Shower dilemma

13 years ago

We are designing our down sized retirement home..can't decide if we should put in a one piece acrylic shower which is no/low maintenance or a walk-in no threshold shower with tile which looks beautiful but costs more and harder to keep grout nice...any ideas
??

Featured Answer

sunabar

13 years ago

We've had both, and I prefer the tile. The tile cleans up much easier than our surround. The down side is having to possibly re-grout later. I would pick a darker grout.
I chose acrylic in our new home because I thought it would be easier to maintain, wrong. Our acrylic surround has a rough surface on the floor that is hard to keep clean. The walls never look great either.
My mom had shower put in made out of three sheets of a solid shower product that looks like silestone. She can't remember the name. She loves it. It always looks clean, its easy to clean and little to no maintenance. I know it costs more (not sure how much) , but she has nothing but great things to say about it. I wish we had it in our budget at the time.

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Comments (6)

Judy M
13 years ago
I think that might matter depending on what you want and the value of the home and how custom similar homes in area are furnished.

You could do a one piece and customize it with tile on the wall ( and ceiling if you'd like) above the surround. I would add a light in the ceiling above the shower, it's still lower maintenance but still has a more custom feel.

I think most older citizens can step over one small step to get into a shower, the only restriction would be if you are wheelchair bound.
vickihull thanked Judy M
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vickihull
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks..If she recalls the name let me know...sounds like what I want.
sunabar
13 years ago
Hi, it is Silestone, an engineered quartz product. Hope this helps. Good luck with your project!
GaryJ P
13 years ago
It can become eventually difficult for seniors to step over even just a small rise that leads into a shower. Even if they are still in good health, at advancing age they may suffer bouts with illness, or increasing side effects or contraindications from meds that sometimes cause things such as dizziness, delirium, etc. One option is to have good handrails installed inside stall on walls, or even a fold down or portable in-stall shower chair that the elder can use, while maintaining the beautiful renovation work that s/he or you wish to build into the stall.
sunabar
13 years ago
I could not agree more. Well placed handrails are essential for safety. They were placed on all sides. Mom also had a handheld shower head along with an adjustable height shower head installed to assist when the portable shower chair was in use. She also chose a shower curtain and rod for easier transfer from the shower. This also allowed room for someone to assist my father if or when he needed.

I should add that this stall was installed in an existing laundry room on the main floor for my dad. It sounds like you will have many more options (size,design,threshold ect.). Best of luck to you and yours!