Which Walk-In Shower Packages Include a Seat and Grab Bars?

Grab bars are included with every Ella shower kit: the carton holds the stall, the grab bar set listed for that kit, and the drain. Seating is where the packages differ. Some stall families have a molded seat formed into the base, the 5-piece shower stall takes a bench ordered with the unit, and the barrier-free walk-in shower kit is outfitted with folding seats. What Comes in the Box With an Ella Shower Kit, and What You Still Need to Buy lists the full carton contents, and this page sorts the packages by how each one provides a seat.

What Every Shower Kit Includes, and What It Does Not

Whichever stall you order, the kit ships with the stall itself, whether one-piece or multi-piece depending on the model, the grab bars packed loose, and the drain. The bars are not pre-installed. Mounting them is part of the installation, and they must be fastened into the reinforced backing built into the wall panels with the correct screws so that they are secure. Confirm the grab bar count against your order when you unpack, and agree with your installer that the bars will be mounted as part of the job.

No shower head, hand shower, mixing valve or valve trim is in the box, and the wall arrives solid with no valve cutout and no preset height or offset. Your plumber selects the valve, cuts the openings on site and supplies the rough-in piping and fittings. So a package with a seat and grab bars included still needs the valve with its trim and the shower head bought separately before installation day. If you want a hand shower on a slide bar, choose that hardware with your plumber when you select the valve so the openings can be planned together.

Three Ways an Ella Shower Provides a Seat

• A molded seat. On some stall families the seat is formed as part of the base, so nothing extra is specified for seating. A molded seat is not offered on the 5-piece stall; it belongs to other stall families. Which stalls in the size you need come with one is confirmed by your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850.
• A bench on the 5-piece stall. The 5-piece stall is a base plus four wall sections that assemble on site. Because a molded seat is not available on it, seating comes from the bench specified at order time. When ordered with the bench and grab bars, both ship with the unit.
• Folding seats on the barrier-free kit. For wheelchair users who prefer a shower, the barrier-free walk-in shower kit can be outfitted with your choice of wall tiles, shower bases, grab bars, several styles of folding seats, an extended hand shower and a caregiver shower curtain, plus a compressible rubber dam to help keep water in. The video on this page shows this kit alongside Ella's accessible tubs.

Packages Compared

The difference comes down to who decides where the seat goes. With a molded seat, the stall maker has decided, and the seat arrives as part of the base. With the 5-piece stall and the barrier-free kit, you decide at order time, which is useful when the bather needs a particular seat style or a bar of a particular length, but it means those choices have to be made before the order is placed rather than after the stall is in the room. A walk-in tub answers the same need differently, with the seat built into the shell and the bars drilled at the factory, as What Comes With Your Walk-In Tub Order describes.

Ordering the 5-Piece Stall with a Bench and Bars

Because the 5-piece stall's seating and bars are ordering options, settle them with your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850 before the order is placed. Ordering the 5-Piece Shower Stall With Soap Ledges, a Bench, or Grab Bars covers each option, and these are the decisions to bring:

1. Bench: the seat ordered with the unit, since the stall has no molded seat.
2. Grab bars: choose the 24-inch or 36-inch bar and say how many you need. They ship with the unit for your installer to anchor into the reinforced backing.
3. Soap ledges: shelves formed in the wall panels. They are built into the panels as ordered, not added to a stall already in place, so confirm the placement you want.
4. Drain position: state left-hand or right-hand so the base matches your rough plumbing.

A foot ledge is part of the molded base and the unit is not available without it. The ledge is 17 5/8 inches long, so plan any low grab bar or the bench placement around it. Ella also does not carry a matching door for every stall size, so ask which door, if any, fits the opening of the size you are ordering before you plan the enclosure.

Accessible Is Not the Same as ADA Compliant

A seat, grab bars and a low step-in make an Ella shower easier and safer to use at home, but they do not make the stall ADA compliant, and Ella does not represent its shower stalls that way. For a private residence that certification is generally not a building code requirement. For a commercial building, a rental unit under accessibility rules, or any project that will be inspected against the standard, confirm the requirement with your local code official before you order. Are Ella Shower Stalls ADA Compliant? explains what the standard covers and why one accessible feature does not make the whole stall compliant.

Watch: The Best Walk-In Tubs for Staying Independent | Ellas Bubbles with chapters and a full transcript.

Common Questions