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Japanese bathtubs: a history of luxurious bathing
In Japan, bathing has a long history—much longer than that of the western world.
The tradition began as part of Buddhist rituals for cleansing and soon become
part of the domestic culture. There are three basic things to know about a
Japanese bathtub. The first thing is that they are generally much smaller than
the usual Western-style bathtub. Along with this, they are also a much deeper,
and the water tends to be at a much higher temperature than people are used to
in the West. When using the Japanese bathtub there is also a culture of not
washing in the bath itself, but washing outside the bathtub and then getting
into the bath simply to soak.
The traditional Japanese bathtub has a much smaller footprint than the
conventional Western-style bathtub. This is because it is designed for the
bather to sit rather than lie down. Essentially, the bather sits on a small seat
and the water comes up to the neck. In a way, it is rather like sitting in a
barrel, with a small ledge which takes up about half as the diameter of the
barrel itself.
Connected to this smaller size, the Japanese bathtub is much deeper than the
traditional Western bathtub. As mentioned before, it is rather like sitting in a
barrel, and as such the whole body is immersed in water. This is of course a
great way to get a really good soak, and a way to use hot water to ease tired
and aching muscles.
And since the water is much hotter than these traditionally used in the West,
and the heat really penetrates deeply into the muscles. Most Japanese baths use
water that has a temperature of about 40°C. For the uninitiated, this can come
as quite a shock, though once the higher temperature has been got used to it can
be very enjoyable. Of course, if you want to use your Japanese bathtub with
water at a lower temperature there's nothing stopping you doing so - there to
get the true experience of using the Japanese bathtub it may be better to keep
the water at a nice temperature.
In traditional Japanese bathing rituals, it is customary to wash outside of the
bathtub and getting to the bathtub only for the purposes of soaking. If you have
a Japanese bathtub installed in your room, this may be something to bear in
mind, as it is a way of keeping the water clean, enabling the water to be used
by the person who uses the bath next. However, you could wash in the bath and
therefore mix having a Japanese bathtub with the traditional Western way of
taking a bath. It's up to you.
Now you have a little more idea of what a Japanese bathtub can do - and what it
should be used for - you can choose your purchase with a little more confidence.
This article has looked at the fact that a Japanese bathtub is much smaller than
the usual Western bathtub, is much deeper, and traditionally has used water at a
much higher temperature than people are used to in the West. Now all that you
need to do is decide on the style of the Japanese bathtub and enjoy a long
relaxing soak in extra hot water.
bathtub installation
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