Which therapy packages and features come on the Ella Ultra walk-in tub?

The Ella Ultra is offered with four jetted therapy packages: Hydro Massage, Air + Hydro, Hydro + Hydro Independent Foot Massage, and Hydro Massage + Microbubble. It is sold only with jets, so there is no soaking version of the Ultra, and every package rides on the same 29.5 by 52 1/8 by 40 inch shell with the frameless brushed aluminum door, the 5-piece fast-fill faucet and dual 2 inch drains described in Ella Ultra 30x52: Frameless Aluminum Door, ADA Seat Height, Magnetic Panels. This page goes package by package: what each one contains, how it operates at the tub, what is optional on top of it, and what it asks of your electrician.

The Four Ultra Packages Compared

Every figure below is taken from the current Ultra spec sheet. The sheet itself notes that the amp value for each pump may change based on availability, so verify the electrical figures with the team at (800) 480-6850 before your electrician sizes the circuits.

What the differences mean: Hydro Massage is the foundation of every package, and the other three each add one system to it. The additions change three things at once, the second pump that needs power, whether the chromatherapy light is included, and the kind of therapy you feel. If the light matters to you, note that it comes only with the three dual packages. If your electrical panel is tight, the single-pump Hydro Massage package is the simplest to wire, and the two-pump and microbubble packages may need more than one dedicated line.

Hydro Massage, the Base of Every Package

The hydro system pushes bath water through 16 jets, 10 around the seat and 6 at the feet, from a 7A pump. You start and stop it with a single on/off push control and set the strength with an intensity dial that adjusts the air drawn into the jet stream. An in-line water heater rated 5.5A keeps the circulating water warm while the pump runs, and an ozone sterilization unit rated 0.04A is part of the hydro system. The Ultra video on the profile page describes this as a luxurious hydromassage with an inline heater, and the same system is present in all four packages. On its own, the Hydro Massage package does not include the LED chromatherapy light.

Air + Hydro

This package adds a 6.4A three-speed air pump feeding 16 air jets, 8 in the seat and 8 in the foot area, so you can run water massage and bubble massage separately or together. On Ella's three-speed push control, the first press is high speed, the second is medium, the third is low, and a fourth press turns the system off. The air system has Auto Purge: about 20 minutes after the air pump is turned off, it starts automatically and runs for 120 seconds to blow residual water out of the air lines. It cannot be stopped, and it is normal even if it begins while you are still in the tub. The 0.5A LED chromatherapy light is included with this package.

Hydro + Hydro Independent Foot Massage

Here the 16 hydro jets are driven by two pumps, rated 5A and 7A, with two intensity dials, so the 10 upper jets and the 6 lower jets are controlled independently. The in-line heater, ozone and push controls are the same as the base package, and the chromatherapy light is included. Because this is a two-pump package, plan on more than one dedicated electrical line, as the profile page notes.

Hydro Massage + Microbubble

Microbubble therapy adds a single port to the tub, fed by a 1 HP pump rated 7.3A through a pressure vessel and an agitator valve, with its own on/off push control. The video on this page shows what happens when you press the micro button: billions of microbubbles pour from the single port, the water turns from clear to completely cloudy, and the bath carries up to 70 percent more oxygen than regular tap water for a warm, skin-softening soak that exfoliates and invigorates. A second press turns the system off. The chromatherapy light is included with this package too. Because the microbubble system is built into the shell at the factory, it is chosen when you order and cannot be added later, so decide on it with your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850 before the tub is built.

Controls, Options and What Every Package Shares

• Controls: on/off push buttons are standard, and a digital controller is an option on every package.
• Heated seat and backrest: optional on every package.
• Faucet: a 5-piece fast-fill set rated up to 18 gallons per minute at 60 PSI with two 5 foot supply lines, a 40mm high-flow cartridge, and a pull-out chrome hand shower limited to 1.9 gallons per minute on a 5 foot retractable braided hose.
• Drains: two 2 inch 4-port PVC drains with two overflows and two stainless steel openers with extended chrome handles.
• Fit: a reversible end panel and a 7 inch extension panel for 60 inch alcoves, a stainless steel wall-mounted grab bar and a towel bar, and a removable front apron with two access panels.
• Electrical: a dedicated GFCI protected 110/120V line for a single-pump package, with two-pump and microbubble packages needing more than one. A licensed electrician does this work.

If You Were Looking for the Transfer60 or TransferXXL Packages

Searches for the Ultra packages often land beside the same question about the wheelchair accessible Transfer tubs, and the family differs from the Ultra in one important way: every Transfer model can be ordered as a soaking tub with no jets, which the Ultra cannot. Soaking-Only Walk-In Tubs: No Jets, No Pumps, No Electrical lists which models go either way. The Transfer60, the 60 inch member of the family with a 22 inch seat, offers soaking, hydro, air, independent foot massage and microbubble packages. The TransferXXL, at 36 by 55 by 40 inches with a 29 inch seat, can be ordered as a soaking tub or with one of six therapy packages. Across the family the therapies are three-speed air massage with Auto Purge, hydro massage with an in-line water heater and intensity dial, strategically placed foot jets, ozone sterilization and optional microbubble infusion, with a heated seat and backrest, LED chromatherapy, a four-fold glass screen and support pillows as options. Jet counts on a Transfer tub depend on the package purchased, not the model. Wheelchair Transfer Tubs Compared lays the five models out, and Which wheelchair accessible walk-in tubs come with jets and a heated seat? covers the therapy side.

Watch: Infusion Micro-Bubble Therapy For Walk-In Tubs | Ella's Bubbles with chapters and a full transcript.

Related Guides

• Electrical requirements by model: dedicated GFCI circuits for your walk-in tub
• What Comes With Each Therapy Package: Pumps, In-Line Heater, Ozone, Auto Purge, LED, Dials, Pressure Tank and Controls at a Glance

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