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Bathtub
A bathtub is a big container, usually made of acrylic, fiberglass, porcelain, or cast iron, for water in which a person bathes. It is a standard bathroom appliance and usually features a drain, faucet, and sometimes a showerhead integrated into the tub. Tub, Bathtub remodel, Tub surround, Reglaze bathtub, Corner bath.
Overlapping and waste drains are standard components of modern bathtubs and can also be fitted with taps fixed on the tub. They are usually built-in but can be free-standing or sunken sometimes. Before acrylic thermoforming technology, almost all bathtubs were roughly rectangular. Bathtubs are typically white, though many other colors.
History of bathtubs
The oldest plumbing systems found were nearly 6,000 years old, in the Indus River Valley in India, where copper water pipes were found in the rubble of a palace. Fast-forward 3000 years to the island of Crete, where a predecessor of a pedestal tub was discovered—five feet long, fashioned from hard pottery, its form compared to the 19th-century clawfoot tub.
The Roman Empire between 500 BC and AD 455 propagated the daily bath ritual and set standards for acceptable hygiene. They utilized lead and bronze pipes, and marble fittings, and developed a sophisticated sewerage system. Jacuzzi bath, Soaking tub, Freestanding bath, Bathtub refinishing, Tub fitters. Public baths were most prevalent during that time, while private baths looked like indoor pools typically taking up an entire room.
Following the fall of the Roman Empire and slide into the Dark Ages, sanitation almost ceased to exist. Showering was done away with and replaced by perfumes. Refuse was hurled out onto streets or directly into rivers which also provided drinking water. In reality, the French slang term for toilet, loo, is said to have originated in the practice of the French shouting the warning, “Gardez l’eau!
After the devastation of the Bubonic Plague, portions of Europe sought to enhance sanitation by prohibiting discarding waste on public streets. Yet, across-the-board implementation of underground sewerage systems for European cities wasn’t until early in the 19th century. In 1596, Sir John Harrington invented the first flushing toilet. He made one for himself and one for his godmother Queen Elizabeth. These were the sole two ever made. Copper tub, Jetted tub, Whirlpool tub, Shower baths, Handicap bathtub.
Following Sir John’s publication of a book detailing his invention, he was ridiculed into retirement for his idiotic invention. It was nearly 200 years before anyone else tried to build a flushing toilet.
In 1885, the toilet-making revolution happened: Thomas Twyford invented the first valveless china toilet. Up to that time, water closets were typically of metal and wood construction. Thomas Crapper, it is universally reported, invented the toilet. False. He did have a plumbing supply company in England and purchased the rights to a patent for a “Silent Valveless Water Waste Preventer,” but he didn’t invent the toilet.
Until the 1800s in America, all pipes carrying water were hollowed trees. Cast iron pipe from England saw one of its earliest installations in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Casting of cast iron started domestically in the early 1800s in New Jersey. In 1848, the National Public Health Act was enacted, which established a plumbing code for America. Nearly at the same time in 1883, both the Standard Sanitary Manufacturing Company (today’s American Standard) and Kohler started enameling cast iron tubs to create a smooth inside surface.
Kohler’s initial clawfoot tub was marketed as a “horse trough/hog scalder when equipped with four legs will function as a bathtub.” The tubs were shortly thereafter mass-produced because they were seen to possess an extremely sanitary surface that could be easily cleaned, thereby keeping bacteria and diseases from spreading. Most media outlets print as true an untrue history of bathing and bathtubs by H.L. Mencken in 1917. In his article entitled, “A Neglected Anniversary,” Mencken discusses laws against bathing, the first bathtub in the United States, and the first bathtub installation in the White House by Millard Fillmore. He penned the article as a humorous farce at a time of war.
None of it is true, but it’s frequently quoted in serious publications.
World War I ended with a construction boom in America. Bathrooms were equipped with a toilet, sink, and bathtub – primarily clawfoot bathtubs. Yet in 1921, merely one percent of homes in the United States had indoor plumbing. Outhouses persisted in rural America. Sears catalog, its uncoated, absorbent pages, was a common toilet paper that hung inside the outhouse. With time, the erstwhile popular clawfoot tub evolved into a built-in tub with an apron front. This covered type made it much simpler to maintain the bathroom and with the advent of colored sanitary ware, more aesthetic possibilities for the homeowner. It was the Crane Company that brought colored bathroom fixtures to the US market in 1928.
Types of bathtubs
Clawfoot bathtub
The clawfoot tub was a late 19th-century luxury, originally cast in cast iron and lined with porcelain. Advances in technology have reduced the cost of clawfoot tubs, and they are now made from fiberglass, acrylic, or other modern materials. Clawfoot tubs typically need more water than a typical bathtub, since typically, they are bigger. Although genuine antique clawfoot tubs remain collectible pieces, reproduction clawfoot tubs are selected by new home builders and remodelers, and similar to the Western-style bathtubs, clawfoot tubs may also feature a range of shower head choices.
Pros: Traditional high-end design, freestanding so can be located anywhere.
Cons: More expensive price range, bulky construction.
Freestanding baths
Freestanding bathtubs are extremely versatile because you can move them anywhere you want to move them. This gives you a great deal of independence when it comes to planning and arranging your bathroom. But freestanding baths can be a little more on the pricey side of things if you are on a tight budget. Since they are not usually placed against a wall or framed, there is also minimal storage room for toiletries close by so bathtub trays are usually purchased as an extra.
Pros: Fashionable, extensive variety of designs, versatile positioning, and placements.
Cons: More costly than other styles, extra storage solutions needed.
Soaking bathtubs
Soaking tubs are designed for complete submersion, a popularized form of Japanese bath style. They are typically quite deep so that you can fully submerge your body in water when using the tub. This implies that there is typically more water in these tubs than in other types of tubs to provide complete submersion. These tubs are higher than other tub styles and are often freestanding tubs.
Pros: Provides almost full body immersion, calming.
Cons: Requires more water than most other bathtubs.
Hammock bathtubs
A hammock bathtub provides top-notch relaxation. They are a new style of bathtub and are a high-end option, providing a distinctive appearance and feel to any bathroom.
If you wish to forget reality and bathe suspended off the ground, then a hammock bathtub is certainly a good option.
Pros: Unusual, provides designer status to a bathroom, the ultimate in luxury.
Cons: Costly, less available as a new and upcoming product.
Slipper bathtub
A slang bath is a more and more sought-after type of freestanding bath where one end is higher than the other, which looks like a slipper. It’s meant to provide a comfortable backrest when soaking in it for a luxurious experience.
They possess an elaborate, sophisticated, and classy look which makes them different, but they are wider than usual baths and need more space. They also happen to cost more in price as well.
Pros: Supportive back, relaxing comfort, classy design.
Cons: Bulky in size, may be pricey.
Drop-in Bathtub
A Drop-in Bathtub is a bathtub in which all 4 sides are bordered by an independent enclosure. The enclosure may be tiles, wood, or any other material. With a drop-in tub, the edge of the tub, or the rim is visible and is seen from the outside. The drop-in tub is usually installed in a Master Bathroom generally alongside a walk-in shower. New bathtub, Kohler tubs, Deep bathtubs, Deep bathtubs, Slipper bathtubs. On average it is generally bigger than the more well-known alcove shower as it’s designed for someone who wants to retreat and unwind in a soaking bathtub for a longer period.
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