Hot Tub Removal · June 2026
How to Drain a Hot Tub Before Removal
A full spa holds 300–450 gallons — about 3,500 lbs of water nobody can lift. Drain it a day before removal and everything goes smoother. Three ways:
1. The drain valve (slowest, easiest)
Every spa has a hose bib near the bottom of the cabinet. Kill power at the breaker first, screw on a garden hose, open the valve, and give it 2–4 hours. Last few inches won't drain — that's fine, we handle the dregs.
2. The siphon (free, faster)
Submerge a garden hose completely until it fills, cap one end with your thumb, drop that end downhill of the tub, and release. Gravity does the rest at roughly double the drain-valve speed.
3. The sump pump (fastest)
A $60 hardware-store sump pump empties a spa in 15–30 minutes. Worth it if the spa's been green for a year and you want that water gone in one supervised burst.
Where can the water go?
Recently treated water: lawn and landscaping are generally fine — bypass the vegetable garden, and let chlorine/bromine sit a few days untreated first. Swampy neglected water: send it to a sewer cleanout rather than the gutter; storm drains feed the Kern River. Power off at the breaker before any of this — and an electrician should disconnect the spa wiring before removal day. Can't drain it? We pump on site as part of removal from $475 (cost details).