Recreational bath chair

Abstract

A bath chair designed for comfort has a backrest tensioned to incline with resilience when leaned against. A seat is preferably formed by a bench that places the seat height somewhat above the upper side edges of the tub. Installation and removal are facilitated by a two-piece design comprising a backrest that slides into engagement with a bench. Optionally, the bench is hinged to a wall adjacent the tub, whereby the bench can be pivoted up against the wall for storage. Preferably, the backrest can be folded for storage. A container can be used to store the backrest in a tasteful manner. According to a further concept, two persons can relax in one bathtub with one person sitting in a bath chair adjacent one end while the other reclines at the opposite end.

1 . A comfortable bath chair, comprising: 
 a seat; and    a back coupled to or configured to couple with the seat;    wherein the back is tensioned or tensionable whereby the back is configured or configurable to incline with resilience when leaned against; and    the chair is adapted for installation in a bathtub in a manner whereby the chair does not slip within the bathtub.    
   
   
       2 . The bath chair of  claim 1 , wherein the back reclines while the seat remains fixed relative to the bathtub.  
   
   
       3 . The bath chair of  claim 1 , further comprising: 
 a tensioning mechanism that can be selectively coupled to the back to provide tension to the back;    wherein the back can be decoupled from the tensioning mechanism, whereby the back can freely fold forward.    
   
   
       4 . The bath chair of  claim 3 , wherein the tensioning mechanism is attached to the seat.  
   
   
       5 . The bath chair of  claim 1 , further comprising a selective locking mechanism that can be used to selectively fix the angle of incline of the back.  
   
   
       6 . The bath chair of  claim 1 , wherein the seat is part of a bench member dimensioned to span a width of the bathtub.  
   
   
       7 . The bath chair of  claim 6 , further comprising a seat cushion attached or attachable to the bench member.  
   
   
       8 . The bath chair of  claim 6 , wherein the bench member is adapted to rest on the upper edges of the bathtub and press against the inner sides of the bath tub for support after installation.  
   
   
       9 . The bath chair of  claim 6 , wherein the back is part of a piece that releasably couples the bench member.  
   
   
       10 . The bath chair of  claim 9 , wherein the back piece and bench member are mutually configured to slidingly engage in an orientation corresponding to movement along the length of the tub when the bench member is installed in the tub.  
   
   
       11 . The bath chair of  claim 10 , wherein the sliding engagement can be initiated from either side of the bench member, whereby the back piece is reversible.  
   
   
       12 . The bath chair of  claim 6 , wherein the bench member is configured to hingingly attach to a wall to one side of the tub, whereby the bench member can be hinged up and out of the way when not in use.  
   
   
       13 . The bath chair of  claim 9 , further comprising: 
 a storage device sized to hold at least the back and the back can be folded to fit within the storage device; and    wherein the storage device has aesthetic features that make the device suitable, in the opinion of an ordinary homemaker, for a permanent place in a bathroom in open view.    
   
   
       14 . A bath chair adapted to fit within a conventional bathtub having a length, a width, and upper side edges, the bath chair comprising: 
 a bench member dimensioned to span the width of the bathtub, the bench member being adapted to draw support from the upper side edges of the bathtub;    a back rest configured to slide into engagement with the bench member through motion in a direction along the length of the tub;    wherein the back rest inclines to a variable degree.    
   
   
       15 . The bath chair of  claim 14 , wherein the bench member is adapted to hingingly engage a wall adjacent the tub, whereby the bench member can be hinged up and brought proximate the wall when the back rest is not engaged with the bench member.  
   
   
       16 . The bath chair of  claim 14 , further comprising a seat cushion detachable from the bench member.  
   
   
       17 . The bath chair of  claim 14 , wherein the back rest is tensioned or tensionable, whereby the back is configured or configurable to incline with resilience when leaned against.  
   
   
       18 . The bath chair of  claim 14 , wherein the bench member comprises protrusions having an adjustable spacing between them, whereby the protrusions can be positioned to press against the inner sides of the tub to secure the bath chair.  
   
   
       19 . The bath chair of  claim 14 , wherein the sliding engagement can be initiated from either side of the bench member, whereby the back rest is reversible.  
   
   
       20 . The bath chair of  claim 14 , wherein the back rest comprises a supporting member that slidingly engages the bench member and a back hingingly connected to the supporting member.