I picked up this bare shell for free off a website, and within a day had the tub operational. It had no sides at all so I tried an experiment with car-siding, and after 110 bucks in lumber and screws/nails, here is the unstained result! The corner detail is of a section that I made removable, so you can access the filter without having to fumble around inside the control cabinet. Worked out so well that once the panel is in place, you can't even tell there is a panel there!

Awesome job!

(Hope the center footwell is sitting on the ground!)

It looks like an older Morgan Spa or possibly CalSpa, Circa late 80's.

Yup, you better believe it! I measured and re-measured to make sure that when the frame was on, the footwell was supported!

I need to build the exact cabinet for an old spa I have. Could you provide the more details on materails you used in the project? Is the car siding wainscote? Where did you purchase the siding? Home Depot? Also, is the one side of the cabinet completley removable? I can not tell from the picture how you would remove the side? perhaps screws? What is the best sealer to apply to the pine wood? I want to keep it natural looking? Do you have any other pictures to help show the project being built? I have looked all over the web for re-building a spa cabinet and have not found any except for yours. Thanks for any addtional information you can provide?

I need to build the exact cabinet for an old spa I have. Could you provide the more details on materails you used in the project? Is the car siding wainscote? Where did you purchase the siding? Home Depot? Also, is the one side of the cabinet completley removable? I can not tell from the picture how you would remove the side? perhaps screws? What is the best sealer to apply to the pine wood? I want to keep it natural looking? Do you have any other pictures to help show the project being built? I have looked all over the web for re-building a spa cabinet and have not found any except for yours. Thanks for any addtional information you can provide?

To get your height measurements, you need to set the tub on a level surface. Then you
measure from each corner to the floor, and average them. You will
want to make sure that you subtract from that measurement the
thickness of the top boards that you will be using. You will also
want to build a simple frame to go under the entire hot tub,
supporting the footwell. I used 2x4's for the framework. You can
use pressure treat if you desire, as it will last longer, but I, like
most spa builders, use standard pine/fir. I screwed EVERYTHING
together with exception of the trim boards, those are finish nailed
on. The trim boards were used to cover the screws. In my photo the
two horizontal panels are hinged with hidden hinges and press to open
latches. You just push the door in and release and it will pop open.
This made for a very clean and completely consealed appearance. The
car siding is a standard pine groved car siding available at all home
improvement centers. I sealed the pine before assembly, to ensure I
got all areas. I used I believe it was Armour All wood sealer. If
you want a natural finish, just go right over that once it's dry with
an outdoor polyurethane. If you want a touch of color, there are
polyurethane with stain (one step)on the market. I suggest Minwax.
Don't forget to line the entire cabinet with insulation. I always
use 2" extruded polystyrine insulation. My favorite is the Owens
Corning pink Foamular insulation. You can use a spray adheasive,
tube adheasive, or even screws to attach it. It wouldn't hurt to put
2" under the spa too, so if you do that, put it above your bottom
frame that supports the footwell, and add that 2" to your side
measurements. Unfortunately I don't have any other photos. I
didn't imagine that my project would get so many hits, so I didn't
take many pictures. I will be building another sometime this season, so
when I do I will detail everything.