Understanding the Bathtub Material

A bathtub is often selected on the basis of its look and capacity of the buyer’s wallet. Know about best and worst of different bathtub materials here, and bowl over your dealer with the tid-bits of details while he is busy bragging about his stuff...

Porcelain Bathtubs


There is no doubt that porcelain bathtubs are one of the most popular choices. Their being reasonably priced and not-so-fussy to maintain also contributes a lot to their popularity. The bathtubs do not get damaged easily, but they are not totally unforgiving to scratches and all. Once they get scratches or bruises, be ready to live with it because you cannot get rid of them. Usually they are easy to clean.
Porcelain bathtubs are actually made of steel shells, fused with porcelain enamel to form a shiny, glassy coating, which actually looks great!
Now, to talk of the bathtub using experience, this material is cold to touch. Usually porcelain bathtubs aren’t longer than 5 and a half feet. Though there can be some pretty nice exceptions.
Budget factor: Porcelain bathtubs are popular because they are not very expensive.

Fiberglass Bathtubs


Fiberglass bathtubs are made of layers of fiberglass held together with polyester resins. It is also known as FRP and is a molded bathtub. Fiberglass bathtubs are very light-weighted as compared to the usual bathtub options. They are inexpensive and cracks and all can be repaired using an epoxy resin kit.
Now look at some negative features of fiberglass bathtubs. Fiberglass bathtubs are strong, yes, but do remember that a fiberglass bathtub is a molded bathtub, and like many molded equipment, even this bathtub may break under more weight or pressure. Like lots of things that are made of fiber, a fiberglass bathtub too sustains scratches very easily. Bad news is this that you cannot get rid of these scratches.Your dealer may try to convince you with its shiny colorful surface, the fact is, it wears off with time and the fiberglass bathtub will start getting dull over the years.
Budget factor: Fiberglass bathtubs are one of the most decently priced bathtubs available in markets.

Cultured Marble Bathtubs and Marble Bathtubs


Cultured Marble bathtubs do look like made of marble, actually they are made of limestone and polyester resins. A real marble bathtub is made of marble, but you have to be very careful while selecting one out of these two varieties. Cultured Marble bathtubs suffer less scratches, so with real marble bathtubs. One fact is that though marble bathtubs are luxurious and costly, even they can break. Both of these tubs are easy to clean and do not harbor moulds and mildews. (In pic Stone Forest Papillian Bathtub)
Budget factor: Cultured marble bathtubs are costlier than acrylic bathtubs yet a cheaper option than cast iron or marble bathtubs.

Acrylic Bathtubs


Acrylic bathtubs are one of the most popular options available. They are light weighted, shiny, easy to clean and convenient to install. An acrylic bathtub gets scratched easily, the good thing is that it is repairable. You can even get it painted in some other color, if you decide to change its color sometime later. Acrylic bathtubs usually face competition from cast iron bathtubs when it comes to the bathing experience. There are lots of sizes and varieties available.
Acrylic bathtubs lose heat easily, so you can arrange for double insulation. Talk to your dealer regarding this and see if he can help you out. Or may be you can invest in a maintenance water heater.
Budget factor: Acrylic bathtubs are reasonably priced.

Cast Iron Bathtubs


If you are one of those who like to soak for longer duration, cast iron bathtubs are for you. They can hold heat for longer duration thus saving you the expenditure and pain of arranging insulation (Though you would not bother this cost much if you are ready to spend on a cast iron bathtub).  Cast iron bathtubs look very decent; though sometimes they tend to put off buyers due to their heavy weight. They are very heavy, thus not very easy to install. You may need to understand how much weight your floor can bear, before going for a cast iron bathtub or any other option for that matter. (In pic, cast iron bathtub by Devon & Devon)
Budget factor: Usually, these are one of the costliest options among bathtubs.

Whichever bathtub you decide upon, it’s important to give a thought to the installing process. Remember, the problems you face during installation, may get repeated when you are uninstalling or re-installing a bathtub, probability of which can not be negated. See the depth and size of the tub carefully, because at the end, it is the bathing experience that matters.

(Pics for representational purpose only)