"Ed Pawlowski" wrote in message
...
On 3/21/2015 5:22 AM, wrote:
I keep seeing these walk in bathtubs advertised on tv commercials. They
have a side that opens like a door. THey are intended for the elderly.
The concept makes sense, because I am aware of how difficult it is for
elders with health issues. However, I find it hard to understand how
they can seal those "doors" on the tubs, to be water tight. And even if
they do have a good seal, how long do they last?

Like the door seal on a refrigerator, car door, etc, they all seem to
fail fairly fast. But for a bathtub, there is a lot of pressure against
that seal. I'm not sure of the water capacity, but even 25 gallons
weighs about 208 lbs (one gallon is 8.34 lbs). That's a lot of weight
against a gasket/seal. And I would think they hold more than 25
gallons.

Of course if the gasket fails, that's a lot of water to flow on the
floor and will cause a lot of damage.


Have you ever seen one? They are well made and I doubt they would have a
high failure rate and the chances are, never a catastrophic failure.

OTOH, I think they are a poor idea anyway. You have to get in before you
start filling and they you have to wait until it drains before you can get
out. We got rid of the tub altogether and made a large shower and ut a
shower seat in there.

The tubs are about $7,000 and up.


Plus they advertise "same day installation" --- that is a laugh, as 99.9% of
the installation will require plumbing to be moved, electrical to be
installed and the walls retiled and possibly the floor redone because the
new tub is taller and looks to be shorter in length than most old tubs they
replace. These guys are not just tub sellers they are renovation sellers.
That must add a ton of costs to the job.