What Is a Walk-In Tub and How Does It Actually Work?

A walk-in tub is a bathtub with a watertight door built into its side wall and a seat molded inside, so you step through the door and sit down instead of climbing over the high wall of a regular bathtub. You get in while the tub is empty, close and lock the door, fill the tub from the faucet while seated, enjoy the soak or the massage systems, then drain the tub completely before you open the door and step out. On an Ella's Bubbles tub the fast-fill faucet and the 2-inch gravity drains keep both ends of that routine short, as explained in Drainage and Fill Time.

The Parts of a Walk-In Tub and What Each One Does

Every Ella walk-in tub is built from the same handful of parts, and once you know them the rest of the routine is obvious.

• The door. Depending on the model, the door swings inward into the tub or outward into the room. The Standard, Zen and Zen60 use an inward-swing acrylic S-shape door. The Capri, Monaco, Front Entry, Mobile, Lounger, Shak and Big4One use an outward-swing U-shape door made of plastic composite and tempered glass with a 3-latch gear and shaft mechanism, and the Tub4Two uses the same outward-swing style with a frosted glass panel in a white composite frame. The Transfer family uses an L-shape outward-swing door with two latches that clears the whole side of the tub for a wheelchair transfer.
• The seat. You bathe sitting upright on a built-in seat with a backrest. On tubs with air massage, the jets are set into the seat, the base of the seat and the footwell floor, so the massage reaches you where you sit.
• The faucet. A deck-mounted fast-fill faucet with a pull-out hand shower is part of the tub package. On the Standard it is the 5-piece Ella Fast-Fill faucet with hot and cold handles, a diverter lever and the pull-out hand shower.
• The drains. Ella tubs drain by gravity through 2-inch drains with overflows. Most models carry two 2-inch drains, and the Standard ships with one 2-inch gravity floor drain with an overflow and an emergency pull-up chain. The drains sit on the opposite side of the tub from the door: a right-side door tub has its drains on the left, and a left-side door tub has its drains on the right as you face the tub.
• The frame and the access panel. The shell sits on a frame, and the tub ships with ground wires on the frame and on every electrical component. A magnetic access panel next to the door covers the label that carries the serial number.

How a Bath Works from Start to Finish

The order never changes, because the door is closed before the water goes in and opened only after the water is gone.

1. Open the door, step in and sit down on the seat.
2. Close the door and lock it. On an outward-swing door the handle drives the latches into the frame and compresses the seal. On an inward-swing door the water presses the door shut once the tub fills.
3. Close the drains and open the faucet. The fast-fill faucet delivers about 16 gallons per minute, so a tub with a capacity of around 60 gallons fills quickly. Your home water heater does the heating, so fill with comfortably hot water from the start.
4. Once the water is 2 inches above the highest jets, switch on the hydro massage. Air jets must also be fully under water before the blower starts.
5. When you are finished, turn the systems off and open the drains. Connected to a proper 2-inch drain line, most Ella tubs empty in two minutes or less.
6. Wait until the tub is completely empty, then open the door and step out. Never open the door with water still in the tub.

Filling a Walk-In Tub: Where the Hot Water Comes from

The most common surprise for new owners is how much hot water a seated bath uses. Depending on the model, a walk-in tub takes roughly 55 to 75 gallons or more to fill once you are seated. A 40 gallon home water heater does not hold that much hot water, so it can run cold about halfway through the fill. Ella's Bubbles recommends a 75 gallon or larger tank, or a tankless unit rated around 11 gallons per minute. A 40 gallon tank can work only if nothing else draws hot water at the same time. If your bath goes lukewarm before it is full, Why Does My Hot Water Run Out Before the Tub Is Full? walks through what to check.

The in-line water heater under a hydro massage tub is not a substitute for a hot fill. It maintains the bath temperature while the hydro pump runs and never raises the temperature of water that arrived cool. Keep bath water at or below 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit.

How the Massage Systems Work

Walk-in tubs are built as soaking tubs or with therapy packages, and the two main systems work very differently.

• Hydro massage uses a pump that pulls bath water through an in-line heater and pushes it back out through jets in the seat and footwell. The Standard, for example, ships with 18 hydro jets, a push control and an intensity dial. Because the water loops through the heater, the bath holds a steady temperature for a long soak. What Is an In-Line Water Heater on a Walk-In Tub? explains the loop, including the models where the heater sits on the independent foot massage pump.
• Air massage uses a three-speed blower that pushes air through small brass jets in the seat, the base of the seat and the footwell floor for a gentle bubble massage. Press the Air button once for high, twice for medium, three times for low and a fourth time to turn it off. About 20 minutes after you switch the air pump off, Auto Purge starts on its own and blows the lines dry for 120 seconds. It cannot be stopped and is normal even if it starts while you are still in the tub. What Are Air Massage Jets on a Walk-In Tub? shows where the jets sit.
• Extras such as the LED chromatherapy light, a heated seat and backrest, aromatherapy and head pillows add comfort without changing how the tub itself works. The Walk-In Tub Accessories and Add-Ons guide lists what can be chosen with the tub.

Air-only and soaking tubs have no hydro pump and no heater. Because the jets and air lines are built into the shell at the factory, a massage system cannot be added later, so decide on therapy when you order.

What Keeps a Walk-In Tub Safe and Clean

The electrical side is simple from the bather's point of view. The pumps and controls run from the home's electrical supply, and the tub ships with ground wires on all electrical components and on the frame so your electrician can ground it to local code. Ella's Bubbles does not send technicians: a local licensed plumber and electrician install the tub, and if a part ever fails under the Lifetime Limited Warranty, the replacement part ships to you and a local tradesperson fits it.

Cleaning the massage plumbing is a monthly routine rather than a daily one. Combine 2 cups of white vinegar with 2 cups of water, fill the tub to one inch above the highest jets, add the mixture, run the tub for 10 minutes, then drain. Do this once before the first bath and once a month afterward. Flushing after every bath is not necessary.

Related Guides

• How does a walk-in bathtub actually work, from door to drain?
• How to Take a Bath in Your Walk-In Tub: The Sequence From Stepping In to Stepping Out
• What Plumbing, Electrical and Space Does a Walk-In Tub Installation Need?

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