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Walk-in Tubs Luxury Features
The Safety Benefits of Walk-in Tubs
Feb 11, 2016
More than a third of bathroom injuries happen while showering or bathing, and the possibility of these accidents rise starting from the age of 65 and peak at 85. This is why the walk-in tub's design features are what set it apart from all other bathtubs. Traditional bathtubs are needlessly huge, impersonal and uncomfortable. Accessible bathtubs, on the other hand, are built with seniors' safety in mind from start to finish.
A rundown of the safety features:
- Low step-in height (0" - 9")
- Wheelchair accessibility
- Bar handles
- Watertight door
- No-strength locking handles
- Textured anti-slip floor
- Emergency switch/removable door
A First-Hand Experience
The first thing you notice once you swing the door of a walk-in tub open is the low threshold entry or low step-in height, which is the pride and joy of any walk-in tub manufacturer. In the case of a wheelchair accessible walk-in tub - sometimes called a slide-in tub - you notice that the sitting portion of the seat is conveniently placed right at the door’s opening to make it easier for a wheelchair bound user to slide on with minimal effort. Bar handles - regular and angled ones - are placed conveniently in locations within arm’s reach to assist you upon entry and exit of the tub. The watertight door never leaks and is usually backed with a 10-year or lifetime coverage by the manufacturer. For seniors exhibiting arthritis, a no-strength locking handle is included with many doors provided by leading walk-in tub manufacturers like Safe Step, American Standard, Bliss Tubs, Jacuzzi, and many others.
The anti-slip surface of the tub provides more than enough traction to prevent any accidents from occurring. Furthermore, walk-in tub industry leaders include an emergency switch located on the tub’s floor near the flow system that, when pressed, drains the water in under 60 seconds. A variation of the emergency switch is the removable door. In the event of an accidental drowning, a removable door can be the quickest way to drain the water for a rescue.
Maintain Your Tub’s Hygiene
Hydrotherapy walk-in tubs with water jets and whirlpool tubs, in general, need to be treated with a special solution that dissolves the bacterial growth in the water lines, rendering the water massage jets high-maintenance and reeking of chlorine. Although this method works in keeping your walk-in tub hygienic, a simple, odorless, and low-maintenance alternative is to install an Ozone sanitation system that automatically cleans the water lines from any organic or inorganic material. Ozone sanitation and auto-purge systems are sometimes sold separately or alongside walk-in tubs with the hydrotherapy massage feature.
The walk-in tub you purchase is built with your safety in mind, so always make sure you understand your tub’s physical and therapeutic features for your own advantage. If there is anything you are unsure of you can call your walk-in tub company and enquire about what you need. Bliss Tubs, for example, delivers outstanding customer service and it's always a real person that answers the phone who’s willing to help.
