Shower Surround Idea

[jyl]

Want to get the PPOT braintrust's thoughts on a project.

We have a big, deep cast iron clawfoot tub. I love the tub - as a tub. I don't love it - as a shower - because of the shower curtain around it. If you've used one of these, you know the dang curtain keeps clinging to your body. Also, should you lose your balance, there's nothing to stop you from falling out of the tub. And since you have to step over the high tub wall with no handhold, its not real friendly to older people - and we have older guests from time to time.

So, i am thinking about this:

Get thick (1/2"?) clear acrylic sheet, have it bent into a oval tube sort of shape, mounted - bolted to the ceiling, probably - around the tub edge as a shower surround. Have some sort of hinged sheet as a door. Mount handholds to the acrylic.

Whaddya think?

No, there's no room to build a separate shower in the bathroom.

[Zeke]

Sounds good and sounds very expensive. How about a polished SS rail mounted at the right height sort of like railing on a yacht. At least you know where you can get that made.

Shower curtain should hang outside the rail and inside the tub. You need a heavier curtain material as well, methinks. Or better weighted (with magnets?).

[LWJ]

Acrylic might look weird and ugly.

I think a nice hand hold could do the trick. What about a low-velocity, high volume head? Possibly can reduce splash energy so that a curtain isn't needed?

[Crowbob]

I like the idea. Put a big tree branch in it and a heat lamp over it.

Voy La!

A terrarium for humans and old people.

[dad911]

[dad911]

I hate shower curtains also. You can't find 10sf for a real shower? Sacrifice a closet?

How about this?

[john70t]

I did a tub-->shower conversion using a kit like the one below sourced from the net.

The first one I got had paper-thin pipes and was returned immediately. The second from a different company was barely better quality.
I think I paid about $400. They were both expensive and cheaply made. A good brand name will hopefully be stouter than the ones I bought.
Buying quality plumbing is definitely worth it in the long run.

One ceiling hanger looks good in that picture but is not enough support in real-life practice.
It will move around and break off if you bump into the up-pipe or grab the curtain and pull. Then it's broken and you have no shower and a big mess.
Get one with a separate curtain loop from the shower head pipe and add support pipes, I guess.
but I really don't know..

I used three overlapped washable white fabric curtains to make a complete wall all the way around the tub.
The longest unobstructed run was on the front for the entrance/exit.
It was a bit claustrophobic inside but it worked. Clear plastic would have been better but that seemed to not seal very well and puddles escaped onto the floor.
Those stainless roller-style loops move smoothly over connections plus they make a cool 'shushy' sound.

https://www.vintagetub.com/randolph-morris-clawfoot-tub-shower-enclosure-with-faucet-and-metal-showerhead-rm033c-s.html?msclkid=2082291b309611599eca75d23f2aef53&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=CPCS%20-%20BING%20SHOPPING%20-%20RM&utm_term=4582833187929273&utm_content=RM%20-%20OTHER#208=967&258=3491&259=2425&aid=14202?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cse&utm_term=78612

[jyl]

That's what I have now.

[ckelly78z]

In the space that our claw foot tub was occupying, I mounted a low lip shower surround that measures 60"x36", and has a moveable seat with grap handles. There is so much flat floor space (compared to the small foot area of a tub) that two people can easily/and often do shower together.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Sterling-Accord-White-4-Piece-Alcove-Shower-Kit-Common-36-in-x-60-in-Actual-36-in-x-60-in/1000074637

[svandamme]

instead of acryllic.. how about a sheet of annodized aluminium bent in the right shape?

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by dad911

I hate shower curtains also. You can't find 10sf for a real shower? Sacrifice a closet?

How about this?

I like this idea. I like a lot of room when I shower, and a place to sit when I wash my feet. I would hate being confined to the area of a tub no matter what surrounded it.

Having said that, perhaps stainless steel hoops top and bottom with a regular shower curtain stretched between them would be effective and not too expensive.

[ckelly78z]

Originally Posted by svandamme

instead of acryllic.. how about a sheet of annodized aluminium bent in the right shape?

I have seen people that do a really cheap fix for the back/side walls of a standing tub by using corregated barn metal siding (in your choice of color) wrapped around 3 sides, and sealed at the bottom with rubber rib tape.


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[svandamme]

I was thinking more of flat sheet, which can be used for a rather clean and modern look..
if you shape it in a nice U, bit smaller size then the tub
and then suspend it off the ceiling + small bracket below to keept it in place.. could work

[jyl]

The wife likes taking baths, so replacing the tub with a shower, or enclosing the tub with an opaque surround, won't work. There isn't extra room to add a shower, due to the size of the room and the house layout.

I do like the idea of having stainless steel handrails made. One long side of the tub is placed against the wall, and you enter over the other, exposed, long side. So the rails could anchor to the wall and/or ceiling and come out to encircle the two short ends of the tub and maybe curve in to partly encircle the exposed long side. That seems less groovy than a curved clear surround, but cheaper and more practical.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by jyl

The wife likes taking baths, so replacing the tub with a shower, or enclosing the tub with an opaque surround, won't work. There isn't extra room to add a shower, due to the size of the room and the house layout.

I do like the idea of having stainless steel handrails made. One long side of the tub is placed against the wall, and you enter over the other, exposed, long side. So the rails could anchor to the wall and/or ceiling and come out to encircle the two short ends of the tub and maybe curve in to partly encircle the exposed long side. That seems less groovy than a curved clear surround, but cheaper and more practical.

You're welcome.

To take the idea further, you could have the ring for the shower curtain and the perimeter rail as a combined unit and come off the wall with a minimum of 4 points attached and perhaps an attachment to the ceiling on the front side. That way you know for sure that if someone grabs the rail for support that it won't fail to do what it was intended to do. The shower curtain needs to be outside the rail for 2 reasons: to be exposed for an aid and to help keep the curtain from being sucked into the center by the flow of the water from the head.

Design wise it might be tough to be able to run the curtain all the way into a corner, but if you use actual hooks and not rings, they could be able to pass by any uprights, but I see that as a tricky proposition w/o a lot of complexity which you don't need aesthetically.

I'd use 2 shower curtains that overlap or snap together that could be brushed aside for a bath.

[jyl]

How about this? Railing will be a single welded piece, bolted to wall studs in four places. Curtain will be multi-part to accommodate. Not anchoring railing to floor means tub can be removed/replaced without moving railing. Not sure how high upper and lower railing should be. Not sure there is actually any reason for lower railing, except structural. Assume polished SS would look nicest, maybe with brushed sections for more secure holding.

Suggestions? Where would you get something like this fabricated? Estimated cost?

Zeke, I think you're suggesting a railing that includes the curtain rod. I'm thinking it might make sense to have all railing structure lower, down where older or shorter people would actually grasp it (since old people may have trouble reaching high above their heads) and use it to raise themselves out of the tub. I admit I have thought about bolting a subway car straphanger sort of thingy to the ceiling, but couldn't figure how to make ti easily reachable by short people but not be a head-bonker for tall people.

My 80+ y/o dad will hopefully be living with me, which is why I'm getting serious about adding handrails etc all over the house. This is a four level house if you include the basement, so there are a lot of stairs and he's going to have an increasingly hard time with those. Eventually I may have to build him a little place in the basement with an exterior door; thinking ahead to when his mobility really deteriorates.

[Zeke]

Certainly I was thinking of a single unit that had all the features of the above and the lower railing at an elevation that was helpful to aid in stepping in an out of the tub as well as providing 'garg bar' support. I like your sketch or a variation of it.

Anyway, you're close enough at this point that you don't need me. If you have any doubts about a final design and dimensions, use some electrical thin wall EMT to mock up what you want. The railing fabricator can use your pattern to bend the final product. I did this making a roll bar for my 914 race car. 1/2 inch bends easily with a bender or over any sturdy round object.

[john70t]

Originally Posted by jyl

My 80+ y/o dad will hopefully be living with me, which is why I'm getting serious about adding handrails etc all over the house.

You will probably want to sell the clawfoot tub now.
Have to prepare for that day when dad will eventually be using a wheelchair.
Install a lip-free walk-in shower with spot wand and comfortable seat for him to use himself.
He wants independence and dignity. You want him to be safe.
Clawfoot tubs and the elderly don't mix.

Also make sure the hot water can't reach scalding level by adjusting the mixing valve or the water heater settings.

Also get a big rubber draining mat or use interlocking sections. Much safer surface than slippery cold ceramic tile.
There might be a fall incident later on. It's very common.
Hot-Cold cycles can cause people to become lightheaded.
I actually passed out after a hot shower and stretching as a teen, and fell backwards into the tub busting off a ceramic soap-holder/handle thing.

[1990C4S]

If my choices were showering in a claw-foot tub or taking a bath, I would choose the latter.

[Zeke]

Handrails "all over the house" will never be enough. When that time comes, your dad will want to use a walker. Don't know your layout but a stairmaster on one set isn't as expensive as it sounds. And they come up used all the time.