How do you install a walk-in tub step by step?

An Ella walk-in tub goes in following a set order. First, settle the door and drain side before the order is confirmed. On delivery, inspect and test the tub, remove the panels and move it by the frame. Then level it on a prepared subfloor and connect the 2 inch drains and the water supply. A licensed electrician connects and tests the GFCI-protected circuits and the ground. Last, test everything before the walls and trim close it in. You can do much of this yourself if you are a skilled handyman with basic plumbing and electrical experience, as Installing It Yourself: What DIY Owners Must Do to Keep Support and Warranty explains, but the electrical step always belongs to a licensed electrician.

Who Does the Work, and What Ella's Bubbles Provides

Ella's Bubbles manufactures the tub and does not perform installation, so every owner chooses who does the work: a contractor, a plumber you already trust, or you. Ella's Bubbles always recommends licensed professional plumbers and electricians so that all local codes are followed. Any licensed installer is fine, and certification by Ella is not required. Ella does not send technicians to your home. What you do have is free lifetime technical support, reached at ellasbubbles.com/support or (800) 480-6850, and a Lifetime Limited Warranty that is a parts warranty no matter who installs the tub. Labor is warranted by the independent contractor or installer who did the work, so choose that person with care.

One part of the job is not optional for anyone. The tub must be connected to a GFCI-protected circuit provided and installed by a licensed electrician, and a licensed electrician for your area is required to install and test the electrical installation. Even the most capable DIY owner hires an electrician for that step.

Before the Tub Arrives: Settle the Door Side, the Drain Side and the Drain Line

The most important installation decision is made before the tub is built. On every Ella walk-in tub the door and the drains sit on opposite sides. A tub with the door on the right has its drains on the left, and a tub with the door on the left has its drains on the right, with sides described as you face the tub. The door side that suits the room and the drain side that suits the plumbing therefore have to be chosen together. The item description on your order states the hand of the tub, so read it carefully before you confirm. The tubs are assembled to order at the company's facility in Chicago, as Ella's Bubbles Walk-In Tubs: A General Overview describes, which is why the hand of the tub is fixed when the order is written.

Share the spec sheet for your model with your installer early. The two drains sit on either side of the tub's center line, and their exact positions are dimensioned on the spec sheet, so your plumber can locate the house drain connection before delivery. Choosing the Drain Side for an Alcove or Slab Installation and Prebuilding the Drain Line explains why the dual drain line is best built to the house drain before the tub is set in place. It also explains why, in a three-wall alcove, you should pick the drain side that can be reached through the front of the tub, underneath the pumps. Existing rough-in plumbing does not have to dictate the choice. Installers often move the supply and drain lines to the side that gives the best access and the right door swing for the room.

The Installation Sequence, Step by Step

1. Inspect and test on delivery. Photograph any damage, record it on the shipper's delivery document, and have the driver sign. Whenever possible, fill the tub before it goes inside to check for transit leaks. Save all packaging material and inspect for concealed damage, both visual and operational, because freight-damage claims must be filed within 48 hours of receipt of the shipment.
2. Remove every panel before moving the tub. Take off the front apron, the access panels and the end panel, and lift only by the frame. The air jets on the bottom break off if the tub is dragged or set on them.
3. Prepare the subfloor. It must be level and able to support the tub, the water and the bather.
4. Level the tub. Adjust the leveling legs until every leg touches the floor with equal weight. On the Standard and Zen platform the front legs are screwed into the subfloor.
5. Connect the drain. The 2 inch drain or drains connect to your house drain through the T-type ports, and the ports that are not used are capped.
6. Connect the water supply. Your plumber brings the hot and cold supply lines to the faucet. On tubs equipped with an Ella thermostatic faucet package, a built-in Ella Thermostatic Control Valve mixes hot and cold to a set temperature.
7. Have the electrician connect and test the power. The tub runs on dedicated GFCI circuits installed by a licensed electrician, who also secures the ground connection.
8. Test everything before the walls and trim close it in. With the panels still off, every connection can be seen and checked.
9. Close up, activate the warranty and flush the system. Refit the panels, complete the warranty activation form, and run the first-use vinegar flush described below.

Throughout the job, nothing on the tub should be cut or modified. A correct installation is level, watertight and unmodified, and that is what keeps your parts coverage and your technical support in place.

Connecting the Drain: What Your Plumber Will Find

The tub ships with its dual drain installed and four open ports, ready for your plumber to connect. Motors and pumps are fully installed on the tub at the factory, so there is nothing to mount in the field. The detail that catches installers by surprise is the height under the tub. There is only about half an inch of clearance for the drain line to fall toward the house drain. On a slab, a shallow trough in the concrete is worth considering even where it turns out not to be strictly necessary.

In a three-wall alcove the side walls are closed off once the tub is in, so the only way to reach the drain connections afterward is through the front of the tub. That is why the drain side is chosen for access, and why a drain line built ahead of time lets the final connections be made and checked without moving the tub. If a side wall stays open, or the tub stands free on one end, access is easier.

Electrical and Grounding: The Step You Always Hire Out

The video on this page is short and makes one point: when installing an Ella walk-in tub it is vitally important to ground the tub correctly. Ella tubs come with ground wires on all electrical components and on the tub frame. Following all local and state electrical codes, the electrician secures a proper ground connection as part of the installation. Together with the dedicated GFCI-protected circuits, this is the work a licensed electrician installs and tests, whoever handles the rest of the job.

Finishing Up: Activate the Warranty and Flush Before the First Bath

Two things remain once the tub is closed in. First, warranty activation is required to put the warranty in force. The 2-page activation form must be completed and signed by both the customer and the installer and returned to Ella's Bubbles. If you installed the tub yourself, the form still needs to be completed. The team at ellasbubbles.com/support or (800) 480-6850 can answer questions about it.

Second, run the vinegar flush before first use. Combine 2 cups of white vinegar with 2 cups of water, fill the tub with water to one inch above the highest jets, add the mixture, run the tub for 10 minutes, then drain. The same flush is repeated once a month as routine care. If the project is still at the planning stage and a shower might suit the room better than a tub, How do I build or install a walk-in shower at home? covers that path, which also relies on a local licensed contractor.

Watch: Proper Grounding of Your Walk-In Tub with chapters and a full transcript.

Related Guides

• What you need before installing your Ella walk-in tub: a planning checklist
• The pre-installation water test: catch leaks before your walls are finished
• Before Your Installer Leaves: The 16 Checks Explained in Plain Language and Why Each One Protects Your Warranty

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