How do I find the dimensions of an Ella clearance tub?

Every Ella clearance unit is a real Ella's Bubbles walk-in tub, so its dimensions come from the same place as a new tub's: the spec sheet for that model, which prints the actual size as width by length by height next to the shipping size, with the seat height and the step-over threshold height on the same drawing. Each clearance listing on ellasbubbles.com names the model, the size and the serial number of the unit, and that serial is what to quote when you ask the team to confirm a figure. Where a serial sits on a tub you already have is in Where Do I Find the Serial Number on My Walk-In Tub?.

Reading a Clearance Listing

Clearance units are identified by serial number right in the unit's name, for example a listing titled with the model, the nominal size, the door and drain side and the serial. The listing for clearance unit #2652105 is a good example of what you get. It is a Front Entry outward swing door walk-in tub listed as 32 inches wide by 40 inches long, with a 24 inch wide seat, an Air plus Hydro package with heated seat and back, 13 hydro jets with in-line heater and ozone sterilization, 16 air jets with 3 speed air massage and auto purge, a 2 piece Ella fast fill faucet, a 2 inch single drain with an emergency pull-up chain, and 2 side panels. The listing notes minor acrylic imperfections such as scratches on the tub deck, and the unit is sold as is with a lifetime warranty on parts and supporting equipment except for the acrylic damage noted. The listing also carries photos and a video of that exact unit, which is worth watching because a clearance tub is a specific unit rather than a catalog picture.

What that listing does not print is an overall height. If the figure you need is missing from the listing, ask the team at (800) 480-6850 or through ellasbubbles.com/support with the serial number handy, and they will confirm it for that unit.

From the Listing to the Spec Sheet

1. Note the model name and the serial from the listing title.
2. Open that model's page on ellasbubbles.com and use the download tab to open the spec sheet.
3. Read the actual size, printed as width by length by height, and the shipping size beside it. The shipping size is the crated figure that has to pass through your doorways and hallways.
4. Find the seat height and the step-over threshold height on the dimension drawing.
5. Compare the listing's nominal size with the actual size. Nominal sizes are not actual sizes; the Petite, for example, is listed as 28 inches wide while its actual exterior width is 27 1/2 inches, so plan the fit around the spec sheet figure.

If the listing and the spec sheet seem to disagree, or the unit has an option that changes what is in the crate, send the serial to the team rather than guessing. The listed therapy package also sets the electrical lines the tub needs, so your electrician will want that detail from the listing as well.

Door Swing and the Floor Space It Needs

A clearance tub's footprint is only part of the fit. The video on this page shows the three Ella door styles and the floor clearance each one needs. Outward U-shape doors, the style on the Front Entry, Capri, Monaco, Mobile, Lounger, ShaK, Big4One, Tub4Two and Big4Two, swing 165 degrees and need about 21 inches of clearance in front. The outward L-shape door on the Transfer family swings 172 degrees and needs about 36.5 inches. Inward-swing doors need no floor space in front of the tub, but the bather steps in, stands and closes the door past the knees, so some room inside the tub is needed. The trade-offs that come with each choice, including the fixed molded seat height of about 17 inches, are set out in What Are the Negatives of a Walk-In Tub and How Do I Choose One?.

Door side cannot be changed after delivery, and the drains sit opposite the door: a right-side door puts the drains on the left and a left-side door puts the drains on the right, sides taken as you face the tub. A clearance unit is already built, so its door and drain side has to work with where your house drain is. Confirm the side with the team before you commit, and read How Do I Choose the Right Walk-In Tub for Mobility Issues? if the door swing also has to suit the bather.

Why the Serial, Not the Size, Identifies the Unit

Several Ella models share the same outside dimensions, so a footprint alone does not name the tub, and a clearance listing can show a model code as well as a name. The digits and letters in those codes describe the family, the footprint, the door side and the faucet in the crate, as decoded in What the Digits and Letters in an Ella Model Number Mean, and Why Dealer Portal SKUs Differ From the Website. The serial does more than the code: it tells Ella when the tub was made, who built it, and which replacement parts are compatible, which is why the team confirms clearance figures per serial rather than per model. Once a clearance tub is installed, the same serial is printed on the label on the inside of a removable panel, behind the large access panel on the seat side for stainless steel door models and behind the magnetic panel next to the door on the others.

Before You Commit to a Clearance Unit

• Measure the route as well as the room: all doorways and hallways the crate must pass, against the shipping size on the spec sheet.
• Check the clear floor in front of the door side against the clearance for that door style.
• Match the door and drain side to the house drain, and have a licensed contractor confirm the fit from the spec sheet before anything is ordered.
• Read the as-is note on the listing and look at the photos and video of the specific unit, since the acrylic imperfections described are part of what you are buying.
• Open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support or call (800) 480-6850 with the serial number if any figure is missing or unclear.

Watch: Walk-in Tubs With Stylish, High Quality Doors for Easy Access | Ella's Bubbles with chapters and a full transcript.

Related Guides

• How to Read an Ella Spec Sheet: Actual Versus Nominal Size, Shipping Size, Occupied Versus Unoccupied Capacity, Package Jet Tables, Amp Disclaimers and Known Misprints
• What Is Nominal Size vs Actual Size on a Walk-In Tub?
• Confirming What a Clearance Tub Includes by Serial Number: Model, Size, Door Side, Therapies and Faucet

Common Questions