Acrylic Bathtubs

Has anyone had any experience with replacing a cast iron bathtub with an acrylic bathtub?  If so, how do you like it and would you do it again?  

We have a couple of bathroom renovations down the line, and we'll be replacing the bathtubs. I've read the reviews of acrylic vs. cast iron, and cast iron gets better reviews than acrylic. The main objection to cast iron tubs is their weight. I think that we might go with acrylic bathtubs, if I thought that they would be a suitable alternative to cast iron. 

eta - These are alcove type bathtubs, which will also be used for showers, not by us, but probably by anyone who buys the house in the future (we have no plans to sell in the immediate future.) We just remodeled our master bathroom and removed a separate shower stall, and also removed a 4 ft. x 4 ft. bathtub, and replaced it with a 4 ft. x. 4 ft. shower stall. 

We inherited an acrylic tub when we purchased our house.  I hate it.  It's a pain to clean, scratches easily and looks cheap.  Can't wait to replace it with a real tub.  

Thanks, Sweetsnuggles.  One of my concerns is that acrylic tubs are flimsy (although getting a cast iron tub up to the second floor and into the bathroom is going to be a nightmare.)

The difficulty of getting a cast iron one upstairs may have been why previous owners went with the acrylic tub.  If you want to see what it looks like after three years - PM me.

We just redid our second floor bathroom and were looking at acrylic tubs.  They reminded me of hotel room tubs.  Yuck.  And they definitely feel like plastic.  We went with a cast iron tub.  It wasn't that much trouble getting it up the stairs (not that I helped at all), and once it's up there it's staying.  I got the feeling we would have to replace the acrylic tub at some point, but this cast iron tub should last us at least 25 years.  

Depends on the brand and installation, which I believe we've discussed, @cramer!

We went with a brand called Alcove, from Canada, in my kids' bathroom. It looks nice and hasn't scratched at all—and with three teenagers using it all the time it takes a lot of abuse. My only complaint is that the lowest row of grout has cracked due to shifting, but that might happen in any tub and I think it was more due to the installation. We tiled the front which I think makes it look more expensive. Some of the cheap acrylic tubs have a weird "hotel room" apron which I do not like. 

In our bathroom we went with a 42x60 Jason tub that's fiberglass. I absolutely love it. It's deep and I take a lot of baths. It holds the water temp for a LONG time and is very comfortable. Again we tiled the front of this one. 

We've had both of these bathrooms in heavy duty use for over 5 years, maybe more, and both tubs are in excellent condition. 

ETA: I chose these because I wanted deep tubs for soaking. In retrospect, I probably could have put a shallower tub in my kids' bathroom since they rarely take baths, and we have a claw foot tub (the ultimate soaking tub) on the third floor. However, I absolutely love my bath and since I like to take baths often I wanted one in my master bath. No regrets whatsoever with that decision.

We went with acrylic based on a recommendation and I had buyer's remorse within weeks. It scratches easily and is impossible to clean. Plus you can't use most cleaning products on it (again, because of the scratching). Once the surface is damaged it will never look clean. Huge mistake.

since a picture tells a thousand words...

Not one scratch. I rinse mine out with hot water after each bath and wipe with a microfiber cloth. Both get cleaned at least every other week with non abrasive cleaners. 

First one: This is my kids and I didn't wipe it down, just shot the pic. 

Second one is the master bath. 

shh - They're beautiful!  We're not going to be doing the other bathrooms for a while, and I will definitely contact you when we decide to go ahead. 

Thank you for your help with the powder room and master bath!

If you are not going to use it and are just updating for resale, my vote would be for acrylic, but you should get the best quality you can afford.  Some of them do feel more sturdy than others.  If the existing tub in your bathroom is in ok shape, consider leaving it as you remodel.

krnl said:

If you are not going to use it and are just updating for resale, my vote would be for acrylic, but you should get the best quality you can afford.  Some of them do feel more sturdy than others.  If the existing tub in your bathroom is in ok shape, consider leaving it as you remodel.

That is a possibility.

Replacing my insert shower for another.  Does anyone have a name of a good brand that's not in the $1,000000's?  Appreciate it.

We have a new cast iron on one floor and a new acrylic on another. The acrylic tub is a high quality Duravit and it does NOT look cheap. I really like it. I like them both.

And yes, we had to hire Mike Waters' crew to carry the cast iron up to the second floor. But if you are considering acrylic, do look at Duravit. We have had it for a few years and it looks brand new still.

orzabelle said:

And yes, we had to hire Mike Waters' crew to carry the cast iron up to the second floor. But if you are considering acrylic, do look at Duravit. We have had it for a few years and it looks brand new still.

Who is Mike Waters?  Thanks.

He's the oil tank guy. The crew is used to lifting heavy things! You can see my acrylic tub on my home blog. The attic bath with the bright wooden panel is the acrylic. The smaller tub is acrylic.

crossingthehudson.blogspot.com

Thanks, again.

orzabelle said:

He's the oil tank guy. The crew is used to lifting heavy things! You can see my acrylic tub on my home blog. The attic bath with the bright wooden panel is the acrylic. The smaller tub is acrylic.




crossingthehudson.blogspot.com

Love your blog!  

Thanks! 6 and a half years and we're still not done! This summer/fall we hope to build a deck and also take off our aluminum siding and repair/paint.

What about the free standing tubs? Any acrylic recos that are not 4K?