I would do it again in a heartbeat. I didn't want a raised spa because I wanted the autocover. My spa isn't tiny, so if I had to reheat from air temp every time I wanted to use it, it'd be really expensive and take well over an hour in the winter. If you have a smaller spa, it probably matters less, I have friends and theirs heats in 20 minutes so less of a big deal for a cover. Mine sucks to heat when it's just me, but it's great for parties and adults tend to be more willing to get in cause you're not crammed.