How do I contain splash behind a walk-in tub outside an alcove?

To contain splash behind a walk-in tub that is not in a three-wall alcove, treat every wall the tub touches the way an alcove wall is treated: bond the glue-up tile flange to the deck edge, bring the wall finish down over it, and silicone every joint. Every Ella tub is designed to sit against at least one wall along its long side, so there is always a back wall to seal, and the open ends are closed with an end panel while the hand shower stays below deck height and aimed at the tub wall. The layout questions support asks first are set out in Installing a Walk-In Tub in a Wet Room: Keeping the Electrical Compartment Dry, and this page works through the water paths one at a time.

Start with the Wall the Tub Leans on

None of the Ella tubs are meant to be standalone tubs. Every model is designed to sit against at least one wall along its long side, in a corner, or in a full three-wall alcove. That rule is the key to the whole question, because it means there is never open floor directly behind the tub. What changes outside an alcove is how many walls meet the deck: one wall behind the tub in a single-wall layout, or a back wall plus one end wall in a corner. What Is an Alcove Installation for a Walk-In Tub? explains that the same models can stand against one or two walls with an end panel closing the exposed side, so the planning problem is really two problems. Seal the wall line wherever the deck meets a wall, and close the ends that face the room.

A three-wall alcove with a tiled surround takes care of waterproofing on three sides and leaves only the front apron and its access panel facing the room. With one or two walls you are doing the same job on fewer surfaces, and the ends that are open need their own treatment, which is covered below.

Seal the Wall Line with the Flange, Not with Caulk Alone

Ella tubs have no molded tile lip. A standard bathtub carries a lip that the tile hangs over, while an Ella walk-in tub has a flat deck edge, so the flange is added at installation and it is the water barrier that sends splash water back into the tub rather than behind it. The job runs in three stages, described in full in How do I tile over the tile flange on a walk-in tub?:

1. Bond the flexible glue-up flange to the flat deck edge with 100 percent silicone so it overlaps the edge.
2. Run the tile or wall panels down over the flange and onto the deck. The surface must never stop above the flange.
3. Silicone every joint, including the corners.

For a single-wall or corner layout, measure the total run of tub edge that meets a wall at deck height: the back plus each end that touches a wall. The 124 inch kit suits most Ella walk-in tubs in a standard 60 inch three-wall alcove, and a layout with fewer walls needs less, so measure before you ask for one and give your tub model so the right length ships. If you are between sizes, the bigger strip is fine when you want extra material for the corners. The flange ships separately by parcel carrier rather than in the crate with the tub, so do not report it missing on delivery day. Support records it under the part code EB-FLANGE.

Two timing points matter even more outside an alcove, because more of the finished work is on show. Set the tub level with every leg bearing on the floor, then fill and hold it with the access panels open for the pre-installation water test. Wall finishing should begin only after that test and the leveling check pass, because fixing a leak behind finished tile is far more disruptive than fixing it with the walls open. If any layer is missing, meaning no flange, a flange that does not overlap the tub edge, tile that stops above the flange, or corners left uncaulked, splash water runs down the wall line and shows up at the corners. That is a finishing gap rather than a tub defect.

The wall surface itself can be tile or Ella's factory-finished panels. What should I use to waterproof the walls of my shower? describes the same three layers working together, a finished surface that comes down over the flange with silicone at every joint, and notes that the same flange kit is used on shower bases and on walk-in tubs. Whichever surface you choose, it must run down over the flange and onto the deck.

Close the Ends That Face the Room

In a one-wall layout both ends of the tub are exposed, and in a corner one end is. The same models that fit an alcove can stand against one or two walls with an end panel closing the exposed side. The Ella Standard, for example, comes with an end panel for the faucet side and a 7 inch extension panel for the other side. The extension panel is an alcove piece that can be trimmed to make the tub fit a 60 inch opening, so in an open layout you are relying on the end panel and the apron rather than on a wall. Keep the pump-side end of the tub out of the spray path in the same way as the front panel, because that end holds the plumbing connections. If one end does meet a wall, that end is simply part of the flange run measured above.

Keep the Electrical Compartment Out of the Spray Path

Behind the front access panel on the seat side is the electrical area: the GFCI receptacle, the control boxes and the plugs for the pumps and heater. Splash on the outside face of the panel is fine, because the shell and the exterior panels are acrylic. Water running down behind the panel and pooling in the compartment is not. Support asks whether there will be direct splash-over onto the front panel where the seat is, and if the answer is yes, the advice is to change the layout before the walls go up rather than to try to protect the compartment afterward.

• Point any shower head away from the seat end of the tub, or place a partial wall or glass screen between the shower and the tub apron so the panel is not in the direct spray path.
• Slope the floor so water runs toward the room drain rather than toward the tub apron.
• Put the receptacle inside the compartment behind the access panel so it stays dry and reachable.

Control the Water You Make While Bathing

Most splash in an open layout does not come from the wall at all. It comes from the hand shower and from jets running above the waterline. Why Does Water Spray Out of the Tub When I Use the Hand Shower? lists the habits that keep water in:

• Keep the hand shower below deck height and aimed toward the tub wall. Lifting it to a wall bracket without the leak elimination kit sends water behind the tub.
• Fill until the water is above every jet before switching on any therapy. Jets above the waterline spray out of the tub, and a pump run without water above the jets is damaged.
• If you want a shower head that can be shut off while the hand shower is in use, the Shower Column Kit's diverter selects the rain head or the hand shower, one at a time, on any Ella 2 piece or 5 piece fast fill faucet.

A glass screen is the usual answer for showering in the tub, with one limit that matters outside an alcove. The 4 fold glass screen needs a side wall next to the deck, so the tub must sit in a corner or an alcove to take it. In a corner it mounts on the wall side, the wall channel must be level, the rubber gasket is angled inward toward the tub and brushes the deck lightly and evenly, and a thin bead of silicone between channel and wall finishes the seal. Too high leaks, too low damages the gasket. With a single wall and both ends open there is no side wall for the screen channel, which is why the wet-room advice of a partial wall or glass screen between the shower and the tub apron is the layout to plan around.

What to Have Ready for a Ticket

If you want the team to check a layout before the walls go up, open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support or call (800) 480-6850 with the model name, your order details from where you purchased, which walls the tub will touch, where the shower head and hand shower will be, and a sketch or photo of the room. Water found inside the compartment that did not come from the room is a different investigation, so say which you are seeing.

Related Guides

• How Do I Caulk and Seal a Walk-In Tub Against the Walls?
• Tile Flange, Caulking, and Finishing the Walls Around Your Walk-In Tub

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