How Long Does Auto Purge Run After a Bath, and Can I Change It?

On every Ella walk-in tub with the three-speed air massage, Auto Purge starts on its own about 20 minutes after the air pump is switched off and runs for 120 seconds, blowing residual water out of the air lines before it stops by itself. There is no setting for it: the delay and the run time cannot be shortened, lengthened or switched off, and there is no button that starts or stops the cycle once it is running. What Is Auto Purge on a Walk-In Tub? explains why the cycle exists; this page covers exactly how long it runs and what you can and cannot change about when it happens.

The Two Numbers Behind Every Cycle

Two figures describe every purge. The countdown is about 20 minutes, and it starts the moment the air pump is turned off, not when it is turned on. Some printed manuals say the purge fires after the pump is switched on, which is a known wording error. The run is 120 seconds, after which the blower stops without any input from you. The video below shows the push-button and digital controls that start the air massage and states that Auto Purge activates 20 minutes after the tub is turned off to clear leftover moisture and prevent mold and mildew.

• The purge runs whether the tub is full, empty or still filling. Water at bath level does not interfere with it, and there is no harm in staying in the tub.
• It is normal for it to start while you are still bathing, and there is no need to get out. If you would like to leave while it runs, drain and exit normally.
• Because it can run after the tub has drained, it is the sound of a tub apparently starting by itself after everyone has left the bathroom.
• Only air tubs purge. Hydro jets drain as the tub drains and never cycle on their own, so hydro-only and soaking tubs, including the Standard, Standard60, Zen, Zen60 and Flow, have no purge at all.

Why There Is No Setting to Change

The purge has no button of its own, no adjustable delay and no way to be retimed or interrupted once it has begun. The deck push buttons and the digital touchpad run the hydro, air, microbubble and light, and none of them controls the purge. The reason is what the cycle does. After an air bath a little water flows back into the air piping and the jets on the floor and seat, and if it stayed there it could grow mold and mildew. A fixed, automatic cycle guarantees the lines are dried after every bath without anyone needing to remember it.

The only thing that prevents a purge is the absence of power. The tub runs on its own dedicated GFCI circuits, and as long as it has power the purge will follow every air bath. Switching off the tub's breakers would stop it, but that also leaves water sitting in the lines, so the cycle is better left to finish. How Do I Turn the Jets Off in an Emergency? covers the cases where cutting power at the panel is the right move, and notes that the purge still follows once power is restored to a tub whose air was switched off.

What You Can Control: When the Countdown Starts

Although the cycle itself cannot be adjusted, you decide when the countdown begins, because it always starts from the last time the air pump was switched off. A little planning keeps the purge out of the middle of a soak.

1. Fill the tub, then turn the air massage on. The first gentle press gives high speed, the second press medium, the third press low, and a fourth press turns the system off. Do not press too hard or too deep, since that can damage the internal mechanism; a gentle push with the palm of the hand works.
2. Turn the air off when you are done bathing. The purge will arrive about 20 minutes later, after you have finished.
3. Avoid testing the air for a moment before the bath. Even a brief on and off restarts the 20 minute countdown, and the purge can then land in the middle of the soak.
4. Leave a gap between two baths. If the previous air bath ended less than 20 minutes before the next fill began, the purge from the first bath will land during the second one.

A purge that arrives mid bath because the air was used beforehand needs no ticket; Why Did the Auto Purge Come On While I Was Filling the Tub? walks through that timing in detail. The microbubble pump is the opposite case: it has no timer and no automatic shutoff, so it runs for as long as you leave it switched on, as Is There a Time Limit on How Long the Microbubble Pump Runs? explains. Hearing the air purge kick in is what leads some owners to expect a similar timer on the microbubble system, and there is none.

When the Run Time Is Wrong

Because the delay and the duration are fixed, a cycle that does not match them is a fault signal rather than a setting to adjust. Time the event before you do anything else: one run of about two minutes roughly 20 minutes after the air was shut off is the purge, and anything else deserves a closer look.

• Runs continuously instead of stopping after 120 seconds: switch the tub off at the breaker and open a ticket. A stuck relay or the control box is the usual cause.
• Starts repeatedly, such as three purges in one hour, every 10 minutes, or every hour or two: look at the chrome push buttons for one that sits down instead of popping back up. That button is air locked and keeps sending its air signal to the control box, so the air motor keeps restarting. Disconnect its red air tube at the control box so the button pops up, then reconnect the tube. If the starts continue, run the control box reset and note whether the air pump is plugged into the top of the box or straight into the wall, since a pump plugged into the wall runs whenever it has power.
• Never seems to purge after an air bath: the team can check the air pump and the control box.

Why Did My Walk-In Tub Turn On by Itself? covers how to tell the normal single purge from repeated starts. If the air still starts on its own outside that one cycle after the button release and the box reset, open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support or call your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850. Include your serial number, the times the cycles started, a short video of the tub starting with the time between starts, and a photo of the blue control box showing where the pumps and air tubes are plugged in.

What the Purge Does and Does Not Clean

Auto Purge clears the air lines only. Ozone sanitizes the hydro lines on tubs that have it, and neither replaces the monthly vinegar flush: 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. Flushing after every bath is not necessary, because the purge and the ozone system handle the day-to-day work between monthly flushes.

Related Guides

• Why Isn't the Auto Purge Running on My Tub?
• Why Do My Air Jets Not Work Even Though the Auto Purge Still Runs?

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