Live load
The weight a floor carries in use, including water and a person. A filled HERA bathtub with a bather is about 300kg, well within standard HDB and condo floor capacity.
What it means
Live load is a structural term for the weight a floor carries while a room is actually being used: the people moving around, the furniture, and in a bathroom, the water in a tub. It is the practical number engineers design floors around, because it changes from moment to moment as the room is lived in.
It is worth separating from static load, which describes the weight something holds while at rest. When we talk about whether a bathroom floor can take a bathtub, live load is the figure that matters: the empty tub, plus the water, plus the person soaking in it, all at the same time.
For a freestanding bathtub there is one more helpful detail. The tub sits on a reinforced internal frame and its base rests flat on the floor, so the live load is spread across the full footprint of the tub rather than pressing down at a single point.
In a Singapore home
This is the term behind the most common question we hear in the showroom: can an HDB or condo bathroom floor support a bathtub? A HERA bathtub weighs between 30kg and 45kg empty, depending on the size. Filled with water plus a person, the total live load is approximately 300kg per manufacturer specification.
That figure sits well within the standard structural live load capacity of HDB and condo bathroom floors. Because the load is distributed across the full base of the tub rather than concentrated at one point, it behaves the way a sofa or a fully loaded wardrobe does in a living room. Our FAQ covers this in more detail, along with sizing and installation.
If you are weighing up a tub for your own bathroom, the bathtub guide walks through the full range of sizes from 800mm to 1700mm, and our HDB fit article explains what actually determines whether a tub works in a given bathroom.
Quick questions
What is the live load of a filled HERA bathtub?
Each HERA bathtub weighs between 30kg and 45kg empty, depending on the size. Filled with water plus a person, the total live load is approximately 300kg per manufacturer specification.
Can my HDB or condo floor support that live load?
Yes. The full live load of approximately 300kg sits within the standard structural capacity of HDB and condo bathroom floors. The load is also spread across the full base of the bathtub rather than being a concentrated point load, similar to how a sofa or fully loaded wardrobe behaves.
Is live load the same as static load?
Not quite. Live load describes the weight a floor or structure carries in use, such as water and a bather in a tub. Static load describes the weight something holds at rest, the way each HERA vanity drawer is rated for up to 30kg of static load.
Related terms
Still wondering if your floor can take a tub?
Message us on WhatsApp with your bathroom details and the team will talk you through the numbers, usually within 15 minutes during showroom hours, or start with the full range of sizes.