Making a great product better

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25 July 2021

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4 min read

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Stoked Stainless takes an innovative new approach to hot tubs and spas, reinventing a New Zealand favourite, with vastly increased levels of comfort and a vastly better approach to maintenance and durability.

Take a product everyone is familiar with and ask yourself: “How would I make this better?”

For Dan Young, Director of Stoked Stainless, it came when he was on a MTB ride with his business partner. They were contemplating making a full cedar hot tub. They realized the drawbacks of the cedar hot tubs with their vertical side walls, difficulty with hygiene maintenance, and that being left empty causes problems.

Rather than being too cold or too hot, the stainless steel interior of the hot tub or spa is heated to the exact temperature of the water.
Rather than being too cold or too hot, the stainless steel interior of the hot tub or spa is heated to the exact temperature of the water.

Stoked Stainless: supreme warmth and comfort

The first thing that comes to mind is ‘how can this be? Metal is cold!’, or ‘wait, won’t the metal be too hot?’

The answer to that is, of course, that the lovely smooth contours of the shaped stainless steel is heated to the exact temperature of the water—a lovely, soothing 38 degrees (or your preference), as is the case with any hot tub or spa. Moreover, the stainless steel is formed to offer a silky, reclined curve that gives a level of comfort well beyond any plastic spa or wooden hot tub you’ll experience.

“The level of comfort is unreal,” says Dan. “I know I’m the one who would say this, but it’s true—you really have to experience it.

“It’s so good we have people ordering second tubs for their holiday or main homes. We ship all over—Great Barrier, North Island, South Island. We sell into Australia—there’s nothing like it there. We sent one to Belgium—and then a second to the same customer. We’ve sent to Italy—we’re in demand right around the world because there’s a unique look to it. Stainless and cedar are a stunning contrast that really resonates with people who want something special and different.”

The singular combination of cedar and stainless steel has seen the Stoked Stainless products be in high demand from customers around the world.
The singular combination of cedar and stainless steel has seen the Stoked Stainless products be in high demand from customers around the world.

Stoked Stainless: exceptional ease of use

The inner sleeve of the tubs is stainless steel, with the outside the familiar cedar, so only the stainless steel is in contact with the water. “All the edges are rounded, so it’s really comfy for necks and arms—and you’re buoyant in water so it’s really comfy on your bum, too,” laughs Dan. “There’s a footwell under the seat so you can stretch out and it’s like a regular hot tub, but so much better.

“The stainless steel—we only use marine grade in the electric spa, so it is resistant to chlorine—makes them incredibly robust and very hygienic, as well as very easy for maintenance and cleaning,” says Dan. “Plus, we use very high levels of insulation, so running costs are very low.”

Being stainless steel, the tubs can be left empty, whereas cedar shrinks and then leaks, and over years of use, body fats can get embedded into the timber, which gives them that slimy feeling—but not these!

Dan says he and his business partner first built a prototype for themselves that was wood-fired. Friends and family loved it so much, they had to start making more to sell to them and then they realised they were on to a winner!

They’ve refined the tubs over the years, moving to also make regular electrically heated models people are more familiar with, so their customers don’t have to wait for their tub to heat up.

The stainless is formed beforehand, and that provides the shape of the tub. Then, in addition to the quality of the stainless steel, the welds are all finished with an acid passivation process, so any oxidation is removed, and then the polishing process gives the stainless steel a uniform smoothness and silky finish.

Stoked Stainless hot tubs and spas are handmade in Wanaka and come with a five-year warranty on stainless components.

Learn more about stainless steel and cedar hot tubs, spas and baths.