can swim in, look at swimming pools, and the loungers that end up around a tub are in outdoor furniture.

Seats, the slab under them and the circuit behind them:

choose by how many people will really use it, then check the ground. A filled six-seat acrylic spa weighs well over a tonne and needs a level concrete pad, not a timber deck or an upstairs terrace. Most acrylic spas of four seats and up need a dedicated 240 V circuit with a GFCI breaker, so the electrician is part of the purchase; a few compact two-seaters run on 110 V. Inflatables plug into a grounded outlet, never an extension lead. Neither needs a plumber: you fill it with a garden hose. Altitude decides how hard the heater works. In Cartago, Zarcero or the hills of Heredia the water loses heat overnight, and a thick cover that seals properly matters more than the jet count. In Puntarenas or Guanacaste the water stays warm on its own and the enemy is sun on the PVC and the cover, so the tub belongs in shade.

What a hot tub costs before the electrician arrives:

new inflatables run from about ₡200,000 for four seats to around ₡400,000 for six or seven. Acrylic spas start around ₡3 million for a six-seater, before the pad, the circuit and delivery. A used inflatable is worth whatever its pump is worth: one that heats without throwing an error code carries most of the value, and without it the tub is little more than a paddling pool. A used acrylic spa is where the real saving sits if the shell is sound, but price in the move, because even empty it weighs 300 to 400 kilos.

Signs a used spa has had a hard life:

ask to see it full, hot and running, and ask where it lived. Plenty of spas here have served cabins and holiday rentals around La Fortuna and similar spots, running every day for guests who never touched the chemicals. On acrylic, run a torch across the shell for hairline cracks and blisters, take the cabinet panels off to look for drips or white crust at the joints under the pumps, and lift the cover: a heavy, soggy one has soaked up water, no longer insulates and is a real expense to replace. On an inflatable, look for weeping seams and patches, press the wall to check it stays firm, and watch the panel for error codes while it heats.

A hot tub listing that saves the buyer a trip:

give the seat count, outside dimensions, voltage, the age of the heater and pumps, and whether the water holds its temperature overnight with the cover on. Photograph the panel lit with no error, the shell in daylight, the cabinet corners and the underside of the cover,; say whether it stood at a home or a rental. Above all, describe the way out: gate width, any steps, and whether it needs a crane or a team of four or five, because the first thing a buyer in San José asks about a spa in Grecia is how it gets onto the truck.