Walk-in tub?

[EPutnam1863]

Have you tried a walk-in tub in your house? What are the pros and cons? How does the bather stay warm while the tub is filling up?

[villagetinker]

OP, there was a thread on this a few months ago, try searching this site, as I recall there was a lot of useful info.

[EPutnam1863]

OP, there was a thread on this a few months ago, try searching this site, as I recall there was a lot of useful info.

Thanks. I entered "walk-in tub" in the search box and found only one with no responses. It was more of an ad.

It would be greatly appreciated if you could locate the site you mentioned.

Thanks so much.

[rjm1cc]

Pay attention to the features but filling and emptying is probably not a big problem.
You might want to get one that keeps the water the same temp it was when you filled the tub (electric heater, does not increase temp)
How big is your water heater? 40 gallons will work but 50 would be better. Can also turn temp to high before each use. The problem is if you have a 55 gallon tub and a 40 gallon hot water heater your tub will probably be half filled when your tank is half filled with new cold water. Just a heads up if you like "hot" soakings. 40 gallons will work.

[villagetinker]

OP, use the ADVANCED search, then enter 'walkin' or walk in' and 'tub' this should get you a lot more results.

[Villagevip]

Have you tried a walk-in tub in your house? What are the pros and cons? How does the bather stay warm while the tub is filling up?

Instructions,..Let the warm water fill up with the door closed.. Then, climb, crawl over the shut door to enter the warm tub..Caution: Be sure NOT to open the door to enter the tub, or you be swept out onto the street niked..

[RalphM]

There are many pros and cons as stated earlier. My sister had one installed in her manufactured double wide located in South Jersey. She bought it through Lowes. The cost came in at about $14,000. She included all the bells and whistles. The installation went well. However the inconvenience outwayed the pleasure. Over the course of one year I don't think she used it six times. With that amount of money she could have completely renovated her bath and installed a wonderful walk-in shower with sauna-like water features. The downside is that having such a tub can negatively impact the future sale of the home. You'd have to find a buyer that is looking specifically for that feature. On the other hand a beautifully renovated bath adds value. IMHO

[waterlily]

My mother had one.
Staying warm while the tub was filling was not the problem.

Staying warm while the tub drained and she was soaking wet made it dangerous. She would try to climb out wet because she was cold. It made the bath situation worse.

We used two tub benches. We cut plastic pvc pipe to length and placed the legs of the bench that was half in the tub and half on the floor inside the pvc pipes. It took some work and a lot of wasted pipe, but my brother and I got the benches to be only an inch different in height.

She could then sit outside the tub, slide over and slowly bring her legs in and out.

Not perfect, but it worked.

[Nucky]

:pray:I have everything I need to install our walk-in tub. I am thinking a little out of the box and installing it in the laundry room as it is gigantic. Should be pretty simple. I have an old 30-gallon water heater and believe it should be fine. I'm concerned about the drain. If we like it I will be purchasing a new one with all the Bell's & Whistles to replace my shower stall. Wish me luck. It seems to be an easy project but you never know what you're going to run in to. :pray: or maybe :cus:

[villagetinker]

Nucky,

Pay careful attention to the floor of the tub support, it may require to be installed in a bed of wet concrete to provide support, I had this with a neo angular shower stall base. Per the instructions, failure to use the wet concrete sub-base would cause the base to crack.

Also, make sure the electrical supply is through a GFCI breaker (I am assuming this unit requires 240 vac), if not make sure it is plugged into a GFCI protect receptacle.

Good luck with your project.

[Nucky]

Nucky,

Pay careful attention to the floor of the tub support, it may require to be installed in a bed of wet concrete to provide support, I had this with a neo angular shower stall base. Per the instructions, failure to use the wet concrete sub-base would cause the base to crack.

Also, make sure the electrical supply is through a GFCI breaker (I am assuming this unit requires 240 vac), if not make sure it is plugged into a GFCI protect receptacle.

Good luck with your project.

It is a 12' x 14' room with a 6" concrete floor. It is a regular outlet to plug the motor into but thanks for the heads up on the GFCI breaker. You saved me again. Thanks, Amigo. :BigApplause: I'm on it :posting:.

[photo1902]

Most, if not all, walk in tubs are 110/115 volt. Depending on your setup, you could need 2 (20 amp) circuits. Some use 15 amp circuits. Either way GFCI protection is required.

[NotGolfer]

A year ago we had one installed by TheraTub out of Tampa. We'd done our homework first in pricing and these folks were very competitive. PLUS their product is American made, where many are not. The factory is in Georgia.

We got ours because we have some physical issues at our house that made a regular tub impossible to use. We looked into hot tubs too but this avenue seemed a better choice as we don't have to use chemicals and can utilize it in all kinds of weather (not having to go outside). It empties quickly and the water remains hot while in use. It's been a true blessing!

[EPutnam1863]

Pay attention to the features but filling and emptying is probably not a big problem.
You might want to get one that keeps the water the same temp it was when you filled the tub (electric heater, does not increase temp)
How big is your water heater? 40 gallons will work but 50 would be better. Can also turn temp to high before each use. The problem is if you have a 55 gallon tub and a 40 gallon hot water heater your tub will probably be half filled when your tank is half filled with new cold water. Just a heads up if you like "hot" soakings. 40 gallons will work.

Wow!!! That was a very helpful piece of info. Thanks so much.

[EPutnam1863]

OP, use the ADVANCED search, then enter 'walkin' or walk in' and 'tub' this should get you a lot more results.
no luck here either. The tricky word here is "tub" and so I get results mostly having to do with real estate listing homes having tubs esp hot tubs which I am most certainly not looking for. Thanks though.

[EPutnam1863]

A year ago we had one installed by TheraTub out of Tampa. We'd done our homework first in pricing and these folks were very competitive. PLUS their product is American made, where many are not. The factory is in Georgia.

We got ours because we have some physical issues at our house that made a regular tub impossible to use. We looked into hot tubs too but this avenue seemed a better choice as we don't have to use chemicals and can utilize it in all kinds of weather (not having to go outside). It empties quickly and the water remains hot while in use. It's been a true blessing!

How do you keep warm while the tub is filling up?

[EPutnam1863]

Instructions,..Let the warm water fill up with the door closed.. Then, climb, crawl over the shut door to enter the warm tub..Caution: Be sure NOT to open the door to enter the tub, or you be swept out onto the street niked..

Yup, this is my biggest concern. :a20:

[villagetinker]

no luck here either. The tricky word here is "tub" and so I get results mostly having to do with real estate listing homes having tubs esp hot tubs which I am most certainly not looking for. Thanks though.

You are correct, I just tried the search, and I could not find the thread either, very annoying!!!

[Marathon Man]

You know, I have seen those commercials many times on TV. It never occurred to me that you would might indeed get cold while you wait for the tub to fully drain before opening the door.

[NotGolfer]

How do you keep warm while the tub is filling up?

It's not been an issue! You can get the heated seat feature "IF" you have that concern. We did not get it. The emptying part is very rapid so we've not had issues with "cold" with that neither.

[mixsonci]

My fills and empties pretty rapidly and I have the heated seat (which I don't really use), so it's not really a big problem.
The biggest complaint I have is that you can't lay back and relax, you have to sit straight up the whole time and to me that's not relaxing at all.

[NotGolfer]

My fills and empties pretty rapidly and I have the heated seat (which I don't really use), so it's not really a big problem.
The biggest complaint I have is that you can't lay back and relax, you have to sit straight up the whole time and to me that's not relaxing at all.

Really? We've found ours to be quite relaxing with the jets on etc. But we each have our preferences!

[EPutnam1863]

My fills and empties pretty rapidly and I have the heated seat (which I don't really use), so it's not really a big problem.
The biggest complaint I have is that you can't lay back and relax, you have to sit straight up the whole time and to me that's not relaxing at all.

This does it! I have made my decision. We are having a new shower with a nice seat installed, and it will have upscale grab bars. Younger buyers do not want bathrooms with grab bars that look like they are for infirm elderies. We will keep our Jacuzzi tub as it is; it is not so bad if you lay towels over the edge so they are not slippery.