This alcove tub from the Aqua Eden collection is a great choice when looking for a bathtub. The tub is constructed from solid acrylic made to be both durable and reliable. This tub has a large soaking area.
- Material: Acrylic
- Soaking Depth - Top to Bottom: 13.94''
- Mounting / Installation Type: Alcove/Tile in
- Bath Therapy Type: Soaking
- Overall Product Weight: 90.41lb.
I was going crazy looking at tubs in all price ranges to try and find something that was deep and had a simple, clean design to complement my bathroom remodel. I'm so glad I found this one. It's as deep or deeper than anything else I could find, and the style is perfect.
The tub arrived several days before I was expecting it, which was great. (Except it meant I had to work faster on my bathroom!) Two hand-holds on each end of the box made it easy for two people to carry into the house. It arrived totally undamaged and despite its light weight it felt very solid with no flex like some acrylic or plastic tubs I've had before. The corners of the skirt were covered with protective black plastic sleeves. Good idea, because that would be an easily damaged part of the tub. Do be careful in handling the tub without the box, because it's very easy to want to rest it on one of those corners.
Placing the tub into the alcove was as easy as you can expect. The front side is supported by the skirt (which, by the way, is reinforced with a cross member that runs along the whole skirt and is connected to the rest of the tub, so it it doesn't flex). There are two adjustable legs in the back. Obviously, it's easier to level if you can access those legs through an unfinished wall, or access panel. In my case, I had just leveled my subfloor, so I was able to level the tub then slide it into the alcove. It took a few tries, but since it's so lightweight it was not difficult, especially with someone to help slide it in and out.
Most acrylic tubs require a mortar bed beneath to prevent the bottom from flexing. The manufacturer's installation directions do not say to do this, although I suppose it wouldn't hurt anything. Since this tub is an acrylic/fiberglass mixture, along with the placement of the legs, seems to make this tub plenty stiff and strong enough to make a mortar bed superfluous. Standing in the tub, I didn't notice and flex whatsoever, and I weigh over 200 lbs. I did add fiberglass insulation around and under the tub to help keep the water warm as long as possible.
At the time of this writing, we have not yet bathed in the tub, but it's installed, the plumbing is in and tested for a wall-mounted spout, and the backer board is in place in the alcove. I'll be tiling the alcove in the next few days.
My wife loves the look of the tub as much as I do, and anxiously awaits being able to have an actual deep soaking tub in our home for the first time.. Anonymous. Billings, MT. 2016-07-14 12:38:09
