Silly question….

Does anyone have a Swim Spa?
If so, pros and cons… if you had to do it again would you purchase or just have a pool put in?
Thanks for your input!

I have a swim spa. We chose the type with a "wall" in it that separates the water from both sides, so we're not heating the whole "pool" to warm the hot tub. Ours is a Dynasty, it has the jets at one end for swimming, I use tethers so I can swim against the strong jets. You definitely need goggles and earplugs, due to the strength of the jets. Ours is not sunken, we have stairs going up to it. We currently run it from about March to November. Living in Canada, that's a LOT longer a season than we would get from a pool. I would still like a salt water pool someday for the dogs.

The swimspa has water fountains, that light up at night with LED lighting of all colors and has a built in stereo. My kids and grandkids love it. We had them in it all afternoon on our Canadian Thanksgiving, just a few weeks ago. It holds as many people as most small above ground pools. I have some health issues and really enjoy being able to heat the water and swim, as well as relax in the hot tub. They are costly, but if need be, can be moved if you should decide to move, unlike a pool. We hope to build an enclosure within a few years, which would allow us to use it year round. You CAN use it in the winter, but the idea of shovelling the snow and ice off to get in it and swim just doesn't really appeal to me. :)

Have you ever had a time where one of the dogs got in the spa? I was thinking about cutting costs and getting a spa vs a pool...
However, am concerned about filter, hair etc

It's pretty deep for a dog in that there's no way for it to walk in, and getting out would be quite difficult. I did take a pup in with me a time or two, when she was about 12 to 14 weeks old, just to let her have some fun. Not sure if others are designed differently, I just don't really find them that great for dogs. Wouldn't allow much of a swim, unless you were tethering them too, but not something I really see as feasible. Most swim spas are not buried in the ground like a pool, but sit up on top of the ground. I know ours has all it's electrical panel access etc at the one end and you would not want that to be buried. Perhaps a deck built around it, but even then, no real gradual steps, (there are seats down in it that we use to step down into it). A plunge in would be hard for the dog, as the size isn't all that huge. Perhaps one could make it work, it's just not something I see as being ideal. :)

Thanks... something important to know! I really would like a saltwater pool but who knows ...