How do I re-seat the door gasket on my walk-in tub?

Most door gaskets re-seat with no sealant at all: open the door, clean the groove and the door frame with a common household cleaner, then press the lifted section fully back into its channel with your thumbs or a plastic spatula, because the gasket is held by its fit rather than by adhesive. Silicone comes in only when a seal that has become loose or damaged will not stay put, and even then only a thin bead goes into the channel or at the corner where the gasket meets the frame, never on the face the door closes against, as Which Silicone Should I Use to Reseat a Walk-In Tub Door Gasket? explains. This page gives the full re-seat procedure, the difference between inward swing and outward swing doors, and what to do when the seal has to come all the way out.

Before You Start, Rule Out the Look-Alikes

Three problems look like a gasket that needs re-seating but are not, and each has a different fix.

• Water at the bottom edge of the door. The number one cause of a door leak is a leveling leg that has lost contact with the floor. That warps the frame so the door no longer meets the seal evenly, and no amount of pressing on the gasket will cure it. Have every leveling leg checked first, and never run caulk or silicone over the seal to stop a bottom-edge leak.
• A tacky or sticky seal. Residue, not a loose gasket, is the usual cause. Wipe the seal and frame with a household cleaner, and if the gasket still feels tacky or looks flattened, wipe it with rubbing alcohol. No oil, grease or spray lubricant is called for, as My Door Seal Is Sticky. What Can I Clean or Lubricate It With? describes.
• Water in the frame after draining. On an outward swing door, water held on the inner face of the door and in the gasket runs down the frame when you open it after a bath. That is drainage. A leak is water that runs steadily from the frame while the tub is full.

If the legs are solid, the seal is clean and the door still leaks at a spot where you can see the gasket lifted out of its groove, re-seating is the right step.

Step by Step: Re-Seating the Gasket Without Sealant

1. Open the door and find the lifted section. It is usually near the top or at a curve, where closing the door pushes out any part of the gasket that sits on top of the groove instead of inside it.
2. Clean the groove and the frame. Use a common household cleaner and a soft cloth so nothing sits under the gasket. Grit, hair and soap film in the channel are among the most common reasons a door starts to leak. Run a fingertip along the channel to feel for anything left behind.
3. Reshape a deformed seal. If the gasket looks flattened or stuck, which happens on a new tub after shipping, squeeze it gently between your fingertips and pull it slightly away from the frame so it relaxes back toward its natural shape, then wipe it with rubbing alcohol.
4. Press the gasket home. Starting at one end, push the gasket into the groove with your thumbs or a plastic spatula and work around the whole door until it is fully seated along its entire length, not just at the spot that lifted.
5. Test it. Close and open the door several times. If the gasket stays put, fill the tub and watch the outside of the frame. Dry while full means the seal is doing its job.

Inward Swing Versus Outward Swing Doors

Every Ella door closes against a silicone gasket, but the two door families hold it in different ways, so the sealant step differs. Ella's door seal maintenance video, embedded on this page, shows both, and it is the source for the figures below. Ella names no brand or grade of silicone; ordinary silicone sealant from a hardware store is what the team means.

• Outward swing doors (the U-shape and L-shape composite doors). If a seal has become loose or damaged and has to be removed, it is secured beforehand with a thin bead of silicone placed into the gasket channel. Allow the silicone to set up for 20 minutes before reinserting the gasket, then wait 24 hours for it to dry before the door sees water.
• Inward swing doors (the stainless steel door, the acrylic S-shape door and the Ultra door). Roll the seal gasket away from the frame and run a bead of silicone down the corner where the gasket meets the frame. A bead on the other side of the gasket can be added if necessary. Wait 24 hours to dry.

On either door, the bead goes under or beside the gasket. Never spread silicone or caulk across the sealing face that the door presses against, because the seal works by its fit and a coated face will not compress evenly. On a legacy S-Class tub the same inward swing step applies, and because it is a legacy line the team should confirm the right gasket for your serial number first, as How do you replace the door seal on a legacy Ella S-Class tub? explains.

When the Seal Has to Come All the Way Out

If a section is torn, or the gasket will not stay seated even with the channel clean, the seal is replaced rather than re-seated. The step by step installation video on this page shows the technique for fitting a full gasket. Adhesive remover is sprayed onto the gasket so it slides more easily into the door channel, and a spatula presses it into the groove until it is fully seated. At the curved sections, four V-shaped relief cuts are made with diagonal cutters where the gasket bends around the outer edge, straight vertical cuts are made at the inner curves where the door bends inward, and at the end point a small angled cut lets the tip slightly overlap while staying fully inserted in the groove.

The door and the door seal are parts covered by Ella's Lifetime Limited Warranty, parts only, for the original purchaser at the original installation address. If the door still leaks after the legs have been checked and the gasket re-seated, open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support or call (800) 480-6850 with your model, your serial number from the label behind the magnetic access panel next to the door, and photos of the damaged section. Once the defect is verified, the model specific seal ships to the original customer's address without charge, and the support team confirms coverage when you write in.

Keeping the Gasket Seated

Two habits prevent most re-seating in the first place. Clean the seal and the door frame regularly with a common household cleaner, because any residue that builds up can lead to a leak and any debris left in the seal or frame can keep the gasket from sitting flat. And leave the walk-in tub door open slightly whenever the tub is not in use. That prevents unnecessary compression of the gasket between baths and extends its flexibility and life, which is what keeps a seal from loosening or deforming in the years after installation.

Watch: How To Install a Walk-In Tub Door Seal (Step-By-Step) with chapters and a full transcript.

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• Door seal or gasket looks worn, loose, or leaks: care, repair, and replacement
• Common Questions About Walk-In Tub Door Seals

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