Hydrobath Poll

[KOE]

I love my hydrobath and have had the same one for 20 odd years, the heater doesnt work but I never used it anyway, it has never missed a beat and has only ever had FIDOS free itch rinse, when I bought it I thought $800.00 was exy . I use it 52 times a years and have also been known to wash an odd cat or 2 in it.

My dogs except for 1 love it and they always try to get back in I had one dog who always had 4 baths.

I would love someone to make a fold up portable one to take with me when traverlling that fitted under the caravan bed,

Edited December 5, 2011 by KOE

[Rysup]

I have had my hydrobath since 1998 (2nd hand, about 5 years old when I got it). It is THE best thing ever invented, however it is now a little worse for wear given its age. The heater no longer works, I lost the plug that goes between the two tanks, the floor has come loose from the tanks. I've had to replace the pump once, and have repaired the heater many times (and given up on that).

Things I would like to see improved - easier access to BOTH tanks. On my current one, the large tank is sealed. This means I cannot clean inside, heavens knows what is growing in there. I would like to be able to lift the lid, and clean in there. But its sealed except for the plug hole.

That takes me to the plug hole. I dont mind the plug hole as such, BUT I'd have loved to have the plug attached to a chain or something, to prevent me from loosing it. Its a non-standard size plug, so replacing it has been impossible. I've tried. No plug means my clean rinse water gets contaminated by my dirty wash water.

The floor. My current floor came bolted down on top of the large tank. The section over the small tank was removable. I would like the entire floor to be removable for easy cleaning.

The tie points. There are two tie points in my bath, both on the side where I stand, one on either side of the door. I would prefer a tie point on the back, in the middle, for dogs who want to try and get out. This only works when the bath is against a wall like mine is.

Doors - the doors on mine slide out which is fine. But the door on the end (or side?) is very loose and a dog jumping on it can make it pop out of the tracks. Dont like, and never have liked that.

Heater. The heater in mine is in a part of the pipe system which means you have to have the water pumping through in order to heat it. Dont like this at all. I'd like to be able to fill the tanks and have the water heat in there before I use it, with some sort of auto-shut off when the water reaches the correct temperature (or there is no water in there!)

I would like to get one that auto-fills itself - so you plug the hose into the bath at an external point, and it will refill as needed. I do not have this feature on mine, I have to fill mine manually.

I work as a groomer, and we dont have hydrobaths at work. I prefer the hydrobath for its powerful action, and the ability to be able to blast shampoo/conditioner into the coat. I like the normal bath for the fact you have clean water on tap. Ideally I would like a combination of the two. Plumbed in hot and cold water on hand, but a hydrobath as well.

I need to buy a new one, but its something I have to save up for these days!

Edited December 5, 2011 by Rysup

[Guest Ams]

I have a hydrobath which is single tub, no heater. It is fed from hot and cold taps on the wall with the opening at the front of the longer side (is lower for access). It has a switch which then allows for free flow water direct from the mixer (at mains pressure only) to rinse.

I don't trial or show but have a rescue so I wash up to 15 dogs in the hydrobath every two weeks or so - it gets a fair workout. I got mine direct from a manufacturer as it was a special order but then it wasn't picked up and no one else liked the colour scheme. My dogs don't care what colour the torture chamber is and neither do I.

[Guest Arcane]

oh yeah...plugs!

My old one only had plugs, even at the bottom of the tank to let the water out. It was horrid trying to move big dogs aside and reach in and go fishing in the filthy water to get the plug out so that I could rinse the dog and have free draining water!

The new one has the external drain release which is awesome! Also another reason why I love single tank hydro's, no plugs at all!

[MTD]

I got my hydrobath about 15 years ago , used it commercially for around 8 years and then used just for my dogs ( although sometimes it is just easier to bath molly in the laundry tub )

It is only a single tank , if I was to get another I would definitely get a dual tank , But I doubt I would get another as cost is too much to bath a dog at home .

It does have a heater but that doesn't work any more so just use hot water from the tap - easier anyway .

The trolley I did have it on to move around has long gone - rusted away - I have it set up against the wall -

So I suppose my real problem in getting a replacement hydrobath would be the cost . Can you justifying paying a huge amount to bath one dog at home fortnightly .

[JulesP]

The main reason I got a bath was because I was having trouble getting a plumber to install an outside hot tap. A couple laughed at me on the phone and the quote I did get was the price of a bath anyhow.

[stonecutter]

I'd love a smaller size bath - I was looking into a hydrobath from the regular outlets (Barf Shop, Perfect Paws etc) but they were all one-size-fits-all - but for my 5.1kg Jap Spitz - I would never need anything that huge.

[JulesP]

I'd love a smaller size bath - I was looking into a hydrobath from the regular outlets (Barf Shop, Perfect Paws etc) but they were all one-size-fits-all - but for my 5.1kg Jap Spitz - I would never need anything that huge.

How about this one - http://www.mavlab.com.au/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=167&category_id=44&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=66

It is a little, unheated, single tank bath

[stonecutter]

Thanks JulesP - I actually contacted them about the Midi and they said they had stopped manufacturing it

[Shelby]

I wish someone would design a bath/tub that you could have installed in your laundry. Laundry tubs are too small for what I want and a hydrobath is too large and I really don't have anywhere to put one.

I did find a tub that was perfect but was in the UK and the postage was (10 times the value of the tub).

[Keshwar]

We are frequent hydrobath users, showing Standard Poodles means bathing before and after shows and weekly maintainance baths when not showing. We also have a few grooming clients, mostly Poodles.

Our ideal hydrobath -

Large with doors at both ends, some big dogs and older arthritic dogs can have trouble turning around and the walk-through option is good.

Cut-out on the large side is easier on the groomers back.

Heated, being water conscious, we save the rinsing water and reheat to bath another dog. Single tank is fine.

Pump needs to be powerful and easily accessible for maintainence.

Long flexible hose and big shower attachment.

Easy to clean filter.

Something secure to tie a dog lead on for jumpers (never leave a dog unattended, some dogs just continually try and get out and it's a struggle to bath them)

Built in shelf for shampoo bottles.

Material- we have a fibre glass and a plastic hydrobath, not a lot of difference.

Must be easily moved on good castors.

Colour - purple would be nice!

This!

Having Afghan Hounds and an Irish wolfhound same things apply. The powerful pump is so important to get the coat wet all the way through.

Although I'm not that worried about the colour.

[yarracully]

Just voted

We already have a single tank hydrobath but some things I would like in my next one would be:

Adjustable thermostat. Ours is an older bath with LOW, MED, HIGH for the heater. However Low can still get too hot. I would prefer a thermostat where the temp could be set at X degrees and the heater maintains this. With ours we have to put the heater on and let it warm up the water then turn it off and if it gets too hot you have to wait for the water to cool down a bit or add cold water in. Then as we use it occassionally have to turn the heater back on and off again to reheat. Then we have to test the water temp using the digital extremity insertion method. Whereas an adjustable would take care of this for us

A water level guage would be a nice little luxury too so you can see how water levels are at a glance without having to look into the tank.

Easy to clean filter system.

I can see an advantage in having a hydrobath on castors. I had thought of doing it with mine but I haven't needed to move it so its probably a feature that I don't need. But it could be handy.

Good pump with good pressure. I find it annoying when travelling and using a bath at public venues and the pump puts out very little pressure. (in some cases my male could pee harder than some pumps work at)Also adjustable shower head type handpiece so you can have a fine spray or a concentrated jet of water should you need it.

Optional accessories:

Stable insert for smaller breeds. With our dogs if I put them in the bottom of the bath I can't reach them. Some inserts can be a bit unstable which can spook younger dogs/pups.

Small shelf or tray to hang on the side for bottles of shampoo etc. This should be movable so that it can be located whereever the user finds it most useful.

All Weather cover. Our hydrobath is located outside which in itself is okay but during the summer we get a lot of duststorms and a good all weather cover would help keep the weather out. This could be a full cover or just a slip on cover for the top. Personnally I would prefer just the top so that all the males don't pee on the cover as they would if it were a full on.

These last two I plan to do to our current unit, one day.

With our bath the entire bath tub removes and allows access to the pump and single tank. This does make it easier to clean and service. The bath unit itself clips onto the base with two hook type latches. I do like this method.

Also our pump and heater is switched on and off by switches similar to outdoor light switches. These are ok but can be a bit tricky to use with feet. And too low to bend down and switch as this would mean letting go of the dog. I suppose a couple of ways this could be fixed is either mount the switches higher up so then can be used by hand or fit bigger switches so that people with clumsy big feet (me) can use them easier.

Also the heater and pump indicator lights is mounted down with the switch which means if you get a bit distracted you could forget the heater is on while you shampoo a dog and then the water is too hot to rinse them. And to view the light you have to step away from the bath which again is a bit of an issue if the dog happens to be a jumper. Pump light is not a problem as the noise of the pump means you don't need the light. Adjustable thermostat mentioned earlier would solve this.

Edited December 6, 2011 by yarracully

[Starkehre]

This is all wonderful input guys, please keep it coming, very much appreciated.

And, though we had the initial hiccup with the poll itself, it can be filled in now as we have altered the last opening statement and of course we will be giving out those Polar Collars as mentioned in OP.

[dogdayz]

Mine is an old secondhand fibreglass, single tank, no heater. Having two heavy coated dogs (aussie shep and collie rough) i wish i had a twin tank automatic fill. Its pain taking buckets of warm water to the shed where it is located and the dogs hate being rinsed with the garden hose. I have mine positioned iso can get all round access but wish both long sides were low (though my weim hated baths and two low sides may have proved too tempting for him to jump out). Also access to plug means reaching down into the tank beneath the floor, which is hard while dog is still in bath.

I would like to visibility of the pump area without turning upside down...sometimes i am not sure if we have a leak underneath and no way to see. Always concerns me the safety side of dog plus water plus electricity....we run with a load detect safety device at the plug just in case.

Most of all what i would really really like is a clean concrete path from the bath to the house where i dry the dogs....not my mud driveway

[kiesha09]

I voted but the thing I want most of all is a hydrobath that doesn't cost an absolute fortune

[Alibi]

I think for the domestic market price would be the number one factor as otherwise people would just buy the commercial types.

I have a midi conmurra hydrobath for my pomeranianX so the big drawing card was for a powerful pump so i could get through her coat and wash out dead hair (has cut down on brushing heaps). It has a single tank which has been fine for my use.

Alot of other stuff i couldnt imagine if you were trying to keep costs down would be practical like double doors, tie up points, shampoo caddys or even heaters if aiming for the domestic market. It sounds exciting though, i really hope it all comes off as i would love to see the finished model. At the right price i bet it would be a big seller too I love my hydrobath, its simple but it does the job well.

Different colours would be good, i would have loved my hydrobath to be pink.

[newfsie]

I have one right now with only one tank, but I would love a second tank. or at least the ability to re-use the soapy water again on all of my newfs and rinse separately.

I find the doors that open into a ramp too difficult for my newfies, slippery or too narrow. mine happily step-up into a tub with a hinged door.

I would love to have a slightly wider tub, so mine could turn, as I like to keep it against the wall. And I do like the lower area, to be able to lean over. I am lucky in that my dogs love a wash and are very co-operative.

A good hand piece that is not too heavy and holds well would be nice. With a hose that is not too stiff, so that it is more pliable and easy to maneuver. I am always suffering from an almost RSI after washing four dogs.

Heating is not such an issue with me as I have hot and cold water. But I suppose if it had a heater I could take it into the barn.

Colour is not important, but it would be nice if it looked tidy.....maybe a caddy attached for easy reach shampoo's and such.

Sounds like you are interested in what people want, that is great and good luck in your venture

[Jigsaw]

Some great ideas here! My two cents worth -easily accessible switch - no wet hands on power switches and accessible plug - not fishing around in murky water for the plug! Home use would definitely need portability so wheels would be the go. I like the idea of hinged doors as I find the sliding doors difficult to manage when you have a determined escaper. A tie point would also be good and also a flexible hose that allows for movement around dogs and that also has a generous length on it so you don't feel like you're at the end of the hose with large dogs. Also a flexible head/nozzle for tight manoeuvring when you've got a large dog in the tub.

[piper]

The external drain is something I had forgotten to mention. I worked with a groomer who had a bath that meant reaching into gross water to empty, my bath has a ball valve type thing and I just lift a level outside to get it to drain. MUCH nicer.

Autofill is something I love on mine as well but I am not sure if many pet people would be worried about that provided the bath has a nice big rinse tank. I don't find the rinse tank on mine big enough (I don't recycle the rinse water) so if it did not have auto refill it would really annoy me.

[Starkehre]

Bumping in case there are others that wish to contribute.

Please remember we are offer FREE Polar Collars (either for your dog or yourself ) to 10 of the most helpful posts.

Many Thanks to those that have already posted.

Edited December 7, 2011 by dyzney