Can an Ella End Panel or Extension Panel Be Trimmed to Fit?

Yes, both panels can be trimmed on site. The extension panel is made to be cut, because alcoves are rarely square and the panel is measured and trimmed to the wall after the tub is set and leveled. The end panel is a cosmetic cover with no structural role, and it is trimmed on its wall-side edge when the opening between the finished wall and the front apron is narrower than the panel. End Panel Too Long for the Opening: Trimming It to Fit covers the end panel cut in detail; this page puts the two panels side by side so you know which one you are cutting, where the cut goes, and when trimming is the wrong fix.

Know Which Panel You Are Holding

The two panels are confused all the time, and the video on this page shows both. Every Ella walk-in tub comes with one reversible end panel that covers the exposed short end of the tub in a corner installation, hiding the shell edge, plumbing and frame. If the tub sits in the right corner, the end panel goes on the exposed left end, and the reverse for a left corner. It runs across the end of the tub, bends over with a short return lip of about an inch on the wall side, and is held by two screws at the bottom that fasten it to the mounting brackets.

Any Ella tub shorter than 60 inches also comes with an extension panel, sometimes called a filler kit or filler panel. It fills the gap between a 52 to 55 inch tub and a standard 60 inch alcove, rests on adjustable stainless steel shelf brackets that are part of the tub frame, can sit on either end of the tub, and doubles as a shelf for towels and soaps. It is the only panel that adds length to the installation, although the tub's interior dimensions are unchanged. The extension panel explainer covers the part itself and which models include one.

The table shows why the two cuts feel so different. An end panel trim is usually a fraction of an inch off one edge, often just the return lip, because the panel is molded to the tub with a little overlap. An extension panel trim can be anything from nothing up to the full width of the panel, because it is sized for a true 60 inch opening and your alcove may be shorter or out of square. Full-length tubs such as the Ultimate, Standard60, Zen60, Transfer60, Big4One, ShaK and the two-seat models do not use an extension panel, and neither do the Front Entry and Mobile, so on those tubs the end panel is the only cut you will ever make.

Trimming the Extension Panel

1. Set and level the tub first and fit the extension panel last. Nothing inside the tub depends on it, and the pumps and plumbing stay reachable through the tub's own access panels, never through the extension.
2. Measure the gap between the tub and the alcove wall at the top and at the bottom, since the two are rarely the same.
3. Trim the panel to the wall and adjust the brackets so the panel sits level with the deck.
4. Secure it with the kit hardware and seal the seams with silicone. The Standard, Zen and Flow kit, for example, uses 2 stainless L brackets, 1 plastic bracket, 2 pressure clips and 4 nuts.

Some installers prefer to center a shorter tub in a 60 inch alcove rather than push it to one wall. A second extension panel can be ordered for that purpose, and because the panels can be cut down to size, each end receives a trimmed panel and the tub sits centered. The what ships and where it installs page covers choosing the end and setting the panel aside when the alcove already fits.

Trimming the End Panel

1. With the tub in its final, leveled position and the front apron installed, measure the opening from the finished wall surface to the edge of the apron where the end panel seats, at the top and at the bottom.
2. Measure the panel along the same edge and note the difference. Mark the cut line on the wall-side edge using the larger of the two differences, and add nothing extra. You can always take a little more off.
3. Run painter's tape along both faces over the cut line, cut with a fine-toothed blade with the panel supported flat so it does not flex, and smooth the edge with a sanding block.
4. Test fit, drive the two bottom screws into the brackets, and trim a little more if it still binds. Cover the screws with the trim caps and caulk the wall joint.

Trimming usually means taking some or all of the inch-wide return lip off the wall side. Installers sometimes worry that this removes the panel's support on that side. Support confirms it does not matter: the panel has no structural components, it is held by the two screws at the bottom, and it will not flap or rattle when the pumps run.

When Trimming Is the Wrong Fix

Never pull the tub away from the wall to make room for a panel that is slightly too long. That leaves a gap between the wall and the end of the tub, and support calls it the wrong fix; keep the tub in position and trim the panel instead. The opposite problem, a gap between the end panel and the wall, is not solved by cutting anything. The end panel adds no length, so a wall gap almost always means the tub has been pulled off the wall or the alcove is longer than the tub, as the end panel wall gap page explains. A tub shorter than the alcove needs the extension panel, and a thin seam at the joint is simply caulked. Do not measure or cut either panel with the tub sitting loose.

Two more points keep a trim job from going wrong. All removable panels, including the front apron with its access panels, the end panel and the extension panel, must be removed before the tub is carried into the house, and the tub is lifted only by the frame. And if you cut too far, replacements are cut for a specific model and door side, so have your model, serial number and door side ready when you ask your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850; the serial number is on the label behind the magnetic access panel next to the door.

Watch: Ella's Bubbles: Understanding Extension and End Panels with chapters and a full transcript.

Related Videos

Questions fréquentes