Summer Infant Soothing Spa and Shower - a Mother's Review

Bath time for an infant can be a truly fun experience for all involved. Imagine your baby having a great time, with a big grin on his or her face, and those pudgy little hands splashing excitedly, getting your kitchen all wet.

Where to bathe your baby can be a big decision for a new parent. I personally registered at my favorite baby store and chose a infant tub that I thought would suit my needs. I chose the Summer Infant Soothing Spa and Shower, and was lucky enough to receive it as a gift at my baby shower. I was so excited to try it out and when my daughter was born this past June, I couldn't wait until she was able to take a bath. This is my take on how this tub measures up.

Let me start with the basics. Summer Infant is a producer of many baby products, with their Soothing Spa and Shower being just one of them. They tend to make high quality products that I have truly enjoyed and found helpful in taking care of my daughter. This Soothing Spa and Shower tub set runs about $40 retail value, which is about $20 more than your average regular infant tub. However, I was intrigued by this set's 'bells and whistles'. The features include a motorized jet for that 'spa' effect, motorized shower, large tub designed for toddlers up to 2 years, and a newborn sling. As far as I've seen, it comes in two different designs: Garden Party, which is a pink theme, and Spa Ducks, which is a neutral peach color and duck theme. I personally received the Spa Ducks theme.

So for about $40, I thought the Summer Infant Soothing Spa and Shower might be worth the price, considering that there were a few extras thrown in that other tubs didn't have. It seems like a fair price since it is offering more than other tubs.

Let's first talk about the sling. The sling is meant for newborns in that it should keep a newborn baby in place when bathing. The sling for the Summer Infant Soothing Spa and Shower gives you the option of adjusting the height on it, and also being used in either an undivided sink or in the tub it comes with. It also claims that it is mildew resistant and machine washable. After assembling everything (and reading the directions three times to make sure I had it put together correctly), I knew I had the sling ready to go and in proper working condition. The problem is that no matter what height you position the sling, your baby will most likely slide down it. When bathing my daughter, I constantly have to re-shift her so that she's not slipping totally into the water. And in talking to other parents who own this same set, they've had the same issue.

Also, another issue with the sling is that it's hard to remove the fabric from the frame. I'm still not quite sure if you should be able to in the first place, but it would sure make life easier if you could. According to the instructions, you just need to wash the surface of the sling with a damp cloth, mild soap, and warm water. However, I've found that even after a couple of times of washing the sling with a mild soap like Dawn liquid dish soap, the sling still showed signs of mildew and just smelled funny overall. Also, the bathtub has a padded comfort insert on the bottom of the tub that is meant to help hold the baby in place. While this does work, it also tends to collect mildew.

Next is the size of the tub. This is the one feature that I do love about the Summer Infant Soothing Spa and Shower. It has a claw foot design and the tub itself is large enough to fit the sling and baby comfortably. There's also plenty of room for the spa and shower tool of the set. Another nice feature with the tub is the temperature strip that you can attach to the tub. It's a good guide as to how warm the water is.

Finally, the last part of the Summer Infant Soothing Spa and Shower is the motorized jet and shower. These two features come together in one unit, and I was really excited to try it out. First, I tried the jet feature a few times. I attached the unit to the tub according to instructions, and turned on the jet. This part of the unit is hard to turn on, with the on/off button being hard to press down. Once I did have it going, the jet worked fine, but the noise the unit makes is pretty loud. My daughter personally wasn't afraid of it, but I can picture the unit startling other infants. The shower function on the unit wasn't too impressive. Again, the switching of functions using the buttons on the unit is pretty hard. The shower unit itself lets out a slow, light stream. And although you'd think this is helpful when dealing with a baby, it was maybe too light and slow. The stream wasn't even strong enough to rinse any shampoo out of her hair. I ended up not using this motorized part of the set any longer because it was more trouble than it was worth.

Also, another thing of note with the Summer Infant Soothing Spa and Shower motorized jet and shower portion is that it requires six C batteries. Now the confusing bit is that on Summer Infant's website, it lists six AA batteries that are needed. However, my recent purchase required C size batteries. Either way, any mom knows that batteries are a precious commodity in a house full of electronics and toys. And, to boot, batteries are not cheap. So batteries are another thing to consider when purchasing this unit.

All in all, the Summer Infant Soothing Spa and Shower shouldn't be a major choice when considering infant bath tubs for your little one. The only portion most users I know have used is the tub itself (which you can purchase much cheaper with other makers), and even then, the tub and sling are dissatisfying in that they collect mildew. In this mother's opinion, your best bet is to skip this trendy-looking tub and head for a simpler, affordable, and more useable version by any other number of makers.