What Is a Soaker Tub and How Does It Differ From a Jetted Tub?

A soaker tub, in Ella's Bubbles terms a soaking walk-in tub, is a walk-in tub ordered with no jets, no pumps and no therapy controls, so the interior is smooth and there is nothing to switch on. A jetted tub is the same shell, door and seat with a hydro massage or air massage system, or both, built into it at the factory along with the pumps, lines and controls those systems need. The full definition of the soaker configuration is in What Is a Soaking Walk-In Tub?, and this page sets the two builds side by side so you can see exactly what changes when jets are added and what that means for your bathroom.

What a Soaker Keeps and What It Leaves Out

Everything structural on a soaker matches the jetted version of the same model: the acrylic shell on a stainless frame, the door and its seal, the grab bars, the textured floor, the fast-fill faucet with hand shower, the dual 2 inch drains (a single drain on the Front Entry and Mobile), the end panel and the extension panel where the model offers one. The dimensions and the crate size match the jetted version exactly, so a soaker is no easier or harder to get through a doorway than its jetted twin.

What a soaker leaves out is everything that belongs to a therapy system. Every Ella therapy package is built into the shell at the factory, so a soaker is molded without jet openings and nothing is installed under the tub. The in-line water heater, ozone sterilization and Auto Purge all belong to the hydro and air systems, so a soaker has none of them and holds the water at the temperature you filled it. The LED chromatherapy light is also absent, because it comes only with dual and triple therapy packages. The one electrical item a soaker can have is the optional heated seat and backrest, which runs on its own keypad. The heated seat video on this page shows how simple it is: one push of the button turns it on, the team suggests switching it on 10 to 15 minutes before you enter the tub, and it turns itself off after 20 minutes.

What a Jetted Tub Adds Under the Shell

A jetted tub is a different build from the start. Each therapy package comes with its own dedicated pump, plumbing and switches, and all of it is installed before the tub leaves the factory.

• Hydro massage uses hydro jets fed by their own pump and their own plumbing loop. The in-line water heater is part of the hydro system, which is why a soaker or an air-only tub cannot have one.
• Air massage uses small brass jets set into the seat, the base of the seat and the footwell floor, fed by a three-speed blower through lines that run under the tub. The typical air pump is a 4.5A 500W three-speed blower. Auto Purge belongs to this system: it starts on its own 20 minutes after the air pump is switched off and runs for 120 seconds to blow residual water out of the air lines.
• Dual and triple packages combine the systems above and add the LED chromatherapy light. Ozone sterilization also rides along with the hydro and air equipment.

All of that equipment needs a dedicated electrical supply, and the grounding video on this page shows why the electrical side deserves care: Ella tubs come with ground wires on every electrical component and on the tub frame, and the installer must secure a proper ground connection that follows local and state electrical codes. A plain soaker has no electrical components, so there is nothing to wire and nothing to ground.

Soaker and Jetted Tubs Side by Side

Read across the rows and the pattern is clear. The soaker gives up massage, heated water and the light in exchange for a tub that needs no wiring and almost no routine care beyond the acrylic, the seal and the drain. Each jetted configuration buys a therapy with a pump, a dedicated circuit and a monthly flush. The heated seat is the one middle path: it adds warmth to a soaker on a single 15A line without turning it into a jetted tub.

What the Difference Means in Your Bathroom

The electrical gap is the biggest practical difference. A plain soaking tub needs no dedicated electrical circuit at all because its drains are gravity driven and there are no pumps, so a plumber can complete the installation without an electrician. A jetted tub needs an electrician for its dedicated supply, and a soaker with the heated seat needs a 15A 120V GFCI-protected line for the heater alone.

Upkeep follows the same split. A jetted tub gets the monthly vinegar flush described for Ella tubs: combine 2 cups of white vinegar with 2 cups of water, fill the tub with water to one inch above the highest jets, add the mixture, run the tub for 10 minutes, then drain. A soaker skips that entirely, and bath salts and oils simply rinse away with the drain instead of collecting in plumbing lines. Both builds share the same acrylic care, so clean with approved non-abrasive cleaners and keep the door open when the tub is not in use to protect the seal. The upkeep side is covered in more depth in Soaking Walk-In Tub vs Jetted Tub: Which Is Easier to Maintain?.

Water temperature is the quieter difference. The in-line heater on a hydro tub is part of the massage system, while a soaker holds the water at the temperature you filled it, so a soaker bather starts with the water as warm as the faucet delivers it.

Which Ella Models Come Each Way

Most Ella models can be ordered as a soaker: the Elite, Petite and Royal with the stainless inward-swing door, the Capri, Monaco, Front Entry, Mobile and Lounger with the U-shape outward door, the whole Transfer family (Transfer26, Transfer30, Transfer32, Transfer60 and TransferXXL) and both LayDown sizes, where the soaker has no therapy controls at all. A few models are always jetted: the Ultimate, Deluxe and Ultra, the Big4One and ShaK with their digital Air plus dual Hydro package, the Standard, Standard60, Zen, Zen60 and Flow hydro platforms, and the two-seat Tub4Two, Companion, Escape and Big4Two. If one of the always-jetted models is your size and you want a simple tub, the team usually points to the Capri or Elite as the soaker alternatives. The model-by-model list is in Soaking-Only Walk-In Tubs: No Jets, No Pumps, No Electrical. Soaking tubs are built in smaller runs, so check availability with your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850.

Decide on massage before you order. Jets cannot be added to a soaker later and a jetted tub cannot be turned into a soaker, because the package is part of the shell; the reasons are spelled out in Can Hydro or Air Jets Be Added to an Ella Soaking Tub Later?. The same rule applies between therapies, so air cannot be added to a hydro-only tub and extra jets cannot be added in a particular spot once the tub is built.

Watch: Proper Grounding of Your Walk-In Tub with chapters and a full transcript.

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