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Can Portable Bathtubs be used by Seniors? Safety Tips for Elderly

Are Movable Bathtubs good for Seniors

The elderly are known to be frail and weak due to their old age, illnesses, or debilitating diseases that make them have impaired balance or vision. With this, their odds of having an accident at home and especially in the bathroom are quite high.

A homeowner should employ some tactical measures and set up strategic safety equipment that will reduce the risk of falling and create a safe zone for their loved ones.

Check out our recommendations for the best portable bathtubs for adults and pick the safest.

However, despite the pick, senior citizens need to be considered for extra safety. For the elderly who have difficulty balancing or walking, they are likely to run into trouble when they use a standard bathtub.

Can A Portable Bathtub Be Used For The Elderly?

If well set up, a portable bathtub can be used by the elderly without any risks or hazards. To ensure safety and effectiveness, the bathtub should be large enough to give seniors space to bathe and enjoy the experience. Also, the bathtubs to be used by seniors should be cleaned regularly to avoid slippery surfaces.

With such measures, any elderly person can enjoy a bathtub and safely get out. The fear of falling and getting injured can lead to justifiable anxiety for the elderly.

#Therefore, it is recommended that one invest in a portable bathtub that will help enhance the sense of security, independence, and overall comfort of the elderly.

In this guide, we will be looking at all the aspects of using a portable bathtub on the elderly.

The Best Portable Bathtub for the Elderly

The best portable bathtub for the elderly will be determined by:

  1. How portable it needs to be and whether it will be fully packed up after every use
  2. The need to assembled when moved or if it is a semi-portable solution. Some units are made of plastic/fabric flimsy affair, which can be packed away after every use. Some will require a simple assembly, while others are reliable units that can stay in place and suitable conditions for an extended period.

You now know what to look for when going for the best portable bathtub for the elderly, albeit briefly. However, you will require more information to help you decide on the unit type you will require, and the differences between them since every person’s situation differs.

Best place to Set Up a Portable Bathtub

Most of the portable bathtub units do rely on the heated water supply pressure to help in getting water out of the showerhead. The whole portable bathtub idea is that it can always be set up anywhere.

Portable Bathtub setup for elderly

It is not a must you have a tiled floor or the need to have a separate room.

You can always assemble it in a separate room, although you will need water and drainage.

It is not a perfect idea for you when the water supply is some distance away from the showerhead.

There are times when you will have to leave the shower compartment to adjust the temperature whenever you realize the water is too cold or hot.

Unless you have plans of exercising during the process, walking back and forth between the showerhead and the tap will see you pull the tap connector on and off to test the temperature.

Another problem that can rear its head with water temperature is that most of the taps are not that great when it comes to dispensing water at a constant temperature.  

Safety Tips for Seniors or Children to Use Portable Bathtubs

Many safety tips have to be put in place to ensure the elderly and kids and secure whenever they are using the portable bathtub. In this section, we will be listing some of the essential safety tips.


  1. You must ensure the lighting is quite useful, especially during the night, by installing a reliable nightlight.
  2. Always remove the floor rugs which tend to move around or are most likely to slip when the elderly or kids walk through them.
  3. Ensure that the cold and hot handles are clearly and well-marked and ensure the settings of the temperature are not too hot to avoid any scalding.
  4. Always do away with any doors along the track that can prevent easy entry on the bathtub. You can consider substituting the plastic curtains if needs be to help in preventing leakage of water.
  5. Install mirrors on the wall at the right height for the bathtub users and consider adding flexible mirror extenders that come out from the wall at the level where the elders can still use them while seated.
  6. Have the floor to vertical ceiling rod with grab bars installed. The grab bars will act as a security pole, which is quite easy to place nearer the tub or shower. They support one when getting up or down on the toilet and in or out of the bathtub.
  7. Have the grab bars installed on the side of the bathtub to assist in getting out and in the tub and on the wall to offer extra support around the bathroom area. Ensure you do not allow the use of towel racks, toilet paper holders, or wall-mounted sinks to support the elderly.
  8. Get a bathtub transfer bench to help the older people who might find it difficult to enter or exit the bathtub. The transfer benches usually extend beyond the tub edge for individuals who might find it difficult to safely step over the tub wall.

How the Elderly can Use a Portable Bathtub

Setting up Inflaable Bathtub to fit elderly

The portable bathtub works by providing a dismountable enclosure. The dismountable enclosure is supplied by water in most cases from the sink or tap faucet to a handheld showerhead.

The drainage handles wastewater through a pipe that looks like a hosepipe and is pumped away through a small pump to nearby drainage.

For the bathtub to be truly portable, it will have to be able to be packed quickly away for storage in between uses. It will mean minimal assembly with most of these portable bathtubs made using waterproof and flexible materials.

The material quality will determine the overall quality of the bathtub unit it is made. It can be quite expensive as they will have to cope with being wheeled over or walked upon as well as stay easily accessible and waterproof.

The purest portable bathtub form will need a floor to help in trapping and draining water, the sides to offer privacy, although able to offer access to the carriers to help whenever necessary. They will also require a disposing means of the water and offer water to the bathtub at an acceptable temperature.

How a Portable Bathtub Drains Water

The majority of the portable bathtubs in the market do come with a drainage outlet on their floor tray that passes to the collection tank from where the water will be pumped out through the closest drainage outlet. The outlet hoses are almost of the same size as the ordinary garden hose.

The manufacturers, however, never offer connectors that extend the hoses’ lengths, which leave their customers to purchase the items.

Although the connectors are available at a lower price, one will have to visit a hardware store to purchase. You can consider a portable plastic ice bathtub for you to buy fr a senior since it is spacious.

You will also have to make a purchase of an extra hose that will be required to ensure it gets to the most convenient outlet drainage.

Conclusion

During the research period, we did realize that there are lots of information on bathtub remodeling for the ordinary people who have luxurious bathroom together with shower rooms they can enjoy.

However, there is quite a small amount of information for individuals who have mobility issues but are still in a position of taking care of them.

There is never much information for people who are not in a position to move around to the point of using regular bathtubs or showers alone.

We hope that the above guide has been of great help to you and that you are now in a position of using the best portable bathtub for the elderly well.