A dunk tank is a device wherein a person sits on a seat/bench positioned over a tank of water; the seat is hinged and secured in its horizontal position by a quick-release trigger, which in turn is connected to a target at which other participants throw a ball. If the ball connects with the target, the trigger mechanism causes the seat to be released, and the person sitting on the seat falls 2-3 feet into the water. Many dunk tanks have a window on the front so spectators can see the person in the water.

Within the WAM context, a dunk tank may be used as a vehicle for wetlook; the "dunkee" may elect to sit in the tank wearing a swimsuit, street clothes, a costume of any sort (ie, clown, businessperson, mermaid, nurse, etc.), or nothing at all. For many wetlook fans, dunk tanks are comparable to a "gateway drug", inasmuch as they are common in non-WAM, non-sexual contexts such as fairs, carnivals, fundraisers, and the like, and therefore more likely to be encountered in one's "ordinary" life than other forms of WAM. (It may also be a vehicle for messy play, if the dunk tank is filled with a substance other that water (ie, mud, green slime, etc.), although this is less common.)

The fetish aspect of a dunk tank can take a number of forms; some have suggested that it is in fact a mild form of sado-masochism and/or sub-dom sex play; in the case of the former, wishing to see the 'victim' dunked is a mild (or not-so-mild, depending on the temperature of the water) form of sadism while the person placing themselves in a position to be dunked represents a masochistic tendency. In the case of the latter (sub-dom), the person being dunked is the submissive while the person dunking them is the dominant player; this argument is particularly persuasive because (especially in non-WAM contexts) the victim and the player seldom (if ever) switch roles (places), as is typically the case in sub-dom relationships. Other fetish aspects may include humiliation, and accidental nudity (ie, clothes becoming see-thru when wet, nip slips, etc--again, these may be legitimately accidental, or merely intended to appear that way by dunkee).