What does a cocktail pool really cost to build yourself in 2026? A line-by-line budget for a 12ft x 8ft DIY build, from the dig to the heat pump, in dollars and pounds.
09
Oct
Oct
How deep should a hot tub be? The water depth, seat heights, footwell and step sizes I design DIY hot tubs to, in feet and metres, and why they all depend on each other.
06
Oct
Oct
Imperial or metric plans? How to choose hot tub dimensions that suit the blocks, pipe, tiles and timber you can buy locally, plus the conversions and traps worth knowing.
02
Oct
Oct
Solar mats, plug-in heaters, spa packs, heat pumps or wood-fired? The realistic stock tank pool heater options, with heat-up times, running costs and safety.
Cocktail & Plunge Pool Related
Plunge Pool and Hot Tub Combo: How to Design One Project That Does Both
29
Sep
Sep
Can you have a hot tub and a plunge pool in one project? Yes. Here are the four layouts that work, why the plumbing should stay separate, and how to size, heat and budget a DIY combo.
25
Sep
Sep
What does a DIY hot tub cost in 2026? A line-by-line breakdown of an 8ft x 8ft in-ground build, from the dig to the electrics, with US and UK price ranges.
24
Jun
Jun
his might just be the biggest challenge my DIY hot tub plans have ever faced. And no, I’m not being dramatic. Let me explain.
If you’ve followed the blog or the YouTube channel for any length of time, you’ll know the videos I love making most are the project intros — the ones where we meet a real DIYer at the very start of their build and follow them all the way through to that first warm soak. Well, this one’s a bit different, because the DIYer in question is a mate of mine. And he won’t mind me saying he’s not exactly a natural with the tools.
01
May
May
Four things I’d do differently if I built my DIY hot tub again: ICF, a dual pump system, a bigger control room and mosaic tiles.
24
Apr
Apr
Right, I’ve got a brand new project to introduce to the channel today – and this one’s got a really interesting backstory that I think a lot of you are going to relate to.
Meet Jeff from New York, USA. Jeff’s been running an old cedar hot tub for somewhere around 10 to 15 years now, and as much as it’s served him well, the wood has finally had enough. It’s leaking, it’s tired, and it’s time to go.
But here’s the thing – the reason Jeff went with a cedar kit tub in the first place is exactly the same reason I ended up going down the DIY route myself. No access. He simply couldn’t get a plastic shell hot tub into the space. So back in the day, a handyman assembled it on site from a kit, and that’s what’s been sitting there ever since. Sound familiar to anyone?
27
Mar
Mar
Ready, Rest, Economy, Sleep: what each Balboa heat mode does, how to switch between them on your topside, and when each one makes sense.