Will I Get Cold While the Tub Fills or Drains? The Most Common Question, Answered on Video

Will I get cold while the tub fills or drains? No, not in the way people fear. It is the question Ella's Bubbles hears most often about walk-in tubs: whether you will sit shivering while the tub fills and again while it drains. The short answer from Ella's own video is that the tub is designed around exactly that worry: fast-fill faucets shorten the wait, the glossy acrylic shell holds heat, the in-line water heater keeps the water warm during the hydro massage, and the optional heated seat and backrest warms the seat before you ever sit down. At the end of the bath, Ella's dual 2 inch gravity drains empty an average tub in approximately 80 seconds under ideal conditions.

Watch: Answering Your Most Common Question about Walk-In Tubs with chapters and a full transcript.

The video opens with the question itself, "Will I get cold while the tub fills and when the tub drains?", and answers it in four parts. First, the five-piece and two-piece fast-fill faucets fill the tub quickly so you are not waiting long to enjoy the soak. Second, the interior of the glossy acrylic tub acts like an insulator, and the inside walls help maintain a comfortable temperature. Third, the tub water is kept warm by an in-line water heater. Fourth, you can order the heated seat: push the button, wait a few minutes for the seat to heat up, slide in and then fill the tub; after 20 minutes the seat heater turns itself off, and a simple push of the button turns it back on. The video closes with the drain: dual oversized 2 inch T-type drains empty an average size tub in approximately 80 seconds under ideal conditions, so you are on your way warm and relaxed.

The Four Answers, One at a Time

• Fast-fill faucets. Ella's deck-mount faucets are built to maximize water flow. Ella publishes a fill range of 7 to 15 minutes depending on the size of the tub and the water supply configuration in your home, and notes that it takes about 10 minutes to reach a level where the hydro jets can be used and about 6 minutes more to reach the overflow. The details are in our fast-fill faucet expectations article, and the size of your water heater matters just as much; see what size water heater you need.
• Insulating acrylic. Ella describes the glossy acrylic interior as acting like an insulator: once the water is in, the inside walls help hold the temperature rather than pull it away.
• In-line water heater during hydro massage. Tubs with the hydro massage option include an in-line heater. It maintains the temperature you set at the faucet, and it runs only while the hydro pump runs. It does not heat cold water, so fill at the temperature you want and let the heater hold it there while you enjoy the massage. Our article on what the in-line heater does and does not do has the details.
• Heated seat before you sit. The optional heated seat and backrest is an electric surface heater with its own keypad, completely separate from the water heater. It warms the seat while the tub is still empty, which is the moment people worry about most.

The Heated Seat Routine

This short clip shows the routine in order. Push the heated seat button once and the seat activates. Turn it on 10 to 15 minutes before you enter the tub for maximum comfort. The heated seat turns off automatically after 20 minutes, and if you would like it back on, just push the button again. Put together with the first video, the sequence is: press once, wait, sit, close the door and fill. The 20 minute auto-off is a timer, not a fault, and restarting it is always one press. Watch: Heated Seat Option for Your Walk-In Tub: Relaxed Bathing with a full transcript.

Setting the Temperature as You Fill

Because the heater maintains rather than raises the temperature, the fill is your one chance to set it. Adjust the faucet until the stream feels right, keep the water warm rather than hot (Ella's manuals warn against exceeding 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit), and on tubs with the thermostatic faucet package the thermostatic control valve holds that ceiling for you. If the water runs cool partway through a fill, the cause is almost always the household water heater running short, not the tub.

Draining

Ella's drains are gravity driven, with two oversized 2 inch drains rather than one. Under ideal house-drain conditions an average tub empties in about 80 seconds. Both drain handles must be opened completely, and the door stays closed until the tub is fully drained. If your tub drains noticeably slower than that, the house drain line is usually the reason, and our article on slow draining walks through the checks; dual drain technology explains why two gravity drains empty the tub so quickly.

Related Guides

• Do You Have to Sit in a Walk-In Tub While It Fills?
• How do you get out of a walk-in tub safely after your bath?
• What Temperature Does the In-Line Heater Hold, and Can I Adjust It?
• How Do I Get Out of My Walk-In Tub Quickly Before It Finishes Draining?

Common Questions

For anything model-specific, open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support or call (800) 480-6850 and the team will be glad to help.