And now for something completely different

[senseandsensibility]

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.

[MissB]

1. I would love one

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.

[NCIndie]

2. If properly designed to avoid excessive water on the floor, what are the drawbacks?

[Conjuay]

4. You freeze

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]

12. I understand.

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

[Irish_Dem]

17. They are cold.

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]

3. Been using them, and the only objections are...

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

[redqueen]

5. Why yes, I would love a nice cool breeze during my shower

[NowISeetheLight]

6. Enclosed

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]

7. We rebuilt the master bath with a doorless slower.

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]

8. Had one in a home I upgraded. Fabulous. Installed

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]

9. Besides the $$$$, proper ventilation/drainage to prevent mold is not always easy to achieve AND

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

[Mister Ed]

10. They're drafty and chilly. n/t

[Hekate]

11. Have used two: a neighbor built a roll-in for the in-law wing & it is fabulous, roomy and.::

…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]

13. My plan renovating our 36-year-old bathroom is to remove the tub and make it a walk-in shower from one end.

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]

26. We did the same

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. 5 years ago, in one bathroom I had my tub removed and a total remodel done. The shower now has no door or curtain.

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]

15. Tired of cleaning (or trying to clean) glass shower doors

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]

16. We had one in a house...

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]

18. Yeah, I really want my shower to be warm and steamy

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

[elocs]

19. A rec for referencing the Python boys. n/t

[senseandsensibility]

20. I don't know what that means

but I'll take the rec!

[ExWhoDoesntCare]

22. "And now for something completely different"

Was a running gag for segues between skits on Monty Python.

[VernaF]

25. Here Ya Go:

Link: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=And+now+for+something+completely+different&t=qupzilla&ia=web

[beaglelover]

21. We have one in our new house. It's fine. The water does not get out of the shower too much.

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]

23. Eh... I bought a house with a pre-fab shower stall 3 years ago...

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]

24. Probably nicer than the last rental house I lived in

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]

27. Sounds like a great idea...

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]

28. Not sure I would like it.

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.