Expert Eye: How to Choose the Right Spot for Your Shower
Soak up this expert advice on where to place your shower for maximum practical – and pretty – effect
Owen Barnes
3 July 2017
Designing a bathroom for the first time can be a struggle, especially when trying to find the perfect shower placement. A shower alcove can be used as the focal point of the bathroom – or it can be situated to facilitate a seamless flow between other bathroom features. Whatever you choose, there are some important practicalities to take into account. Immerse yourself in this information.
Although in the past it was popular to place shower entrances close to the bathroom door, it’s now better, from a functionality and design perspective, to keep these spaces separate. This is a common design that isn’t recommended. The shower placement often leaves water in front of the door, which makes it difficult for guests to enter the bathroom without getting wet feet.
There’s also no place for towel ladders within reach of the shower, and the location of the bath and shower makes the bathroom feel cramped and narrow.
There’s also no place for towel ladders within reach of the shower, and the location of the bath and shower makes the bathroom feel cramped and narrow.
In this example, the shower is located in the corner, next to the towel rail to avoid mixing the dry and wet zones.
See ideas for kids’ bathrooms
See ideas for kids’ bathrooms
A double walk-in shower is a great idea for an ensuite, if room allows. The shower floor is sloped to ensure water is contained; this also avoids it being tracked back into the dry zone near the basin.
Any type of window that is placed in a shower enclosure must be treated with caution; it’s vital that the window surround is waterproof. This bathroom uses a large Switch Glass window – which can change between translucent and opaque – for privacy,
A walk-in shower without a door can be far drier than one with a door, as the floor is able to be sloped towards a drain at the rear of the alcove. Here, the towel rail is within reach of the person showering, yet away from the main bathroom entrance; this provides space between the wet and dry zones.
To bath or not to bath?
To bath or not to bath?
If you want to feel like you’re showering in a tropical paradise, this shower arrangement is the one for you.
Positioning the shower in front of the floor-to-ceiling window is key here, as it allows the person showering to gaze straight onto nature, while bringing natural light and greenery into the bathroom. Being a walk-in shower also allows easy access between the shower space and the rest of the bathroom. Note how the towel rail is beyond the range of water splashes, but a short step for the person showering.
Positioning the shower in front of the floor-to-ceiling window is key here, as it allows the person showering to gaze straight onto nature, while bringing natural light and greenery into the bathroom. Being a walk-in shower also allows easy access between the shower space and the rest of the bathroom. Note how the towel rail is beyond the range of water splashes, but a short step for the person showering.
Consider positioning your shower in the corner of the bathroom so that it fits seamlessly alongside the wall and basin. In this bathroom, practicality is reinforced by a functional but luxurious shower that uses a custom-made Corian sloped base, as well as a built-in steam recess in the ceiling to allow the steam to be extracted.
A towel rail is installed between the bath and shower to ensure water isn’t moved across the space.
A towel rail is installed between the bath and shower to ensure water isn’t moved across the space.
This walk-in shower design features a glass panel that separates the wet and dry bathroom zones. The glass is wider at the bottom to stop water from splashing onto the floor while providing the illusion of space at eye level. If the shower space is small, low-iron glass opens the environment up.
10 reasons to choose either shower screens or curtains
10 reasons to choose either shower screens or curtains
In this example, the bath and shower are ideally located in the wet zone, with a glass window ensuring no water is splashed towards the basin area. Towels can be placed within reach of the shower and bath to avoid any slips.
In this T-shaped bathroom, there is a shower behind the bathtub. The towel rail is ideally located next to the shower to avoid tracking water throughout the space.
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I have a wooden floor but like the kind of shower recess that has no raised edges, just a sloped floor. I am thinking that this is only possible on a cement floor, which would be expensive to fit retrospectively. What is the advice from others?
Hi Salsi,
We regularly retrospectively fit these type of showers on both wooden and timber floors and have been doing so for 20 years now. Bathroom specialists and experienced builders should be able to fit this easily. Installation cost should be the same and any additional cost would be the cost of the drain itself.
Hope this helps.
It would be nice to see a bird's eye view of some bathrooms with dimensions as well.