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senseandsensibility

(20,256 posts)
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:03 PM Nov 2023

And now for something completely different

How do we feel about doorless showers? I know they're common in Europe and more and more common in hotels here, but recently they've become a 'thing' in my neighborhood, with many neighbors upgrading (depending on your point of view I guess) to this feature. A few days ago my neighbor was runing down the street and I asked him where he was going. He's a realtor and he was heading to a house a few doors down to look at the bathroom. The house is for sale and its doorless shower was featured prominently in the online listing. He seemed really interested and excited.

I don't know, maybe they're good for elderly people because they're curbless but I can see a lot of drawbacks too.

28 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
And now for something completely different (Original Post) senseandsensibility Nov 2023 OP
I would love one MissB Nov 2023 #1
If properly designed to avoid excessive water on the floor, what are the drawbacks? NCIndie Nov 2023 #2
You freeze Conjuay Nov 2023 #4
I understand. NCIndie Nov 2023 #12
They are cold. Irish_Dem Nov 2023 #17
Been using them, and the only objections are... TreasonousBastard Nov 2023 #3
Why yes, I would love a nice cool breeze during my shower redqueen Nov 2023 #5
Enclosed NowISeetheLight Nov 2023 #6
We rebuilt the master bath with a doorless slower. haele Nov 2023 #7
Had one in a home I upgraded. Fabulous. Installed cachukis Nov 2023 #8
Besides the $$$$, proper ventilation/drainage to prevent mold is not always easy to achieve AND hlthe2b Nov 2023 #9
They're drafty and chilly. n/t Mister Ed Nov 2023 #10
Have used two: a neighbor built a roll-in for the in-law wing & it is fabulous, roomy and.:: Hekate Nov 2023 #11
My plan renovating our 36-year-old bathroom is to remove the tub and make it a walk-in shower from one end. ARPad95 Nov 2023 #13
We did the same dslyahoo Nov 2023 #26
5 years ago, in one bathroom I had my tub removed and a total remodel done. The shower now has no door or curtain. Liberal In Texas Nov 2023 #14
Tired of cleaning (or trying to clean) glass shower doors cyclonefence Nov 2023 #15
We had one in a house... 2naSalit Nov 2023 #16
Yeah, I really want my shower to be warm and steamy senseandsensibility Nov 2023 #18
A rec for referencing the Python boys. n/t elocs Nov 2023 #19
I don't know what that means senseandsensibility Nov 2023 #20
"And now for something completely different" ExWhoDoesntCare Nov 2023 #22
Here Ya Go: VernaF Nov 2023 #25
We have one in our new house. It's fine. The water does not get out of the shower too much. beaglelover Nov 2023 #21
Eh... I bought a house with a pre-fab shower stall 3 years ago... DemocraticPatriot Nov 2023 #23
Probably nicer than the last rental house I lived in Buns_of_Fire Nov 2023 #24
Sounds like a great idea... MiHale Nov 2023 #27
Not sure I would like it. usedtobedemgurl Nov 2023 #28

MissB

(16,024 posts)
1. I would love one
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:07 PM
Nov 2023

I can’t fit it into my current configuration. I have a glass door.

One of my favorite hotels - The Davenport in Spokane- has large doorless showers. I would love to not have to clean glass. I hate shower curtains, so I stick with glass.

Conjuay

(2,018 posts)
4. You freeze
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:17 PM
Nov 2023

In an enclosed shower you get a blast of how cold the rest of the bathroom is when you open the door to exit. In an open shower that cold air circulates around the whole time. You get to feel that chill the entire time in the shower.

Your milage may vary.

NCIndie

(556 posts)
12. I understand.
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:56 PM
Nov 2023

My first experience with the doorless shower was a fantastic rain shower, which avoided most of the freeze problem.

Irish_Dem

(55,825 posts)
17. They are cold.
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 06:12 PM
Nov 2023

I visited a family member with one. Yes it is designed so there is zero water on the floor.
But all the hot steam from the shower is released into the open air around you and so it is a cold
experience. Even in summer.

I didn't realize how much the hot water and steam keep you warm during a shower.

TreasonousBastard

(43,049 posts)
3. Been using them, and the only objections are...
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:08 PM
Nov 2023

looks (a matter of personal preference) and the floor getting swamped.

NowISeetheLight

(3,991 posts)
6. Enclosed
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:23 PM
Nov 2023

My shower is 6' by 5' and fully glass enclosed with a glass door. I love it because I am overweight and i like the extra room. It's a "luxury master ensuite" according to the floorplan when I bought the new construction home. It has a giant Roman tub I've used twice in three years too. I compare it to the little bathroom with tub in the house I grew up in. Bathrooms today in new homes are ridiculous IMO.

haele

(13,370 posts)
7. We rebuilt the master bath with a doorless slower.
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:33 PM
Nov 2023

Drainage and spray over is not a problem because we designed it specifically so that if someone had a mobility issue, they can still use the shower. Our master bath is about 5.5' x 12', with the shower against the back wall. Long and narrow.

The original shower was a 3x4' insert next to where the exhaust stack was located, which had made a 1' false wall.. We took took the insert out, got rid of the false wall, and put in a 2.5' x 6' tall partition wall and a back wall 14" shower bench where the stack was, giving us 4' x 5.5' shower area. We tiled in the bathroom up to 6' tall, including 4' past the shower area. We put a gentle 1'' tall slope where the shower door would normally be, put in a drain about 1 1/2' on either side to keep the floor from getting soaked. We put in a rainshower head (which minimizes spray out),and back sprayers/hand spay "tower's so the person showering can stand or sit behind the partition wall and not spray out into the room.

It was amazingly inexpensive to do ourselves (we were healthy at the time, and bought everything off builder's overstock for 1/3 to 1/4 the price), the only outside help we needed to get was someone to do the plumbing, get the sill right, and tar mop the floor

Haele

cachukis

(2,515 posts)
8. Had one in a home I upgraded. Fabulous. Installed
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:34 PM
Nov 2023

ceiling heater for winter. Large enough for no water issues. Even had a wall spray. This, in Florida.
The buyers loved it. Sold in 2019.
Space is important. Second floor dam required for code.

hlthe2b

(105,866 posts)
9. Besides the $$$$, proper ventilation/drainage to prevent mold is not always easy to achieve AND
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:39 PM
Nov 2023

as mentioned by others, very chilly airflow (if you have the $$$$$, radiant floor heating can solve that).

Hekate

(94,218 posts)
11. Have used two: a neighbor built a roll-in for the in-law wing & it is fabulous, roomy and.::
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:51 PM
Nov 2023

…well designed as to water flow
We bought a new (to us) house with a great shower. It has a low lip and shower head that aims well away from the opening. I love it too.

It’s all in the design. Build the head so it aims in the right place. Run the fan and shut the window and door. Very warm. No more scuzzy glass doors or moldy curtains

ARPad95

(1,671 posts)
13. My plan renovating our 36-year-old bathroom is to remove the tub and make it a walk-in shower from one end.
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 05:57 PM
Nov 2023

The 6-ft length of the non-wall side will be a glass panel. I can't wait for it to be be done. No sliding/hinged shower door necessary or curtain to deal with anymore. It will definitely accomplish the goal of making the bathroom perfect for aging-in-place.

dslyahoo

(179 posts)
26. We did the same
Wed Nov 15, 2023, 06:44 AM
Nov 2023

We were looking to have a door less shower, but the existing size and layout didn’t work for it. We ended up putting a large shower area in place of the tub, including a tile bench, and have a small lip and glass door getting into the shower. We love it. We also put in a heated floor in the bathroom which is effective throughout Maryland winters in keeping the bathroom warm and toes toasty. We squeegee the door after the shower. Takes 15 seconds and keeps it clean.

Liberal In Texas

(14,398 posts)
14. 5 years ago, in one bathroom I had my tub removed and a total remodel done. The shower now has no door or curtain.
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 06:07 PM
Nov 2023

I love it. Never a problem of water going where it shouldn't unless I use the hand sprayer and deliberately aim it out of the walk-in opening. It's a small bathroom with a large piece of glass separating the shower from the rest of the room.

If we ever need a tub to soak in for some reason, we'll be in trouble because the house no longer has one. But in twenty plus years it was used very little.

cyclonefence

(4,825 posts)
15. Tired of cleaning (or trying to clean) glass shower doors
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 06:10 PM
Nov 2023

our son installed a doorless shower for us. It is not huge, about 4x4, with a rain shower head pointing straight down. There was a little water spill at one corner, easily and cheaply fixed with one of those plastic corner guards you see on bathtubs to keep the shower curtain in. It is not cold or breezy, just invigorating. We love it. No glass to clean (three tiled walls).

2naSalit

(91,935 posts)
16. We had one in a house...
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 06:11 PM
Nov 2023

Back in 1970, that's when dad bought it, and it was really different for then. It took some getting used to because of the drafty bit. I didn't like that I had to turn on the heat lamp to stay warm. I'm skinny and don't hold body heat well so I get cold easily. Naked and wet are not my favorite condition to experience at the same time in a breeze. I like the steam and warmth of an enclosed shower but I hate the doors and the curtains, as I have now, are just as annoying.

senseandsensibility

(20,256 posts)
18. Yeah, I really want my shower to be warm and steamy
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 07:36 PM
Nov 2023

but I don't really want a lot of steam and dampness in the rest of my bathroom if that makes sense.

beaglelover

(3,938 posts)
21. We have one in our new house. It's fine. The water does not get out of the shower too much.
Tue Nov 14, 2023, 09:57 PM
Nov 2023

Just a few drops usually. I thought I might be cold when showering, but I'm fine. This is in the Palm Springs, CA area though so maybe in colder climates it would be quite cold in the winter time.

 

DemocraticPatriot

(5,410 posts)
23. Eh... I bought a house with a pre-fab shower stall 3 years ago...
Wed Nov 15, 2023, 03:59 AM
Nov 2023

At first I thought it "necessary and proper" that I should have a door installed on it...

but I went with a standard shower curtain and rod, instead.... works just fine.... no regrets




Buns_of_Fire

(17,783 posts)
24. Probably nicer than the last rental house I lived in
Wed Nov 15, 2023, 04:21 AM
Nov 2023

before I left south Florida. The house used to be a plant nursery, and when the owners remodeled it to be a rental, there wasn't room for an indoor shower -- so they installed a pre-fab stall just outside the back door. Don't let anyone tell you it can't get downright chilly down there in winter. (But at least I didn't have to worry about any overspray hitting the floor.)

MiHale

(10,623 posts)
27. Sounds like a great idea...
Wed Nov 15, 2023, 08:31 AM
Nov 2023

We’ve got an old style tub and shower combo with shower curtain. The outside window is directly above the tub at about chest height, my favorite shower time is in the dead of winter snow coming down window wide open hot water raining on me. It’s like taking a shower outside. Totally invigorating.

usedtobedemgurl

(1,366 posts)
28. Not sure I would like it.
Wed Nov 15, 2023, 08:45 AM
Nov 2023

Two people in our house have back problems, to a point it sometimes feels like we have to use a schedule so we both have time in a hot tub. Soaking helps our backs. For a while, the only way my partner could get any respite is by sleeping in a hot bath. He would wake when it turned cold, and he filled it up again.

I like having a shower/tub combo. I brought my two shower head system into this house and installed it. The two shower heads are straight overhead and about 3 feet apart. You can solo shower and have a head spraying water at your front and another at your back. You can also have two people in there so each one gets hot water at the same time.

I may be set in my ways, but I will keep what I have. It works for us.

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