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Original poster

Walk in showers

25 replies

DaftLemon · 22/03/2016 11:13

Recently moved into a house with a lovely LOOKING bathroom. Sadly plumbed in by a clown.

3 months later we are dried out and now ready to get it replaced (and floors and walls).
We are looking a shower cubicles and like the look of walk in showers with shower tray. I'm wondering how practical they really are in a BATHROOM and NOT A WET ROOM with regards to water splashing out.

The bathroom walls will be part tiled - just around the needed tiled areas - shower, bath and sink. We cannot tile the whole room as it's a fairly good sized room. Flooring is probably going to be the waterproof laminate for bathrooms.

Due to the hideous mess with water leaking issues we have had so far I am nervous about walk in showers. I do wonder how practical they are. I would be grateful for some honest views/experiences of walk in showers in bathrooms.

I will try to attach some rather bad photos (it's hard to photograph a piece of glass) of the type of thing we have been looking at.

OP posts:

Peyia · 22/03/2016 11:33

Marking my place as we'll be refitting a bathroom soon and can not decide between freestanding shower or showering bath.

TremoloGreen · 22/03/2016 11:37

If that is the size you are looking at, would it make more sense to have a bigger enclosure with a sliding door. I have the same dilemma myself atm. I have space for 1400 x 800, but with a walk-in, the actual showering space would be no more than 800 x 800 which is like a small square box shower. Walk ins are very nice though and we had on in the old house but was much bigger. Nice to have a drying space without standing on the cold tiled floor, but you can get round that with underfloor heating etc. In terms of splashing, it was no more than any other bathroom, but that was with a nice big tray and enclosure.

BlueCowWonders · 22/03/2016 11:42

I always worry about getting cold if there's no screen!
And the splashing etc.
we have 800x1200 - feels like walk - in but warm.

Original poster

DaftLemon · 22/03/2016 11:59

We are ideally looking at 1200x800.
We could go to 1400x900 but depends on shape of the shower tray. Our loo sticks out ridiculously long way from the wall but our plumber just said it would be an arse (= more labour) to move just it the few centimetres it can be moved.
1200 x800 fits the best although we did see a 1400x780 yesterday that I think may be okay. We are drawing lots of shapes on the bathroom floor at the moment to get an idea of what will sit exactly where.

The old bathroom was only 18th months old so loo and sink we are hoping to see to save money as a new bathroom was not in the original plan.

OP posts:

TremoloGreen · 22/03/2016 12:28

Yes absolutely keep your loo and sink - if it's a project you were not planning to do, there's no point getting carried away with

I think that's a bit small for a walk in to be really useful. But go stand in it in the shop and see what you think - you have to use it. you realise you've opened up my dilemma all over again though?

SignedUpAgain · 22/03/2016 14:16

We are getting a walk-in type shower, at least i think we are!

We have a tray which is 1700 x 800 which will fit the whole of one wall of our new ensuite. So the 2 short walls and one long wall will be tiled.
Then on the side facing the room, we have a 900mm glass panel, with an extra 300mm rotating glass panel -(which is meant to catch the spray!)

No idea if it will work - the plumber is starting into it today. Its a new build and all a bit exhausting.

TremoloGreen · 22/03/2016 14:37

signedup, please can we have a link to your swishy shower? Mine is going to be the whole width of the room as well.

haggisaggis · 22/03/2016 14:52

Had walk in with tray in the old house and absolutely no issue with bathroom getting wet. (Can't remember size though). Current house we wanted a wet room but due to an issue with the height of drain we had to build a platform instead - but otherwise shower is open to the front with a glass shower screen shielding the bath side. I love it! I hate shower doors / curtains and love the space of this one. We do have to make sure there is never any issue with drain clogging (hair etc) as it could spill over edge of platform to floor in that case, but otherwise it's fine.

VertigoNun · 22/03/2016 14:55

Marking place too.

SignedUpAgain · 22/03/2016 15:06

This is the panel we have ordered. Have not chosen tiles or anything yet, but would love something like they have shown here.

I have also ordered showers etc from Germany, so save on ££ as i fancied something nice for a change and not just the cheapest!

Original poster

DaftLemon · 22/03/2016 15:28

That looks lovely Signedup. Ours will be against 2 walls like that.

I have my eye on this curved one in the pic. It's only 1200x900 . That's the largest size this particular one comes in. An open ended one like this works best for where it will be positioned in our bathroom. Does anyone think much water will splash out? Alternatively there is the straight panel which we could get in a 1400 x900. Just worried about water sloshing all over the floor with either of these.

Tremelo it's a nightmare choosing isn't it. Don't even get me started on tiles . I think I will be posting every day in this section soon.

OP posts:

Original poster

DaftLemon · 22/03/2016 15:30

Haggis - that's encouraging to hear you had no excess water issues. Oh and yes - 2 teen daughters with long hair means we also keep an eye on the plug/drainage.

OP posts:

Lamu · 22/03/2016 15:47

Op we have an open ended one with a single glass panel, it was here when we moved in. We do have some issues with splashing from the shower mainly because ours is fairly close to an oak door frame. We also had issues of water seeping between tiled shower tray area and flooring. Ours is 1600x1000 but without a tray iykwim.

I'm itching to rip the whole lot out and start again but I can't justify the cost to DH as its only a couple of years old. But like yours, ours was fitted by a monkey. Issues after issues with leaking.

TremoloGreen · 22/03/2016 16:33

Looks good - I will look out for one that might fit our space. Those split face tiles look a real bugger to clean, we had natural stone on the shower walls n our old bathroom and it is difficult to maintain.

I was quite impressed by the idea oof porcel-thin panels when I was at the Ideal Home show at the weekend.

southwest1 · 22/03/2016 16:57

I have this one, I love it. Took the bath out and replaced it with this and haven't regretted it. I think because it's got the panel in the middle that it stops any water getting out. I've certainly never had any water get onto the floor.

www.diy.com/departments/cooke-lewis-luxuriant-rectangular-shower-enclosure-with-walk-in-entry-w1380mm-d880mm/1074650_BQ.prd

nailsathome · 22/03/2016 20:22

We've just had a 700x700 fitted in our ensuite and it is small but we love it.

We have only tiled the shower area and we've not had any problems with water splashing out too much. You do need a mat or a towel down when you open it otherwise the floor would get a bit wet.

OzzieFem · 22/03/2016 20:28

Just make sure your installer puts a good waterproofing coat on the walls before tiling. I would go for a shower with a deep shower base, as some of those shallow ones can overflow when hair starts blocking up the drainage very quickly..

Karcheer · 22/03/2016 20:34

tremolo did the split marble pocel thin look realistic, can you remember how much they were?

IHaveBrilloHair · 22/03/2016 20:36

They look really, really lovely, but I'd be so careful, to the point of saying no with teen girls.
I have one, which is ugly as sin but has to be walk in because of disability issues, the HA fitted it, and even then, the water on feet gets spread, and hair means you are picking it out on a daily basis, and getting the Mr muscle drain unlogger out weekly.
Yes, dd should be more careful etc, etc, but it doesn't happen.

Original poster

DaftLemon · 23/03/2016 01:34

Just to clarify as i think sone peoplexare confusing walk in showers with dhower cubicles. We had a shower cubicle with a hinged door before. It was lovely p shaped, so very spacious. Sadly plumbed in by a clown. The shower tray was also made of the cheapest Naffest plastic that flexed and moved which helped with the leaks along with crap installation.

Ideally I would keep the same shape because it worked well in the space but no where makes them. We've looked for months now. Hence why now we want a walk in shower with no door at all - to maximise the space even more. It's just I'm worried that with no door the water will slosh all over the place.

My teen daughters are currently clogging up the bath plug hole with their hair as that's all we have to use right now since we had to take the walls where the shower once stood back to the breeze blocks and remove the rotten floor boards. I'm sure they'll switch to clogging the new shower if I ever actually am brave enough to make a decision and get one ordered!!
Once I accepted my new kitchen fund was going on the bathroom I thought I might enjoy shopping for a new shower and bath but it's not turning out to be quite as much fun and as easy as I first thought!!

Am off to start a thread about whirlpool baths next

OP posts:

Original poster

DaftLemon · 23/03/2016 01:42

Southwest - that looks lovely. I didn't see that on display in our homebase so think I may go to a larger store for a look.

Lamu - sorry to hear you've had similar leaking issues to us. It's a bloody nightmare isn't it!! Your splashing out- is it just because it's been badly installed or because it's coming out of the doorless gap? If it wasn't for the oak door frame would it still be an issue?

I really should sleep but every time I close my eyes I see showers and tiles!!!

OP posts:

TremoloGreen · 23/03/2016 11:37

Karcheer They started from about £100 per SQM but there were discounts for the show. I'm sure you could ring them and mention you saw them at the show to get the same discounts though. Really you are paying what you would for very beautiful expensive tiles, but they are like tiles you could get for £30 per SQM, so it depends on how much you dislike cleaning grout really.

Up close you could definitely tell they are not real marble, and you would get close to them in a shower. However, they are very good likeness and very pretty. With all these things, like Karndean, laminate floors etc, you have to appreciate them for what they are - very pretty alternatives that are usually a lot more practical than the real thing, rather than hoping they will pass for the real thing IYSWIM.

IYSWIM = if you see what i mean! Apologies for my overuse of abbreviations, I am always getting into trouble for assuming people know what they mean!

Karcheer · 23/03/2016 20:03

Thanks tremolo I've requested some samples so we will see.
Also got some from porcelain-tiles.co.uk

Chasingsquirrels · 23/03/2016 20:12

I used one in an airport hotel at Gatwick a month or so ago - I have always thought they were a good idea but was totally put off

it was colder while showering than an enclosed shower as the heat escaped (and that's in a well heated hotel room)
it splashed out into the bathroom
the actual showering space was reduced

Tubbyinthehottub · 23/03/2016 20:18

I have a walk in shower with just a glass screen on one side. It has a tiled floor and I love having no white tray to clean or sliding doors with runners which collect grime and soap grud. It is much much easier to keep clean and there are no splashing issues. The wet room kit is 900 X 1200

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