Replies

1. 
   ponytl | Dec 21, 2004 06:48am | #1

   there was a fiberglass guy in memphis that was manufacture'n these tubs for another guy who was marketing em... and i got to look at em pretty close and try to help em find a better latching/ sealing system for the doors... what they had i guess worked but it sure seemed/looked like junk to me...  i could see site building a tub... if it was me i think i'd cast it out of concrete or weld it up out of stainless...  for the door I'd think 1/2" lexan....for sealing the door I'd have to consider if it was one user who would understand it's workings or if it was in a situation where it'd have many different users who'd have to be able to figure out how it worked with no instruction...

   a simple cam action lever that would lock & compress a gasket would work... maybe an inflatable gasket ie: pressurized aircraft doors except using water pressure to inflate vs using air pressure....

   I've never  built one, but because i was asked to look at the ones i mentioned above i have thought about it and pretty sure i could come up with a site built non leaking unit if i had too... just not sure anyone could operate it but me.... all ur hardware would need to be stainless or brass... a good gasket and a few pionts that don't move/flex/deform under pressure and i think it could be done

   pony

1. 
   brownbagg | Dec 21, 2004 07:02am | #2

   basically you do not need to seal the door but to keep water away from the door.. when I broke my knee, I was in a rehab house that had a shower without a door, (wheelchair shower) the floor had enough pitch, a door wasnt needed.

1. 
   ponytl | Dec 21, 2004 07:29am | #3

   he didn't say shower... he said Bath...  there are baths out there that let you step/roll in close a door or lift a side and let you then fill the unit with water ie: the door closing becomes part of the tub that holds in the water... which then is retracted/opened after the tub is drained to let you back out of the tub... save'n you from steping into or out of a "tub"

   pony

1. 
   namedpipes | Dec 21, 2004 11:59pm | #5

   Yes, tub, not a shower. I can post a link to a company that manufactures one, but they're too expensive for this situation. Bluntly, I'm not a pro builder, just handy. My mother is getting up there in age and wants to stay as independent as she can as long as she can. A step in bath would help. A standard tub is low to the ground and even with a cutout, she'd have to get down and get up again.

   With this setup, she'd open the door, step in, shut the door, sit in a "chair" height seat, the water would fill to chest height or so, then reverse the process to get out.

   I'm mainly concerned with sealing the doorway, and then with how to construct the tub itself. I like the cast concrete idea.

   Hope this helps explain better.

    

1. 
   BillHartmann | Dec 22, 2004 02:16am | #6

   This came up a while back on another forum.Found a ton of stuff that cost from less than a $100 to ones in a few hundred that did not require modifying/replacing the bath tub.The simplest was a bench with a swivel seat that you could sit down in from the outside and then lift your legs over and rotate the seat. The use a hand shower attached to the faucet.Up to water powered hydraulic lifts.Do a google on - handicap bathin aids - that should get you started. Also localy look for medical equipment suppliers.Here are a couple of ideashttp://www.universalc.com/bath_swiver
   http://www.universalc.com/tranbsferbench

2. 
   DanH | Dec 22, 2004 02:54am | #7

   Think twice before going this route. A walk-in tub of this sort requires that the bathee get into the tub before it is filled with water and stay in the tub until after it empties. This clearly takes longer, and careful control of the incoming water temp becomes much more critical. And, as the height/size of the tub is raised, the amount of water (& time) required for a bath increases.Probably better approaches are:
   -- Handicapped shower stall, with seat and hose-end shower nozzle.
   -- Regular tub with seat & tub-edge grab bar. Sit down backwards over seat, swing legs over tub edge, either shower with hose-end unit or let oneself down into the water from there.
   -- Tub lift. Lifts the bathee up (possibly out of wheelchair) and deposits him/her into tub.

2. 
   DanH | Dec 21, 2004 07:31am | #4

   I once heard of an outfit that would cut down a standard cast tub and install a door. Dunno how to locate them, though, or how good a job they do.