subject: Outdoor Soaking Tubs Soak Your Worries Away [print this page] What could be better than relaxing in one of the outdoor soaking tubs that are available today? The combination of hot water and being outdoors is sure to relax you and wash away your cares. Man has used outdoor baths since pre-history. Primitive man would soak in naturally occurring hot springs. The Greeks and Romans went on to build elaborate bath houses using waters from the hot springs.
What do you need to know so that you can begin your outdoor soaking? For starters, there's the tub. The oldest and most widely known soaking tubs are the Japanese ofuro. The ofuro is traditionally made from hinoki wood, which is native to Japan. Other woods used are Alaskan yellow and Port Orford white cedar. Ofuros are also made of acrylics. They are normally heated with a wood fired stove. These tubs are the basis that most other outdoor tubs are based on. Modern tubs can be heated in a variety of ways, with gas and electric heaters being very common. Solar water heating is another option, with the suns rays heating the water.
Another inexpensive option that's gaining popularity is stock tanks. Stock tanks are usually made of either galvanized steel with a rolled top edge or plastic. They can range in size from 40-800 gallons and they're extremely durable. They range in depth from 23"-28". Stock tanks are very similar to Japanese ofuros in that they have straight sides and a flat bottom. Since they're shallower than Japanese baths, they're generally not outfitted with stools or benches. The water can be heated like it is with the ofuros.
While a wooden bath may be a thing of beauty, the same can't be said for a galvanized metal stock tank. Consequentially, most people will place their tanks in a deck or insulate it and put wood siding or marine vinyl on the sides. A drain is usually installed in the bottom, or on the smaller sizes, the water can just be dumped out.
The wooden ofuro is very easy to maintain if a few simple steps are followed. For starters, the ofuro is intended to soak in, not cleanse yourself in. Bathers should shower and wash their hair before getting into the tub. Secondly, don't use bath oils or other bath additives. This will help keep the water clean and keep gunk from accumulating on the walls of the bath. If you follow the same rules with a stock tank bath, you shouldn't have any problems. And the stock tank can be cleaned with cleansers, whereas the wooded ofuro shouldn't be.
Outdoor soaking tubs can help change the mood of your whole day. Give it a try!
