How Do I Turn On and Use Microbubble Therapy on My Ella Tub?

To use the Infusion Microbubble Therapy on your Ella walk-in tub, fill the tub until the water covers both the microbubble port and the pump intake, then press the Micro button once. Billions of tiny bubbles stream from the single port and the water turns from clear to cloudy white, and one more press of the Micro button turns the system off. What the therapy is and why the water goes milky is explained in What Is Infusion Microbubble Therapy on a Walk-In Tub?, and this page is the hands-on routine for running it, from the first fill to the final rinse.

Before You Press Anything: Check the Water Level

The microbubble system has its own dedicated 1 HP water pump, rated 7.3A on most spec sheets, working together with a pressure vessel and an agitator valve. The pump draws water from the tub through an intake, pressurizes it with air inside the microbubble tank, and releases it through one port as a cloud of bubbles smaller than 50 microns, too small to see individually. Because the pump is moving bath water, it needs bath water to move. The water must cover both the microbubble port and the intake before you press Micro, because running the pump dry damages it.

So the first step every time is to look at where the port and the intake sit in your particular tub and make sure both are under water. If your tub also has hydro massage, the hydro jets have their own fill level, so fill to whichever mark is highest before you start any system. Once the level is right, the microbubble side is ready to go.

The Session, Step by Step

1. Fill the tub until the water is above the microbubble port and the pump intake.
2. Press the Micro button once. The first video on this page shows exactly this moment: one touch of the micro button, and billions of microbubbles are generated from a single port in the tub.
3. Watch the water change. It turns from clear to cloudy as the bubbles spread through the bath. The published description notes the water carries up to 70 percent more oxygen than regular tap water.
4. Soak for as long as you like. Microbubble therapy is a skin treatment rather than a massage, so there is no stream to aim and no intensity to set. The bubbles soften and gently exfoliate the skin while you sit in them.
5. Press the Micro button once more to turn the system off.
6. If you want a salt bath, this is the moment for it. Dissolve Epsom salts or bath salts completely in a cup of warm water, add the mixture to the tub with every system off, and enjoy a still soak.
7. Drain right after soaking, rinse the tub, and wipe down the chrome finishes.

What You Should See, and What to Report

Cloudy white water is the therapy working, not a water-quality problem. The milky look is the microbubbles themselves, not a product in the water, which is why the therapy is designed to run in plain, clean bath water.

Two things are worth a ticket. If the pump buzzes but the water stays clear, or if the bubbles come out large instead of a fine cloud, turn the system off, confirm that the port and the intake were under water, and contact the team at ellasbubbles.com/support or (800) 480-6850 with your model and serial number before running it again.

If the system trips a breaker, remember that combined packages that include microbubbles need two dedicated GFCI 20A/120V lines. Have an electrician confirm the circuits first rather than assuming the pump is at fault.

How the Control Works on Each Tub Family

On most Ella walk-in tubs the Micro button sits on the deck with the other push controls, and the operation is one press on, one press off. On the LayDown tubs the microbubbles are delivered through one jet switched by an air switch, so the same rule applies: water over the jet first, then the switch.

The Standard60 is different because it carries the combined H2 and Microbubbles System, so there are two buttons to understand. The H2 button starts a hydrogen generator under the molded seat that is fed from a blue tank, and that tank takes distilled water only. Before first use, cut the shipping ties, remove the container from under the tub, connect the hose to the front of the tub, and fill the tank with distilled water. Never press the H2 button until the water is above the hydrogen inlet jet and the microbubble port, because that pump must not run dry either. The hydrogen side is covered in What Is H2 Hydrogen Therapy on a Walk-In Tub?.

The second video on this page walks through a Transfer60 with the Hydro and Microbubble package. It shows the hydro massage with its inline water heater and intensity control dial alongside the Infusion Microbubble Therapy, which is a useful reminder that the dial belongs to the hydro side. The microbubble side has only its one button.

The Ella Pet Spa uses the same microbubble technology in a different form, a handheld microbubble handset with built-in ozone rather than a port in the shell, and it is described in Ella Pet Spa: Microbubble Grooming Tub Specs.

Microbubbles Alongside Hydro Jets and Bath Products

On an Ella walk-in tub the microbubble system is sold as the hydro plus micro bubbles option, one of the five jetting choices listed in Walk-In Tub Therapy Options and Features. The hydro jets run from the Water button and the intensity dial, and the microbubbles run from the Micro button, so you can enjoy either in the same bath. Whatever order you run them in, the published guidance on additives is the same: therapy first, additives afterward, with every system off before anything goes into the water.

Epsom salts and bath salts are fine once fully dissolved. Bath oils, bath beads and fragrance oils are discouraged in any Ella tub with a therapy system, and bath bombs are the one product to skip entirely. The timing and the reasons are laid out in Can I Use Bath Salts or Oils With Infusion Microbubble Therapy?.

One more point for anyone reading this before their tub arrives: microbubble therapy is built into the shell at the factory, so it is chosen at order time and cannot be added to a walk-in tub later. It is offered on the Elite, Petite, Royal, Ultra, Capri, Monaco, Front Entry, ShaK, Big4One, Transfer32, Transfer60, TransferXXL, the LayDown60 and LayDown72, and the Standard60 through its combined H2 and microbubbles system. If you are deciding now, settle it with your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850 before production.

Watch: Transfer 60: Walk-In Tub with Hydro & MicroBubble Therapy For Relaxed Bathing | Ella's Bubbles with chapters and a full transcript.

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