Why the Door Will Not Open Until the Tub Drains, and Can It Open Accidentally?

If your walk-in tub door will not open right after a bath, that is the tub working exactly as designed. Every Ella's Bubbles walk-in tub manual gives the same instruction: never open the door until the tub is completely drained. On inward-swing models the water itself holds the door shut, and on outward-swing models the gear-and-shaft latches keep the door sealed until you rotate the handle fully back to the open position. Wait for the tub to finish draining, then open the door normally. This is not a defect and there is nothing to repair.

Why the Door Stays Closed on Purpose

Ella's Bubbles offers two door directions, and each stays closed in its own way.

• Inward-swing doors (the acrylic S-shape doors on Standard, Zen and Flow, the aluminum and frosted-glass Ultra door, the stainless steel and frosted-glass doors on Elite, Petite, Royal, Deluxe, Ultimate, Companion and Escape, and the LayDown glass door). These doors open into the tub, so the weight of the water presses the door against its seal. As our published guidance on walk-in tub myths explains, the pressure of the water inside the tub creates an even stronger seal from which water cannot seep through.
• Outward-swing doors (the U-shape doors on Capri, Monaco, Front Entry, Mobile, Lounger, Shak, Big4One, Tub4Two and Big4Two, and the L-shape doors on the Transfer wheelchair models). These doors swing away from the tub, so water pressure works against them. That is why they use a gear-and-shaft locking mechanism: the U-shape door has three latches and the L-shape door has two. Turning the handle drives oversized tapered pins into the door jamb. Because the pins are tapered, the seal gets tighter as the handle completes its full 180-degree rotation, and the seal is just as tight with the tub full as it was when you closed the door.

In this longer explanation an Ella dealer compares the outward door to a vault: rotating the handle drives the tapered pins into the jamb, and the pressure on the seal increases as they seat. To close, apply gentle pressure and rotate the handle a full 180 degrees; the pins do the work, so little hand strength is needed, and the seal stays as tight full as it is empty. The written walkthrough is in how the outward-swing U-shape door works.

What to Do When the Door Will Not Open

1. Open the drain completely. On most models the drain handle turns clockwise to open; on Transfer tubs the drain opener extension handle is up for open. A partly open drain empties slowly and keeps the door sealed longer.
2. Wait until the water has fully drained. With a house drain in good condition, Ella's Bubbles gravity-driven Dual Drain empties an average size tub in around 80 seconds, and our published guidance describes draining in under two minutes in ideal plumbing conditions. Our article on Dual Drain Technology explains what affects that time.
3. Once the tub is empty, open the door the way you normally do. On inward doors, release the handle if your model has one and swing the door in. On outward doors, rotate the handle fully back to the open position, which retracts the pins, and swing the door out.

If the tub is completely empty and the door still will not release, or the handle will not turn all the way, please open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support so our team can look at the latch with you. If the tub itself is draining unusually slowly, see tub drains slowly or not at all.

Can a Child or Confused Bather Open the Door While the Tub Is Full?

Families ask this often. On an inward-swing door, water pressure keeps the door sealed, so it cannot be pushed open with water in the tub. On an outward-swing door, the pins only retract when the handle is rotated fully back to the open position, and our standing answer to families is that it is unlikely a teen or child could open the door mid-bath. That said, a bather who does not understand the handle, or who grabs it while shifting in the seat, could rotate it, and opening an outward door with water inside floods the room. Ella's Bubbles does not publish a door lock, latch cover, or alarm accessory for this situation, so if you are caring for someone with dementia, a cognitive disability, or a habit of reaching for the handle, please open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support and describe the bather and the model. Our team will talk through your door style and your specific situation with you rather than leaving you to guess.

Never Lean on the Door

The door is designed to hold its own weight only, never the bather's weight. The published warranty states that the door and door seal warranty is valid only if the tub and door are aligned correctly and that alignment is not changed by applying the bather's weight on the door. Use the grab bar to steady yourself when entering, exiting, or sitting down, and never use the door as a handhold. Our grab bar article covers what is included and what can be added.

Leave the Door Open Between Baths

Between uses, keep the door open. The owner's manuals recommend this so the seal can dry and keep its shape, which helps the seal last. Simply close it when you are ready to bathe. More on seal care in our door seal common questions.

What If the Drain Fails While I Am Inside?

Most Ella's Bubbles walk-in tubs use Dual Drain Technology: two 2-inch gravity-driven drains along with two overflows. The single-drain acrylic platform (Standard, Zen and Flow) instead includes one 2-inch gravity drain with an overflow and an emergency pull-up chain inside the tub that lifts the drain plug directly. A few other models, such as the Front Entry and the LayDown tubs, also use a single gravity drain with an overflow. Because Ella's Bubbles walk-in tub drains are gravity driven, no external power source is needed to empty the tub, so a power outage does not stop it from draining. If your tub is draining unusually slowly, the house drain is the first thing to check, and that is worth having a plumber look at.

Related Guides

• How do you get out of a walk-in tub safely after your bath?
• What Happens to an Ella Walk-In Tub During a Power Outage?

Common Questions

For anything specific to your model, serial number, or bather, please open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support or call (800) 480-6850 and our team will be glad to help.