Which Ella walk-in tub models fit through a 24 inch doorway?

No Ella walk-in tub will pass through a finished 24 inch opening as it stands. The narrowest models in the line are 26 inches wide, exterior widths across the lineup run from 26 inches to 36 inches, and every tub needs an opening a little wider than its own actual width, as explained in How Wide Is a Walk-In Tub, and Will It Fit Your Home?. A 24 inch doorway has to be widened, or its casing and framing taken off, before any model can be carried in.

Why 24 Inches Is Too Narrow for Every Model

Ella tubs ship fully assembled and cannot be taken apart. The access panels come off and an inward-swing door lifts off its hinges, which trims a little from the package, but the shell itself still has to pass through every opening on the way to the bathroom. The rule the team applies is simple: the doorway must be wider than the tub's actual width, measured at the tightest point with the door stops and trim in place.

The narrowest tubs Ella builds are 26 inches wide: the Lounger, the Transfer26 and the Mobile 26x45. Even those need a door larger than 26 inches. Removing the door casing usually gains only about half an inch, so stripping the trim from a 24 inch door does not get you to 26. That leaves two paths for a 24 inch opening: widen the doorway, or have the casing and framing taken off before the tub is carried in. Measure the finished opening first so you know exactly how much has to change, then share that figure and the model you like with your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850 so the fit is confirmed before an order is placed.

Actual Widths from the Narrowest Model Up

The figures below come from the current spec sheets and the measuring checklist. The actual size is what the shell measures and is the figure for the doorways and hallways the tub itself must pass. The shipping size is the crated dimension and is used to plan the delivery path to the house, because the crate can be opened outside and the tub carried in by its frame. Imperial figures are the authoritative ones; where a metric figure printed beside an inch figure disagrees with it, the inch figure is correct.

Read the table against your narrowest opening, not against the bathroom door alone. A tub that measures 27.5 inches needs more than 27.5 inches of clear width, a 30 inch tub needs more than 30, and a 32 inch tub needs more than 32. Half-inch differences between a model name and the drawing are normal rounding, so a tub sold as 28 inches can measure 27.5 inches, but the half inch runs in your favor only if you check the drawing rather than the name. Shipping sizes are wider than the tubs inside them, so if the crate will not make the turn into the house, plan to open it outside.

Models the Team Points to When the Route Is Tight

For tight routes the models the team points to most often are the Elite, the Petite, the Mobile and the Front Entry, with the Capri and the Flow also compact. The Monaco needs a wider passage. Among the 52 inch tubs the Petite is the narrowest at 27.5 inches, and because it is sold as a 28 inch tub, use the spec-sheet figure rather than the name when you compare it with your opening. What Is Nominal Size vs Actual Size on a Walk-In Tub? explains why the two figures differ and why the spec sheet always wins; one older manual table lists a Petite width that does not match the spec sheet, and that entry is a misprint.

The Capri and the Monaco show how 2 inches decide a fit. They share the same door, controls and jetting, the Capri is 30 inches wide and the Monaco is 32 inches wide, and one customer found that the Monaco would not pass through their bathroom doorway and moved to the Capri for that reason alone, keeping the same soaking depth and seat height. Monaco vs. Capri: What Actually Differs Between Ella's Two Outward-Swing 52-Inch Tubs has the full comparison, and Can a 32 Inch Walk-In Tub Fit Through a 32 Inch Doorway? explains why a tub and a door of the same size do not work together. Both of these models have an outward-swing door that opens into the room, so allow clearance in front of the tub once it is in place.

Elite and Petite Side by Side

The two models most often compared for a narrow bathroom share the same family design. Both are 52 inches long, both sit on the lower 35 inch platform that shorter bathers often prefer, and both have the brushed stainless steel inward-swing door with a frosted tempered glass panel and chrome locking handle. The difference is width and seat. The Elite is 30 inches wide with a 22 inch seat. The Petite is 27.5 inches wide, 28 inches nominal, with a 19 inch seat, the narrowest seat Ella offers. The seat must be wider than your seated hip measurement, so measure your hips and shoulders while seated in a relaxed position before choosing the narrower tub only for the sake of the doorway. The video on this page shows where to find the dimensions on each product page's download tab and why measuring every doorway and hallway comes first. It quotes an older width for the Elite; the current spec sheet lists 30 inches, while its 27 1/2 inch figure for the Petite matches the current sheet.

Measure the Whole Route, Not Just the Bathroom Door

1. Measure the front door, each hallway, every interior door and each corner the tub must pivot through, writing every figure in inches at the tightest point with door stops and trim in place.
2. Measure the bathroom door too; it is rarely the only tight spot.
3. Compare the narrowest figure with the actual width of the model you like. The doorway must be wider than the tub.
4. Compare the route to the house with the shipping size, or plan to open the crate outside and carry the tub in by its frame.
5. Bring the list, the model name and the spec-sheet size to your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850.

The Printable Pre-Install Measuring Checklist for a Walk-In Tub has a line for each of those measurements, plus the bather and the alcove, so nothing is left to memory on delivery day.

Watch: How to Choose Your Walk-In Tub | Ella's Bubbles with chapters and a full transcript.

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• Will it fit through my doorway? How to measure your home for a walk-in tub

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