Epinions made me buy this tub!

"He looks like he's ready for shipment!"

Our new Primo Eurotub had just arrived and I just couldn't wait for bathtime to try it out. If you've read my review of the Safety First folding bathtub, you know that I was less than pleased with it. I had purchased it in the B.E. period -- Before Epinions. The new replacement was selected after careful review (pun intended): it got uniform raves here on Epinions for its innovative design and I was sure I would be happier with it. So the first thing I did after I pulled it out of the box was to plunk our dear son into the tub, fully clothed and sans water.

The Primo tub is, indeed, unique. Besides being the biggest, deepest baby tub I've seen, it features a special molded contour on one side designed to hold younger babies in a comfortable and convenient position, leaving the adult's hands both free (older babies, up to two years of age, are accommodated on the reverse side). The baby's head rests in an indentation between two soap dishes; his/her torso is supported on either side by two (for want of a better term) plastic bulkheads which keep the baby from slipping sideways; and a crotchpost holds up the rear, so to speak. The effect is eerily reminiscent of a consumer product nestled in its original styrofoam packing; hence my husband's reaction, quoted above.

Now you might think that being packed up like a an egg in a carton would be alarming or frustrating to a baby, but my son seemed quite pleased with his surprising new locale. Perhaps he thought it was a car seat and we were going on a ride. All I know is that he lay there very happily for a good five minutes while his father and I admired the fit. And when bathtime did arrive, his verdict was unmistakable: he splashed happily, submerged up to his neck yet safe and secure even by my often neurotic standards. And having both of my hands free meant I could do a better than usual job of washing him.

My son is nearly six months old now, which means he's officially ready to switch to the other side of the tub, though he fits so well on the contoured side (and seems so happy there) that I think we'll keep him there for a while longer. Older babies (from six months to two years) can flip around to the foot of the tub and sit up without the support of the "bulkheads". The crotchpost, mounted in the center of the tub, still serves as a safety device to prevent the baby from slipping under the water.

Unlike our late, unlamented Safety First tub, the Primo tub is big. Its size and depth contribute greatly, I'm sure, to my son's newfound enjoyment of bathtime. But the size does make it unwieldy to store and to fill. It does fit nicely in a regular size bathtub and can then be easily filled from the bathtub faucet. If you're planning to use it inside a shower stall, as we do, you'll have to make sure that it will fit and come up with a convenient way to fill it, possibly by running a hose from the sink. As for putting it in the kitchen sink: forget about it.

The tub doesn't fold and, while it can be hung on the wall, it can be a pretty overwhelming presence in a small bathroom. On the plus side, though, it is quite lightweight and includes an easy-to-use drainage hose. Overall, I'd say the disadvantages are vastly outweighed by the benefits of this tub.

The Primo tub is billed as accommodating babies from newborn to two years old. By the time we got it, our son was well past newborn stage, so I can't offer any firsthand experience with bathing a newborn in it, but I suspect I would have vastly preferred it to the Safety First tub that we bought as ignorant first time parents. If so, this tub may be the only baby tub you'll need!

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Important Safety Note: I would hope that this would go without saying, but just in case: while the Primo tub is well-designed to let you safely take your hands off the baby, you should never take your eyes off him/her -- and certainly never leave the baby unattended in the water!

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Update (Jan 4, 2001): A recent trip to Buy Buy Baby revealed that the word has gotten out that this tub design is terrific: we saw at least one imitator. My revised recommendation is to go to the store: take a good look at the Primo tub, so you get a sense of its size and shape and buy the cheapest one that can't be easily distinguished from it. I think this design is going to take off and all of the manufacturers are going to be copying it. Better yet, bring your baby to the store, plunk him or her down right in the tub and check out the fit for yourself.