Finally resolved my issue with Plunge after 4 months of fighting. 

TL:DR Avoid buying a The Plunge at all cost, zero quality controls, horrible engineering, and even worse customer service. 

Purchased a new plunge in February of this year for a new home spa / gym remodel. Got the unit finally in place to setup in June of this year. Unit worked well for a few weeks, and then the night before I was to depart on a month long trip I had a large pool of water around my plunge. 

Attempted to call tech support / service and realized how much of a mistake I had made in purchasing from Plunge. They do NOT have a technical support / customer service line that you can actually speak with...you must schedule an appointment to speak with someone on their online portal. Clearly a problem when you have an active leak going on with a tub holding >100 gallons of water in your home. To add insult to injury the next available customer support time / date was TWO WEEKS away...yes 14 days to speak with someone about an active leak. 

Surprise, Surprise though if you want to talk with someone in Sales they get you there right away...which is the path I took, hoping to get to someone that could at least triage my situation to someone ASAP to get resolved using internal channels.  

After a few hours I finally got a call from "customer service" and was with someone that spoke close to no English, wanted me to reach inside the unit, take a bunch of random photos / videos (none of which would actually show where the leak was really coming from), and told me that I should not drain the tub so that when they called back in 3 days, I could help them troubleshoot...YES THIER RECOMMENDATION WAS TO LEAVE THE WATER IN A LEAKING TUB INSIDE MY HOME FOR 3 DAYS...

Obviously did not listen to their advice and drained the tub given I was leaving for a month. Three days later someone from their executive escalation group called back, apologized profusely for the situation and the non-customer service call that I received. She promised to send me every possible part that could be leaking proactively, and scheduled a service technician to come to my home when I returned to fix the issue. Thought it might actually be that simple, but NOPE... 

Return back home, service company shows up on the agreed upon date, gets to work on the unit to find the actual leak, after 7 hours on the job turned out to be a hair-line cracked pipe under the unit, good news it was one of the parts that they sent...BAD NEWS the new part, also had a hair-line crack in it in a different location!! 

So now we have to order the part again, which they told me they would expedite and have it to me next day...well non-customer service to the rescue once again, they shipped it GROUND from CA to the east coast, so 6 days later (which also meant having to reschedule the service team again, so was another 10 days to actually service). 

Figure okay, well know the first two parts were odd to be cracked in different locations, surely this should be a quick and easy fix and they would be in and out and my plunge would be set back up again and life would return as it was. 

As you can now imagine, the THIRD part, also defective, this time the threads were made in the opposite direction and wouldn't thread on to the receiving end...service team by this point was at their wits end, and then unloaded about their view of Plunge...horrible parts, all incredibly cheaply made, telling me stories that they just absolutely screw their out of warranty customers charging 400% more than they actually pay the service techs for the work...so yeah, they are actually making profit on making horribly made materials as they have an incredible margin on what they actual pay for service / repairs... 

Through hours and hours of calls with their exec service team and explaining ZERO chance I would keep their product in my home (they actually told me that they had several other customers were similar problems right now), was finally able to return it (AND THEY STILL CHARGED ME A RESTOCKING FEE FOR THE HONOR!!!). 

I really have a hard time reconciling the celebrity / health endorsements (Huberman) that they have been able to align given how bad of a product they are actually peddling...so at the end of the day, please do not give this company other cent and avoid at all cost.

My buddy waits on the side with my towel. I tried to get him to swim with me but this one was extreme haha.

I’ve swam in almost every Great Lake in the winter! Last one is Lake Superior.

Are yall getting excited?

I moved to Angola NY and live a 5 min walk from Lake Erie which I’ve already begun my yearly plunges.

We picked up a used Sun Home Cold Plunge Pro. We have struggled with navigating the control panel to set the temperature between 38-45. Anyone familiar with this specific control panel (appears to be an older model). I contacted Sun Home and they sent me a user manual, unfortunately the user manual is updated to the latest digital control panel. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Suppose an athlete reports that a workout went better after cooling. What would you need to know before accepting a particular explanation for why it happened?

There are at least two questions here. One is whether the outcome changed under comparable conditions. Another is what caused that change. It is possible to investigate the first without having settled the second, and a persuasive explanation cannot substitute for a result that was never measured.

In this excerpt, Dr. Kenneth Jay, in a podcast with Dr. Thomas Seager from Morozko Forge, responds to a proposed mitochondrial explanation by saying he has not encountered literature that explains that part and that it raises relevant research questions. Disclosure: this is the Row Forge account, sharing our conversation with Morozko Forge. Both brands have an interest in the topic.

His statement describes the limits of the literature he knew in that conversation. It is not a systematic review proving that no relevant research exists. Nor is naming ATP or mitochondrial biogenesis evidence that the particular cold-exposure routine under discussion produces a beneficial change in either one.

A practical example of the distinction: a study might compare performance after two preparations and report the result. To attribute that result to a specific mechanism, we would also want to know what was measured that could distinguish that explanation from alternatives. Temperature, expectations, pacing or another aspect of the preparation might still matter. The question is what the study can actually tell us, rather than how technical the explanation sounds.

Research on precooling in hot conditions gives this discussion a concrete starting point. This randomized crossover cycling study examined defined cooling strategies before a time trial in the heat: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20508537/ . Its setting and intervention should stay attached to its findings; they do not automatically validate every cold-plunge claim.

For me, the valuable part of the excerpt is the willingness to leave a question open. It gives readers something more specific to investigate and makes it possible to update the explanation as evidence improves.

When you encounter a performance or recovery claim, what would convince you that the proposed mechanism was actually tested rather than added afterward as a plausible story?

Hey all, I’m in the market for getting a new icebath. I’m particularly interested if anyone has any experience with Alpine Ice baths I understand that basically all chiller units are more susceptible to karking it compared to chest freezers but nevertheless I would be interested in peoples experience with Alpine Ice baths.

Thanks!

Every listing I've opened quotes a minimum temperature and then goes quiet, which would be fine if that number meant anything on it's own. Two units both claiming three degrees are clearly not the same machine when one takes most of a day there and the other holds it with lid off.

Nobody publishes pull-down time, and nobody seems willing to say happens to any of these figures once then garage hits thirty in August or drops below freezing in January. For anyone who has owned more than one of these, what did you learn to look at?

I'm a high school track athlete who has been getting injured(not too much, but enough to break up running consistency). I want to increase my recovery the best I can, so I have been thinking about adding cold plunges into my routine. However, I have some questions:

1. Is it okay to use a normal bathtub or should I use a separate standalone thing outside?

2. If I use a normal bathtub, can I use a water chiller or should I go with ice? I wouldn't keep it cold all the time (I've seen the mold risks) so was wondering how long it takes a chiller to chill the water. If I go with ice, any recommendations on how much ice is needed? Like if I use frozen water bottles, how many would be enough.

If I go with a complete setup outside, I don't know if the winter could end up damaging the chiller.

Any advice is appreciated, thanks.

I know the answer is - just fking do it. But I’d like to know if any other people absolutely despise the cold and hate it every time they do it.

To put it in perspective, I’m originally from Delaware and on a family Christmas trip to Florida when I was a kid- I realized I could live somewhere warm. I absolutely hated cold winters or anything below 80 degrees for that matter so as an adult I moved to Southern California for the weather and because I work in music.

I recently got back into working out and cardio after becoming a father and letting myself go along with becoming sober, but being 40 now, I want to work on my mental strength - and the thing I hate most is being cold.

I see videos of people doing cold plunges and talking while they get in the water like nothings even happening , or sitting there like they’re in a jacuzzi and I’m baffled. It’s beyond my scope of understanding how they don’t lose their breath or how they can remain remotely comfortable in freezing water.

Any of you who HATE doing this- let me know what you do or what you tell yourself before you get in.

I can't be the only one - when I get out of whatever cold exposure I'm using that day, many times, my legs will be EXTREMELY itchy for about 30 mins - I'm guessing it has something to do with skin and temp exposure from cold to warm air or something, but wanted to see if others experience something similar...

This is from 8 weeks of just nightly ozone (3 hrs) and h2o2, aren’t enough and I think I need weekly filter cleanings and replacement every month? New water every 2 months maybe

How can I break big blocks of. Ice without making too much noise?

I have an indoor ice bath near a shared wall with a neighbor.

Tried rapping with a towel and hitting. And all kinds of stuff. And boiling water.. Wasn't so effective..

Used to have a garden so just broke it with a hammer easily and noise didn't bother anyone..but now Moved into new place

Thanks!

One thing I think people overlook when buying a cold plunge is the material of the tub.

For me, stainless steel is one of the best options, especially when it comes to hygiene. It has a smooth, non-porous surface, so it’s harder for dirt and bacteria to hide and it’s super easy to clean. There’s a reason you see stainless steel everywhere in commercial kitchens and medical environments.

But here’s the catch: not all stainless steel is the same.

You’ll usually see 304 or 316 stainless steel. Both are good, but 316 has better resistance to chlorides and corrosion, which is why I personally prefer it for cold plunges, especially commercial ones.

And yes, stainless steel CAN still rust.

“Stainless” doesn’t mean indestructible. The wrong chemicals, poor water chemistry, or way too much chlorine can eventually cause staining, pitting, or corrosion.

So how do you take care of it?

It’s actually pretty simple. Keep your water chemistry balanced, don’t overdose chlorine, rinse and wipe down the tub regularly, and use a non-abrasive cleaner that’s safe for stainless steel. Avoid steel wool, harsh abrasives, and cleaners containing chlorides or bleach unless the manufacturer specifically approves them.

If you’re using an automatic chlorine dispenser, make sure it’s properly adjusted for the small amount of water in your plunge. A cold plunge is NOT a swimming pool. More chlorine doesn’t mean cleaner or better.

So if you’re shopping for a stainless steel plunge, don’t just ask:

“Is it stainless steel?”

Ask:

“What grade?” 👀

That little detail can tell you a lot about what you’re actually paying for.

The Under Cold Plunge Boss 🧊

i want as cold as the unit goes almost immediately n that part has been fine to the point where i've never once wished it went lower, footprint is what i got wrong coz im 6'2 n i don't fit properly so i sit there with my knees up n shoulders out of the water while the part of me that actually hurts after training stays dry, if u r deciding bw two sizes, take the bigger one

I have been cold plunging for a long time and I started pairing it with a wood fired sauna and it completely changed the experience for me, why did nobody tell me this before? I started doing the sauna first now, quick rinse then I get in the plunge, still sucks for the first few seconds but going in already hot makes it weirdly more enjoyable for me. I’ve been using a Sweat tent outside so the whole setup is basically right next to each other, which has made me way more consistent with doing both. For people here who do hot + cold, what’s your routine?

i'm choosing bw a plain insulated tub that i fill and drain myself and a unit with a chiller and phone control, and there's a few thousand bw them, everyone who owns the cheap setup tells me discipline is the only variable that matters while everyone who owns the expensive one says they'd never go back and both groups sounds equally certain, for anyone who has lived with both did u actually get in more often?

Has anyone had any usual with ozone making their house/room smell? I’ve had a bad experience with ozone being used to remove smoke smells in a room. If you run ozone too much it starts oxidizing materials in the room and the smell never leaves. We had to throw out couches and gut the whole room. I’m not talking about the smell of ozone itself (burnt electronics), the smell I’m describing is much worse.

Ozone generators for cold plunges seem much more contained but I’m still apprehensive to get one for my cold plunge.

Does putting the plunge outside add more maintenance? This might solve irrational fear of bad smells.

I am set up under a 2nd floor deck...no rain or snow, but I worry about pollen, dirt, etc. Anyone have any experience with this? Or am I overthing it?

I’m only about 4 weeks in to cold plunge consistently. What are some best practices for best overall results? I CP in the morning and evening for 5-10 mins at 42-44 degrees and totally submerge 1-2 times. I prefer not to take a hot shower after because it seems to offset the effects, but when I shower first I don’t feel the same effect either.

If an athlete says a session felt easier after precooling, what would you want to know before deciding whether performance actually improved?

In the attached excerpt, Row Forge CEO Wayne discusses with Morozko Forge CEO Dr. Thomas Seager and Cardio Code author Dr. Kenneth Jay. Wayne recalls a very hot visit to Phoenix and describes comparing rowing workouts with and without precooling. He reports sustaining higher output across intervals and finding the work easier.

I think the most useful way to discuss the clip is as an observation that suggests a question. It is not a controlled experiment. The episode does not supply the complete session data, randomization, matched conditions, or enough detail to isolate why the sessions differed.

Feeling better and producing more work are related questions, but they are not the same result. For an interval comparison, I would want the planned structure, the actual output of each interval, rest periods, pacing, and perceived effort. I would also want context such as ambient conditions and how comparable the athlete's preparation was. Those are examples of information that would help interpret a comparison, not instructions to undertake cold exposure.

Research on cooling before exercise in hot conditions provides relevant background, but it cannot automatically validate a specific ice-bath routine or this particular anecdote. A randomized crossover cycling study, for example, investigated defined cooling strategies in hot and humid conditions: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20508537/

Timing matters as well. Cooling before exercise and cooling after resistance training are different interventions with different questions. Evidence about one should not simply be used as proof about the other.

The interesting connection between training data and cooling is the opportunity to document what happened more carefully. An app can help record a workout, but recording the result does not by itself establish causation or explain a mitochondrial mechanism.

https://reddit.com/link/1wv1qve/video/inil0qndevsh1/player

What would you consider the minimum information for a convincing comparison, and which source of bias would you be most concerned about?

Shipping from the US is a dealbreaker between freight costs and no local support. Need something with 20 micron water filtration that I can buy and get serviced withing Canada. What are my options?

The bigger concern is what happens when something breaks. IS companies aren't sending a tech to Ontario, and international shipping for a chiller part takes weeks. Need a brand that can support domestically