How To Get Stains Out Of Bathtub

Freestanding Bathtubs

Create an artistic statement by opting for a freestanding bathtub with a fabulous form for your bathroom.

Freestanding bathtubs, whether chicly streamlined or a stately footed antique, bring a sense of sophistication and relaxing rhythms to lavatories large and small. A versatile fixture, these stand-alone tubs are finished on all sides and available in a range of contours that promote unwinding. Generally, freestanding tubs are easy to install, especially when installation takes place in a bathroom that's under construction or being remodeled. As with any weighty plumbing fixture, there are things you'll need to ponder when purchasing a freestanding bathtub.

Installation Considerations

Spa-Like Serenity

Decide on where you want to place the bathtub. A freestanding bathtub takes on focal-point status when displayed in the center of a bathroom, but also captivates when set against a windowed wall or angled across a corner. Before selecting a freestanding bathtub, determine the location of the room's water pipes and where you want to place the drain. Know how much floor space is available for positioning the bathtub, as well as the width of doorways, staircases, and hallways through which the tub will be carried. Remember that a freestanding bathtub's weight may require extra floor support.

Also, consider how you want to fill the bathtub. Most freestanding bathtubs will have holes drilled into a tub wall or on a tub deck to house faucets and tub fillers; undrilled tubs may require using a floor-mount tub filler or wall-mount faucet.

Striking Silhouettes

Bathroom decorating

Freestanding bathtubs are primarily formed from acrylic, resin, stainless steel, cast iron, copper, bronze, stone, or wood. They may be designed for calming soaks or outfitted with pampering perks, including air jets, sound systems, heaters, massage systems, and chromatherapy technologies. You'll find both soaking and luxuriously appointed bathtubs in an array of classic and contemporary styles. Here's a look at the most common freestanding tub types.

Floor-set models. Available in an array of profiles, including slipper, D-shape, oval, square, rectangular, round, and organically free-form, these freestanding bathtubs sit directly on the floor. Available in lengths ranging from less than 4 feet to nearly 7 feet, freestanding bathtub designs offer models suited to every size bathroom.

Footed bathtubs. Whether antique or newly manufactured, claw-foot tubs boast a good deal of period panache. Traditional oval models feature rolled rims, with dual claw-foot tubs sporting two sloped ends for head resting. More modern versions feature slipper-shape basins with ball or wooden-block feet.

Slipper bathtubs. Shaped much like a slipper, these oblong tubs generally boast one heightened end meant for reclining. Other versions may have two tall curved ends and stand on feet or rise from a pedestal or plinth.

Pedestal bathtubs. Pedestals and plinths raise the tub basin off the floor. Depending on the type of tub and pedestal, these bathtubs may have old-world, art deco, Asian, or thoroughly modern character. Another pedestal version places the bathtub in a footed iron or wooden frame.

Japanese soaking tubs. These extra-deep bathtubs are designed for submersing one's body and supplying a total relaxation package within a relatively small silhouette. Available in an array of materials, they're especially dramatic when rendered in stainless steel, copper, or wood.