How Do You Fit a Folding Shower Screen on a Walk-In Tub?

The folding shower screen mounts to the side wall beside your walk-in tub, on the wall side away from any extension panel, with its wall channel set level and at a height where the inward-angled rubber gasket brushes the tub deck lightly and evenly. Get those three things right, the side, the level and the gasket height, and the screen stays dry; the screen itself is described in What Is the 4-Fold Shower Screen on a Walk-In Tub?. The printed manual packed with the screen carries the numbered steps, parts and tools, and this page covers the decisions and checks around those steps that decide whether the installation works.

Before You Open the Box

The screen ships in several pieces and is assembled on site, so inspect everything first. Occasionally a slide, roller or frame piece is damaged in shipping or during assembly, or two frame sections show a mismatch in finish. Note which panel and which piece is affected, photograph the damage and the packaging, and open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support with the photos, your serial number and shipping details so replacement hardware can ship from the warehouse. Do this before mounting anything, because the screen follows the standard 30-day return policy for uninstalled products in original packaging. Once it has been mounted, or once 30 days have passed, it can no longer be returned, and a return must be authorized before anything is shipped back. Those rules are in Four-Fold Glass Shower Screen: Damaged Hardware, the Return Window and Why Panels Cannot Be Added.

Check coverage against your tub length at the same time. The four-fold screen is 44 inches long and 42 inches high, in 1/8 inch tempered clear glass panels joined by PVC geared hinges inside a chrome ionized aluminum frame. On a tub whose top measures about 59 to 60 inches, that leaves roughly 15 inches uncovered at one end. Current screens are built as a rigid unit limited to four panels, so a fifth panel cannot be added and a middle panel cannot be inserted. If you want the whole length closed, ask the team whether a fixed glass panel can be placed beside the folding screen so the door folds up against it; whether that works depends on your tub and bathroom.

Choosing the Side and the Configuration

The screen is reversible for a left or right installation and has a knob on both sides, so the wall decides where it goes. It mounts beside any Ella walk-in tub that sits in a corner or alcove, and it can be added after the tub is installed. Always choose the wall side away from any extension panel. In a 60 inch alcove where a 52 inch tub such as the Petite uses its 7 inch extension panel to close the gap, remove one section so the screen becomes the 32 inch wide three-fold and sits on the tub side of the deck rather than over the panel.

If your tub has the patented 360 degree swivel tray, plan the two together before drilling. The tray is 8.5 by 8.5 inches on a 2 inch pin near the door and rotates out of the way for entry and exit, so position the screen so the tray can swing clear without hitting the glass. The tray fits the stainless inward-swing deck on the Elite, Royal, Deluxe, Ultimate, Companion and Escape, and What Are My Options If My Swivel Tray Broke or Does Not Fit? shows how it sits relative to the screen.

Setting the Wall Channel

The wall channel is the part of the job that decides whether the screen ever leaks. The panels pivot 90 degrees at that channel for entry and fold accordion style flat against the wall when not in use, and along the bottom runs an inward-angled rubber gasket that is the only seal between the glass and the deck. Two checks matter more than anything else in the manual:

1. Level. Set the channel plumb and level so the gasket meets the deck evenly along its whole length. A channel that is off level lets the gasket lift at one end.
2. Height. Set the channel so the gasket brushes the deck lightly and evenly. Set too low, the gasket gets damaged as the panels move. Set too high, water escapes underneath.

Confirm before tightening that the rubber gasket is angled inward toward the tub, not outward, since the angle is what returns spray to the tub instead of the floor.

Trimming the Horizontal Seal and Fitting the End Cap

The horizontal seal runs along the bottom of the screen and rides on the tub deck. Installers cut it to length, and the printed manual covers attaching the end cap in steps 4 and 5. Cut carefully: if the seal is trimmed short there is not enough seal left beyond the last panel to protect the deck under the cap, and a wet deck at the end of the screen is the result. Leave slack past the last panel, fit the cap onto the end of the seal in the position the manual shows, secure it exactly as steps 4 and 5 describe, and let any sealant the manual calls for cure before the first shower. A cap that later comes loose usually goes straight back on the same way, and a cracked or lost one is replaced with an end cap kit through your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850; the seal cap assembly is included when a new seal is ordered. The refit and ordering details are in Replacing or Reattaching the End Cap and Horizontal Seal on a Folding Shower Screen.

Testing and Living with It

Run the hand shower with the screen closed and look at the bottom edge. If water shows up at the bottom of the screen, re-level the channel and adjust the height so the gasket seats on the deck, and check that the gasket still angles inward. Clean the glass with warm soapy water and a lint-free cloth after use, and never use alcohol, petroleum liquids, chemical cleaners or anything gritty on it. Gaskets, glass panels and knobs are all replaceable parts. For any ticket, have your tub model and serial number, whether the screen is set up as four-fold or three-fold, and a photo of the gasket and of where the water appears.

Related Guides

• The Four-Fold Bath Screen Printed Manual: Parts Supplied, Loose Fittings, Tools and the Eleven Numbered Steps
• Folding Glass Shower Screen: Which Side It Mounts On, How Much Room It Takes Folded, and Confirming Stock
• Can a Shower Screen Cover the Full Length of My Walk-In Tub?

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