How fast does a walk-in tub drain? With Ella's gravity-driven Dual Drain Technology, an average-size Ella walk-in tub drains in approximately 80 seconds under ideal house-drain conditions, and our field tests have recorded complete drainage in as little as 52 seconds. That matters because you sit in the tub while the water goes down before the door can open. Actual drain time in your home depends on the tub's water capacity and on the condition and layout of your house drain, but the design goal is simple: the fastest, most reliable gravity-driven drain in the industry, with no pump to fail.

From the video: the industry-standard tub drain is a single 1.5-inch drain. Most Ella walk-in tubs instead use two oversized 2-inch drains connected to 4-port T-type drain bodies with stainless steel cables. Your installer can connect the house drain to ports on the left side, the right side, or all four ports for maximum draining capacity, sealing off any unused ports with the included caps. Ella recommends a 2-inch house drain where possible. The easy-turn drain handles also act as dual air vents, doubling the venting to eliminate air pockets and maximize outflow. And because the system is purely gravity-driven, a pump or power failure can never leave you sitting in a full tub.

What Determines Your Actual Drain Time

• Tub capacity: a larger tub holds more water. The 80-second figure is for an average-size tub; our largest models take longer, and the Big4Two product video mentions about 3 minutes 30 seconds for that 145 gallon two-seat tub. Capacities for every model are in the water capacity guide.
• House drain condition and layout: the fewer turns and the better the condition of your home's drainage, the faster the water leaves. Have an experienced plumber test your house drain before installation.
• How many ports are connected: connecting all four 2-inch ports to the house drain gives the fastest possible drainage; many installations connect two of the four and cap the unused side.

Why Gravity Instead of a Powered Drain Pump?

Powered drains do move water out faster, but there are two good reasons Ella does not use them. First, a pump pushes water through your home's drainage system under pressure, which stresses the walls, fittings, and sealed joints of the house plumbing, especially in older homes or where there are weak spots. Second, pumps run on electricity, so a power failure or pump fault can leave the tub draining very slowly or not at all. A gravity-driven system has neither problem: it drains fast, and it always works.

Four Ports Does Not Mean Four Drains

You may see the phrase "4-port T-type drain" on a spec sheet and wonder how many drains your tub actually has. The ports are plumbing-connection hardware: each T-type drain body under the tub has multiple 2-inch ports so your installer can bring the house drain in from either direction, with caps installed on the unused ports. On Dual Drain models, the tub itself has two independent floor drains, each with its own opener. On the Ella Standard and Zen family, the tub has one 2-inch floor drain with an overflow and an emergency pull-up chain, and its T-type body under the tub likewise just gives the installer connection choices. No Ella tub has "four drains."

Door Side and Drain Side Are Opposites

On an Ella walk-in tub, the door and seat are on one side and the drains sit in the footwell at the opposite end. That means a right-side door tub has its drains on the left, and a left-side door tub has its drains on the right, with left and right as you face the tub. This is why we suggest choosing your door side based on where your house drain is located: for example, if the house drain is on the left, select a tub with the right-side drain, which places the door and seat on the left. Confirm the connection plan, including whether to use a T or Y connector and which ports to connect, with your licensed installer before ordering. Our guide to choosing left-hand or right-hand goes deeper.

The Drain Controls Themselves

From the video: each independently operated 2-inch drain has a large dial opener with an extender for an easier grip and turn. The dials function as overflow protection and use a stainless steel cable with a lever to open or close each floor drain. The floor drain covers are height-adjustable for optimum sealing and draining, and the system doubles as a vent for fast air-pocket relief. The video's field test showed drainage complete in 52 seconds, with the note that drainage in your home will depend on your house drain conditions and piping.

Installation Checklist for the Fastest Drain

1. Have a plumber test and verify your house drain before the tub is installed.
2. Connect to a 1.5-inch or, ideally, a 2-inch house drain using a T or Y connector. A Y fitting means fewer sharp turns. If your home has 1.5 inch plumbing, see connecting the 2 inch drain to 1.5 inch house plumbing.
3. Connect all four ports where access allows for the fastest possible drainage; otherwise connect the two ports nearest the house drain and cap the rest.
4. Keep the drain run as short and straight as practical, since every turn adds resistance.

For a deeper look at connection layouts, see plumbing and drain configurations for your house drain, and if a drain opener ever feels loose or out of adjustment, see drain cable replacement and adjustment.

More on the Dual Drain Design

In this dealer walkthrough, the two independent 2-inch drains are explained with a simple comparison: a 2-inch pipe carries about four times the volume of a 1.5-inch pipe. Each drain body has two ports, four in total, giving the installer a direct shot to the trap from either side, and the video contrasts this with competitor pump-driven power drains that can back up out of the overflow.

Common Questions

Still deciding, or have a question about your specific bathroom or order? Open a support ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support and the team will be glad to help, or call (800) 480-6850.