How do I set up a Handyman Special tub for shower-style use?

You set up a Handyman Special the same way as any Ella walk-in tub, with one planning difference: the door is never relied on to hold water. A Handyman Special is sold for shower-style use because its door leak is a manufacturing defect that cannot be repaired, so the bathroom is planned as a walk-in shower with a shower screen, the door is used only for stepping in and out, and a shower column kit can be added to the deck if you want an overhead shower. Why the leak is permanent is explained in My Clearance Tub Was Sold With a Door Leak. Can It Be Fixed?.

What the Handyman Special Label Means

Every clearance tub is a specific physical unit listed by serial number, with its own description, photos and often a short video showing the flaw. In nearly every case the tub is in perfect working order and the flaw is cosmetic, such as a mark on the deck, an off-white shell or a slight alignment difference between the door and the shell that does not affect performance. On those units the door is expected to seal once the tub is level. A Handyman Special is different. Its listing discloses a door leak that is a manufacturing defect rather than a leveling or gasket problem, and that leak cannot be repaired and is not covered. That is why the unit is sold specifically for shower-style use, where a watertight door is not required.

Before you plan the bathroom, reread the listing you kept with your invoice. If it says Handyman Special, no amount of leveling, seal cleaning or gasket replacement will make the door hold a full bath, and the tub should be planned as a shower from the start. If the listing only describes a scratch, blemish or off-color shell, you have a regular clearance tub and its door should seal; a leak on that unit is a normal leveling and seal check, covered in Do walk-in tub doors leak, and how are they sealed?. The full set of clearance categories and what is final about each is in Clearance and Warehouse Tubs: What Is Different, What Is Final, and What Warranty Applies.

Planning a Shower-Style Installation

The setup that suits a Handyman Special is a walk-in shower installation with a shower screen, where the door never needs to hold water. The tub itself is installed, leveled and connected the way any Ella walk-in tub is, and it is worth keeping the tub level even though the seal is not being relied on: a leg that loses contact with the floor lets the frame warp, and a warped frame changes how the door meets its opening. What changes is how the tub is used:

• The door is for stepping in and out. You open it, sit down, shower and step out again. The tub is not filled for a soak, because the door was sold as not watertight.
• A shower screen contains the spray. Ella offers a 4-fold or bi-fold screen as an optional add-on, and the screen is the piece that turns the tub into a walk-in shower enclosure rather than an open bath.
• The hand shower does the showering. Both the 2-piece and 5-piece fast-fill faucet sets include an extendable multi-function hand shower, two 3/4 inch braided supply lines and a diverter, so if the listing shows a faucet set, you already have a shower head in hand.
• A shower column kit adds an overhead shower. It connects to a 2-piece or 5-piece fast-fill faucet set and is the usual upgrade for someone who wants a fixed shower instead of a hand-held one.

Screens and the shower column kit are accessories, not factory changes, so they are added to the tub you received rather than built into it. One shipping detail to pass to your installer: the faucet set arrives assembled on the deck but not hooked up to the supply lines, so the tub can ship fully drained. Your installer connects the supply lines on site.

Adding the Shower Column Kit

The video on this page shows the shower column kit going onto a walk-in tub deck, and the sequence is short enough for a plumber to do during the installation visit:

1. Remove the existing hand shower from the deck.
2. Install the shower column base attachment into the receptacle the hand shower vacated.
3. Replace the water supply line.
4. Attach the new 1/2 inch supply line to the diverter on the 2-piece or 5-piece fast-fill faucet set.

Once the column is connected to the diverter, it is ready for use. The kit connects to the Ella 2-piece or 5-piece fast-fill sets, so check the faucet line on your listing before ordering one. If the listing shows no faucet, read Using Your Own Faucet: No-Faucet Orders, Pre-Drilled Decks, Wall-Mount Options, and Which Tubs Require a Customer-Supplied Faucet before deciding what goes on the deck.

What Stays Exactly as Listed

A clearance tub comes exactly as its listing states and cannot be modified, and that applies to a Handyman Special as much as to any other clearance unit. A jetted unit cannot be sold as a soaker, options such as a heated seat cannot be added, and the drain side cannot be changed. Cosmetic marks are not refinished before shipping. So the therapy package, controls, faucet style and drain side on your tub are whatever the listing showed, and the shower-style plan is built around them rather than the other way round.

That fixed configuration is a normal part of how Ella tubs are built. Faucet and control locations, jet counts and layouts, tub color and the therapies themselves are set when the shell is drilled and jetted, so even a made-to-order tub cannot have them changed afterward. What can be added later are accessories, which is why a screen, a shower column kit and the swivel tray are the right tools for adapting a Handyman Special. The complete sorting of included, optional, special-order and fixed features is in What Can and Cannot Be Customized on an Ella Tub: Add-Ons, Special Orders, and Fixed Features.

Installation is separate from the tub. The clearance terms cover the tub only, and the installation is arranged and paid separately with your own installer, as with any Ella tub.

Warranty and Support on a Handyman Special

Warranty terms for clearance tubs are printed on each listing and can differ from tub to tub and from the standard Lifetime Limited Warranty. Some listings carry a limited parts warranty of a stated number of years and some warehouse-sale items carry none, so the warranty line on your serial number is the one that governs. On a Handyman Special the door leak is disclosed and excluded whatever that line says. Lifetime tech support comes with every Ella tub regardless, so your installer can call (800) 480-6850 or open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support during the installation.

Ella does not send technicians. Parts ship under whatever parts warranty the listing states, and a local licensed plumber or electrician does the installation and any later work. Open a ticket if you are unsure which clearance category your unit was sold under, or if a regular clearance tub still leaks after the leveling and seal checks.

Watch: Easy Shower Column Installation for Your Walk-In Tub | Ella’s Bubbles with chapters and a full transcript.

Related Guides

• Can you add a shower head to an Ella walk-in tub?
• Can you take a shower in a walk-in tub?
• Installing the Shower Column Kit on Your Walk-in Tub

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