I have another thread about a bathroom reno and removing a fiberglass showertub unit to replace with a shower. I think its a bit too long to get to the meat of my current quandary: Where to place the grab bars and the showerhead.
The shower will be a Sterling Ensemble Curve (already purchased) that is roughly 30x60. I believe it is roughly 76" tall (including the top flange).
The showerhead is the Moen Refresh that has a handheld and integrated slidebar. The slidebar is 19" long.
www.moen.com
We have two Moen Home Care Designer grab bars with curl grip. One is 24" and the other is 48". We also have a 16" Moen Home Care grab bar with shelf.
The 48" bar has the same ends as the 24" but is obviously longer.
The trim is Moen Kingsley Moentrol
I intend to put blocking in the walls to anchor the grab bars and maybe glue some blocks to the back side of the surround to compensate for the gap between the walls and the studs & blocking.
I've read the height guides and such for the bar on the back wall- somewhere between 33" to 36" IIRC. That one should not be too hard to figure out and I can put in enough blocking to cover that range. I'll have to get my mother to sit on the shower seat and determine what is a comfortable height for her to reach. She's 5'6" but has some extra padding on her backside that lifts her up a bit more while she is sitting and she will be using a shower seat.
Initially I wanted to use the 48" grab bar (we got it on sale) on the back wall but after standing inside the same model shower kit at the store, I realized how narrow 30" is when the walls jut in to the space. The ends would land on a spot where the walls jut in even more underneath some shelves and my mother is so wide that her fat hangs over the controls on the bidet attachment on the toilet, so she would not have much elbow room. We couldn't find a larger shower that wasn't too large to fit the space and not get in the way of the door. The 24" bar should fit within the recessed area of the shower wall, but I will probably have to do a dry fit first (the blocking I plan to put in will work for different lengths if need be since I will fill the space between the studs).
My main dilemma is trying to figure out the height of the showerhead, the shower trim and the 16" bar with a shelf on it. I wanted the shelf to be in front of her horizontally so she can grab on to it but also put shampoo, wash cloth, soap, etc on it.
The shower arm is 6" long but I'm not sure how far it drops vertically. I mentioned that the slidebar is only 19" so it will need to be low enough that my mother can reach the handheld part while sitting on a shower seat. I don't know if she will want to be standing or sitting to use the shower controls. I'm guessing she will want to sit, unless she is gripping a grab bar (as the moentrol needs to be pulled outward for pressure and then the handle rotates for temperature. Our water can take its sweet time to heat up despite being fairly close to the water heater.
I am trying to decide if the showerhead should be above the surround or on the wall above the curve.
I want to have the 48" bar as the vertical bar so she has plenty of area to grab (as it won't fit anywhere else in the room). Although, I saw a video where someone claimed that the bottom of the vertical bar needs to be something like 3" above the horizontal bar, but I've never actually that stated in code (but I haven't looked). The bar will have to be outside of the shower next to the door. I might have to put some trim or something on the wall there to cover the edge of the wall flange and to make sure the door trim won't get in the way.
When it comes to the trim and the grab bar shelf, I'm trying to decide which one should be above the other. Pros of having the shelf above is it may keep the hose out of the way of the handle and I can be sure blocking won't interfere with the PEX running to the valve. Cons are that the hose may get in the way of grabbing soap. I'm also not sure what height the controls should be at. I used to have it mapped out in my head but I forgot.
This is my rough image of the options:
Which looks better? Or rather, which do you think would function better?
I know I'm cluttering things up with images, but I want to show my Sketchup pics of the general layout. I did my best to get an approximation of the colors (although the light over the window & the existence of the shower are different). I didn't feel like trying to draw in the existing ugly green fiberglass showertub one piece unit.
I couldn't find a model that approximated the showerhead that will be used so I just slapped a random showerhead up there. There will actually be a double-curved shower curtain rod but there weren't models of them & I was lazy. I also didn't make the vertical grab bar long enough as it is 48".
Do the shower controls have to be within a certain distance of the showerhead?
Thoughts?
Suggestions?
The shower will be a Sterling Ensemble Curve (already purchased) that is roughly 30x60. I believe it is roughly 76" tall (including the top flange).
The showerhead is the Moen Refresh that has a handheld and integrated slidebar. The slidebar is 19" long.
Moen | Bathroom & Kitchen Faucets, Shower Heads, Accessories & More
Refresh showering collection offers a wide variety of styles and functionality, providing multiple options to personalize your shower. A completely refreshing product line.
www.moen.com
We have two Moen Home Care Designer grab bars with curl grip. One is 24" and the other is 48". We also have a 16" Moen Home Care grab bar with shelf.
The 48" bar has the same ends as the 24" but is obviously longer.
The trim is Moen Kingsley Moentrol
I intend to put blocking in the walls to anchor the grab bars and maybe glue some blocks to the back side of the surround to compensate for the gap between the walls and the studs & blocking.
I've read the height guides and such for the bar on the back wall- somewhere between 33" to 36" IIRC. That one should not be too hard to figure out and I can put in enough blocking to cover that range. I'll have to get my mother to sit on the shower seat and determine what is a comfortable height for her to reach. She's 5'6" but has some extra padding on her backside that lifts her up a bit more while she is sitting and she will be using a shower seat.
Initially I wanted to use the 48" grab bar (we got it on sale) on the back wall but after standing inside the same model shower kit at the store, I realized how narrow 30" is when the walls jut in to the space. The ends would land on a spot where the walls jut in even more underneath some shelves and my mother is so wide that her fat hangs over the controls on the bidet attachment on the toilet, so she would not have much elbow room. We couldn't find a larger shower that wasn't too large to fit the space and not get in the way of the door. The 24" bar should fit within the recessed area of the shower wall, but I will probably have to do a dry fit first (the blocking I plan to put in will work for different lengths if need be since I will fill the space between the studs).
My main dilemma is trying to figure out the height of the showerhead, the shower trim and the 16" bar with a shelf on it. I wanted the shelf to be in front of her horizontally so she can grab on to it but also put shampoo, wash cloth, soap, etc on it.
The shower arm is 6" long but I'm not sure how far it drops vertically. I mentioned that the slidebar is only 19" so it will need to be low enough that my mother can reach the handheld part while sitting on a shower seat. I don't know if she will want to be standing or sitting to use the shower controls. I'm guessing she will want to sit, unless she is gripping a grab bar (as the moentrol needs to be pulled outward for pressure and then the handle rotates for temperature. Our water can take its sweet time to heat up despite being fairly close to the water heater.
I am trying to decide if the showerhead should be above the surround or on the wall above the curve.
I want to have the 48" bar as the vertical bar so she has plenty of area to grab (as it won't fit anywhere else in the room). Although, I saw a video where someone claimed that the bottom of the vertical bar needs to be something like 3" above the horizontal bar, but I've never actually that stated in code (but I haven't looked). The bar will have to be outside of the shower next to the door. I might have to put some trim or something on the wall there to cover the edge of the wall flange and to make sure the door trim won't get in the way.
When it comes to the trim and the grab bar shelf, I'm trying to decide which one should be above the other. Pros of having the shelf above is it may keep the hose out of the way of the handle and I can be sure blocking won't interfere with the PEX running to the valve. Cons are that the hose may get in the way of grabbing soap. I'm also not sure what height the controls should be at. I used to have it mapped out in my head but I forgot.
This is my rough image of the options:
Which looks better? Or rather, which do you think would function better?
I know I'm cluttering things up with images, but I want to show my Sketchup pics of the general layout. I did my best to get an approximation of the colors (although the light over the window & the existence of the shower are different). I didn't feel like trying to draw in the existing ugly green fiberglass showertub one piece unit.
I couldn't find a model that approximated the showerhead that will be used so I just slapped a random showerhead up there. There will actually be a double-curved shower curtain rod but there weren't models of them & I was lazy. I also didn't make the vertical grab bar long enough as it is 48".
Do the shower controls have to be within a certain distance of the showerhead?
Thoughts?
Suggestions?
