Survey: Which direction should the shower door swing?

[Manalto]

Well, your door sides with the tile guy, no room for argument.

I spotted a similar shower door in that fabulous mansion I posted some months earlier:

https://www.oldhousedreams.com/2019/07/22/1918-italian-renaissance-detroit-mi/

You know that the door you bought is of superior quality to anything you could buy today.

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I hope so. It seems substantial and strong. It's quite short (58"); intended, I assume, to be positioned above a rather high curb. I can also leave a gap at the top so I don't bonk my head getting into the shower.

Thank you for reposting that wonderful house in Detroit. In my search, I've learned that that "jailhouse" style of bars at the top was the dominant design for shower doors which continued through the 50s. (I'm surprised to learn here that it existed as early as 1918.)

Another good reminder from this house is that, before World War II, tile often had subtle but deliberate variations in color. I didn't find that, but I did happen upon a "faux handmade" subway tile from Spain in a soft pale green that I hope captures the spirit.

Lastly, the vintage photo of the 1918 house validates my choice of a checkerboard floor for the kitchen. Mine is VCT, but hey...

[Willa]

I hope so. It seems substantial and strong. It's quite short (58"); intended, I assume, to be positioned above a rather high curb. I can also leave a gap at the top so I don't bonk my head getting into the shower.

Another good reminder from this house is that, before World War II, tile often had subtle but deliberate variations in color. I didn't find that, but I did happen upon a "faux handmade" subway tile from Spain in a soft pale green that I hope captures the spirit.

I went through my Pinterest saves (99% from Old House Dreams listings) looking for curbs for showers. Here are some pics for your reference. It seems that the door did not always go to the top of the opening.

The subtle variations in tile color/texture seem to be a late teens/ 20's thing, from the more fancy-pants houses. 50's tiled bathrooms NEVER had this - except for the pearlescent plastic tiles.

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[Manalto]

Thanks, Willa. You missed your calling as a picture researcher; you have a real talent for finding interesting images.

I was able to see the bathroom the shower door came from and I'm sorry to say the homeowners, who have lived in the house since 1994, have decided to rip out the original 1940 bath with its pink tile and maroon edging, toothbrush holder, soap dish, etc. The curb to the shower was about 5" high.

A 5-inch curb would make the opening 6'1". Add a gap of a few inches on the top and there will be ample room for all but the unusually tall - and they're used to ducking. The tiler told me that tile thresholds in showers are troublesome so I'll probably put in a one piece threshold out of marble or some other stone and match it on the threshold to the room. I have my heart set on green onyx - but there I go, dreaming again...

[GinaC]

Yes, but without a tub edge to keep the shower curtain confined, it will blow out and water will be all over the floor.

In the 1960 house that I grew up in, the shower stall downstairs had walls on 3 sides, a curtain, and no door. The floor of the stall was made of some sort of concrete composite. It was raised from the bathroom floor about 2" and it had a lip that prevented splashing. We used a fabric curtain with a weighted clear plastic liner. The only downside was that you had to step up over the threshold, but if you have a door you have to do that anyway.

Willa, interestingly enough, that last photo has the same floorplan as mine, minus the window and the pretty colors. I thought perhaps they put the door in the wrong way, but that photo shows the door opening into the bathtub as well. It's so inconvenient and I wonder why they did it this way? I can't change mine around, unfortunately, because the inside of the door is painted and the outside is stained, also changing the original hardware would be a nightmare.

[Manalto]

In the 1960 house that I grew up in, the shower stall downstairs had walls on 3 sides, a curtain, and no door.

Gina, I agree that a shower curtain can be made to work in this situation. Before I demolished the bathroom, I had a shower curtain. It was okay, if a little claustrophobic. The decision to have a door is as much about style as it is about practicality. I like the way it looks. The shower is only 31" wide, so every inch taken up is significant. (And not a fan of shower curtains clinging to me.) Darker tile is going into the shower, so glass is a good material to admit the optimal amount of light.

[Willa]

The tiler told me that tile thresholds in showers are troublesome so I'll probably put in a one piece threshold out of marble or some other stone and match it on the threshold to the room. I have my heart set on green onyx - but there I go, dreaming again...

Tile thresholds are troublesome for the functionality or for him to make ?

Places that make stone countertops (term for this ?) usually have a large amount of offcuts in small sizes and strange shapes. You could probably find something for a good or great deal - though you'd have to pay them to cut to your size and do whatever they do to the edges ?

[GinaC]

In the 1960 house that I grew up in, the shower stall downstairs had walls on 3 sides, a curtain, and no door.

Gina, I agree that a shower curtain can be made to work in this situation. Before I demolished the bathroom, I had a shower curtain. It was okay, if a little claustrophobic. The decision to have a door is as much about style as it is about practicality. I like the way it looks. The shower is only 31" wide, so every inch taken up is significant. (And not a fan of shower curtains clinging to me.) Darker tile is going into the shower, so glass is a good material to admit the optimal amount of light.

Oh, I completely understand you wanting a door instead, I just wanted to let you know that it is an option, and one that I have personally seen work in the past. I contemplated putting a glass door on my current tub, but instead I'm going to remove the tub cubby and go with a short wall on one end with an L-shaped curtain rod so the room looks bigger. It's funny, it's almost the exact size and layout of my 1933 Bay Ridge apartment, and this is what I did there and it worked well.

I like the door that you've chosen, and it's unfortunate that you can't move the hinges. But it's your house and you're living there, and if you like it, go for it!

[Manalto]

Tile thresholds are troublesome for the functionality or for him to make ?

It was a quick comment from the tiler and then we moved on to other topics but I got the impression that he regards tiles on a shower curb as unstable or vulnerable. As if to illustrate his point, he pried off a couple of tiles from mine with his fingertips. He might have been referring to the amateurish job that was done at my house. Anyway, I'm sure with the proper amount of effort one could make a sound tile threshold (after all, we've seen those that have held up for 50 + years) but I do like the idea of a stone threshold that matches the one at the entrance to the room.



I haven't had very good luck with stone suppliers and fabricators in Connecticut. Their eyes instantly glaze over when I bring up the subject of small bits and pieces. (I've been looking, without success, for a translucent slab of marble for the ceiling of the shower.) I've seriously considered telling them that I'm outfitting a model apartment for a 500 unit complex so they'll pay attention to me.

[Willa]

I haven't had very good luck with stone suppliers and fabricators in Connecticut. Their eyes instantly glaze over when I bring up the subject of small bits and pieces. (I've been looking, without success, for a translucent slab of marble for the ceiling of the shower.) I've seriously considered telling them that I'm outfitting a model apartment for a 500 unit complex so they'll pay attention to me.

I was friends with a woman who was the caretaker for several colonies of (fixed) feral cats. One site was in an industrial area, behind one of these stone fabricators. There were piles and piles of all the pieces that had been cut out for sinks, narrow end pieces, etc. It might be that you need the secret password then one of the staff will show you the offcuts.

The offcuts weren't locked up, or treated as though they had any value, as they were adjacent to the dumpsters, left out in the elements.This might vary from business to business though ?

[Manalto]

It might be that you need the secret password then one of the staff will show you the offcuts.

"Pssssst...silicosis!"