How to Make a Portable Hot Tub for your RV or Home
Hot tubs are a luxury to most of us, and they owe that status to their hefty price. It could cost up to $9000 to install a hot tub. And that excludes the cost of buying the installation material and the Jacuzzi itself!
It costs less than 10% of that amount to make your own hot tub at home. The best thing about this one is that you can take it everywhere you go. With this portable hot tub, you can turn the forest into your personal spa.
What you’ll need:
A 2x2x6 water trough
Deep Cycle Battery
2x 1 1/4" Metal Hole Saw
A Hose Adapter for the pump
A Female-to-Female hose connector
Hot and Cold Hoses
1/2" Bulkhead fitting
1/2" Galvanized nipple
3/4" GHT to 1/2 NPT
What to do:
Use a drill to merge your metal hole saws (pictured) with their corresponding hole saw shanks. You’ll put one unit on each side of the tub for the hot and cold-water inlets.
Drill the two holes where you’ll put your hole saw shanks in the water trough.
The next step is connecting all the necessary hoses.
You’ll first hook up the gas connector to the gas inlet of the water heater. Make sure you do this gently to avoid over cranking the gas connector.
Connect the water outlet hose to the tank. Next, you’ll need to connect the water inlet hose to the water heater. Tighten all your hoses to avoid leakages.
You’ll also want to make sure you have batteries for the igniter of the water heater.
The next step is to connect all the hoses to the other side. First, attach the gas connector to your propane tank, then open the propane tank slowly so that it doesn't freeze up.
Hook up the hot water hose (red) to one end of your tub. You’ll connect it to one of the hole saw shank units you drilled in.
Now, connect the green hose (for cold water) to the water pump, which you’ll then connect to the hot tub. You’ll also need an adapter to connect the hose to the tub.
At this point, your setup should look like the one pictured above.
You can test your water connection. Turn the heat down on your water heater, then turn up the water pressure. The heater will turn on automatically when there's enough water pressure.
Once you’ve properly connected everything, turn the water on to check for leakages. You'll notice that the water heater automatically turns on as water starts flowing into the hot tub. You can crank up the heat to your preferred temperature at this point.
There are various hot tub sizes you can make. Ours fits in the back of our toy hauler with no problems. No matter what kind of RV you have, there's a way to take the hot tub with you if your doors are wide enough.
Checking for potential issues
Making the portable hot tub wasn’t all smooth sailing. We had a bit of troubleshooting to do. All the issues we had were caused by the water heater. So, follow these to avoid the mistakes I made:
You’ll need to position your water heater well, or it’ll shut off. It needs to be in a balanced vertical position.
Ensure that the water pressure is consistent so that the water heater functions well. It requires the water pressure to be between 10 and 110 psi. If it gets too high, then the heater will shut off automatically.
Safety precautions
When working with electricity, you should always be careful. This fun DIY requires as much care (if not more) as any other electric project.
The water heater is powered by propane, which is highly combustible. So, don't set up your hot tub indoors because you could die. Make sure you're outside with fresh air and nothing flammable nearby.
Remember, you're dealing with electricity, water, and propane. So read the directions carefully when working.
I can't tell you how giddy Leila was about this hot tub. Whether you're in your RV or a house, you can now go anywhere to find a private space to relax.
I hope this inspires you to release your inner electrician/plumber. Do share your creations with us in the comments, and remember to be careful out there.
As always, we look forward to sharing more of our adventures with you.
Check out our video below to follow along the instructions:
