What Is a Hybrid Stainless Steel Walk-In Tub Made Of?

A hybrid stainless steel walk-in tub is a tub that combines a stainless steel frame, and on many models a stainless steel door, with an acrylic bathing shell instead of being made of metal throughout. Ella's own documentation does not use the word hybrid, but that mixed construction is how every Ella walk-in tub is built: a thermoformed acrylic shell reinforced underneath with fiberglass sits on a rust-proof stainless steel frame, and the Elite, Petite, Royal, Deluxe, Ultimate, Companion and Escape add a brushed stainless steel inward-swing door. The confirmed material of each part is listed in What Are the Shell, Frame, Door and Towel Bar of an Ella Walk-In Tub Made Of?.

Why the Tub Is Not Solid Stainless Steel

The part of the tub you sit in and touch is acrylic, not metal. Each shell is thermoformed from an acrylic sheet and then reinforced with fiberglass applied to the underside for support. No fiberglass is used on the bather side, so the surface is acrylic throughout, and Ella's team states that a correctly installed tub does not off-gas volatile organic compounds. Acrylic gives the bright, easy-to-clean bathing surface and the textured slip resistant floor that the stainless door family video highlights.

Underneath, the structural frame that carries the shell is stainless steel, chosen because it does not rust in a wet environment. The frame carries adjustable leveling legs, and it is also where your installer ties the air manifold and hydro vent line at the highest point under the deck. Stainless steel shows up in the plumbing too: water reaches the faucet through two stainless steel supply lines only about five feet long, so nothing in the tub's own water path corrodes.

What the table means for you: the metal does the structural and plumbing work where rust resistance matters, and the acrylic does the bathing work where an easy-to-clean, comfortable surface matters. A tub described as stainless steel is not a steel basin, and a tub described as acrylic still has a stainless frame under it.

The Stainless Steel Door Is What Most People Mean

When shoppers ask about a stainless steel walk-in tub, they are usually picturing the door. On the Elite, Petite, Royal, Deluxe, Ultimate, Companion and Escape, both the door and its frame are brushed stainless steel, with a frosted tempered glass panel set in a U-shaped seal frame. The door swings into the tub, locks with an interior chrome handle, and can be lifted out so you can clean the seal and the tub wall behind it. Once the tub starts to fill, the weight of the water presses the door more firmly into its seal, so it stays shut on its own and will not open until the tub has completely drained.

The video shows this door family in use: the removable brushed stainless door, the low threshold, the deck and wall mounted grab bars, and the acrylic shell on its rust proof stainless frame, along with the dual 2-inch drains, the three-speed air massage with Auto Purge, and the hydro massage with in-line heater and intensity dial offered on these models. Two details are worth checking before you choose one. The door opening on this family is the narrowest in the line at roughly 16 1/4 to 16 1/2 inches, and the single-seat models except the Petite include the patented 360 degree swivel tray. The full description is in What Is the Stainless Steel Inward-Swing Door on a Walk-In Tub?.

Ella Tubs That Are Not Stainless-Door Tubs

Every Ella model has the stainless frame, but the door material changes by family, and a few printed documents get this wrong.

• Outward-swing U-shape door. The Capri, Monaco, Front Entry, Mobile, Lounger, ShaK and Big4One, plus the two-seat Tub4Two and Big4Two, use a white PVC composite frame with tempered glass closed by a 3 latch gear and shaft mechanism. Ella describes the composite as a strong plastic with high impact resistance. It is not stainless steel.
• Inward-swing acrylic S-shape door. The Standard, Standard60, Zen, Zen60 and Flow use a molded acrylic door that swings in. The Zen spec sheets' U-shape wording is a misprint.
• Transfer L-shape outward door. Every Transfer tub uses a composite and glass door with the handle on its front face and two latches on the same gear and shaft mechanism.
• Ultra. The Ultra has an inward-swing brushed aluminum door with frosted glass.

The outward-swing family manual describes a stainless inward door in its entry section, and the Tub4Two spec sheet lists a removable stainless steel door. Both are carryovers from the stainless family documents. The Tub4Two door swings outward and is composite and glass. If a manual or spec sheet disagrees with what you see, trust the tub, and use Is My Tub Door Inward or Outward Swing, and Which Door Do I Have? to confirm which door you have.

What the Mix of Materials Means Day to Day

Rust is not coming from the tub. Because the frame, the supply lines and the stainless door do not corrode, brown or rusty water is a house-side problem, most often an aging water heater or the incoming supply. Run hot water at a bathroom sink into a white basin and compare, then have a licensed plumber check the heater, as explained in Why Is the Water From My Walk-In Tub Rusty or Brown?. Ella does not send technicians, and the heater is part of the home, not the tub.

Cleaning changes by surface. Formula 409 or Dawn dish detergent with a soft cloth is safe on the acrylic shell, the chrome fixtures and the stainless steel parts, so one cleaner covers the whole tub. Never use scouring pads, Mr. Clean Magic Erasers or any abrasive on the acrylic. CLR followed by stainless steel polish brings back a discolored stainless hinge, but apply it to the hinge only and wipe up anything that reaches the shell right away. The complete list is in Which Cleaners Are Safe on Your Walk-In Tub and Where to Find the Pump Inlet Cover. Wipe the door frame and glass with a mild, non-abrasive cleaner, clean the seal with rubbing alcohol, and leave the door open when the tub is not in use.

The stainless door also has one rule that protects the warranty. Never lean on it or use it to lower yourself into the seat, because the door and seal warranty is valid only while the alignment is correct and has not been changed by a bather's weight. If the handle no longer sits flush when locked, it is adjusted at the lock nut behind the front apron. For any ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support or with your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850, have your model name, your order details from where you purchased, and photos of the part in question.

Watch: Walk-In Tub with Custom Brushed Stainless Steel Inward Swing Door for Safe Bathing | Ella's Bubbles with chapters and a full transcript.

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