Keys to Designing Shower Systems

For example, in my most recent master bath project, when asked what his needs and wants were, the client said he would like a rain showerhead so he can relax after a long day working at the hospital. Because of his bad back, he wanted a couple of body sprays to be directly aimed at that area of his body. His wife wanted the ability to quickly get in and out of the shower in the mornings, but also wanted body sprays for her own back problems.

It was a simple shower solution, really, but given that he was 6-ft.-4-in. and she was 5-ft.6-in., we wanted to make sure we met their individual needs.

With the information we gathered, we mounted a large rain showerhead close to the ceiling, and then added a showerhead on a glide rail where it could be adjusted to their respective heights. She liked to get in and out in a timely manner, and with her longer hair, it was important to have a shower fixture that provided enough pressure to quickly rinse out the shampoo/conditioner.

When deciding where to locate the body sprays, we discovered their height difference worked to our advantage. His back problem was in his lower back and hers was in her upper back, so with a slight adjustment to the spray heads, we were able to add just two body sprays to complete the job.

Based on your client’s physical limitations, you might want to add a place to sit, a handrail and perhaps even minimize or eliminate the shower curb if possible.