You’ve finally made the decision – it’s time to upgrade your out-of-date shower with a new custom glass enclosure! Be prepared to see your bathroom in a whole new light, with more open space and a modern look!

Before you get started, though, you will want to make yourself familiar with the aesthetic touches you want and the structural elements you’ll need to ensure maximum functionality and impact. After years of providing hardware for frameless shower enclosures for customers in South Africa, we’ve seen several contractor mistakes and oversights that can upend your project. You don’t need to become an expert on the matter, but understanding the fundamentals can help ensure that the contractor you choose is building your new enclosure the right way.

Heavy frameless shower enclosure Raleigh Tip 1: Angles to Use

Plan for your shower to be built using 90°, 135°, or 180° angles. Most shower hardware is designed to accommodate these angles, so planning ahead can help guarantee the enclosure will function correctly and remain cost-effective.

Tip 2: Support for Shower Doors and Hardware
Make sure the wall where you plan to install your hinged door has the proper studding support behind it. Doubled 2x4s is best, but a single 2×4 will work. Additionally, provide wood studs or blocking where doors hinge or panels are anchored, especially if metal studs were used in the original construction of the wall.

Tip 3: Shower Curb
Do you want to install your shower enclosure on a curb, or would you rather have it flush with the floor? Eliminating the curb can be beneficial to planning a handicap-accessible shower enclosure, but the curb can help prevent water from leaking or pooling on the floor of your bathroom.

Tip 4: Slope of Curb
Typically, curbs are sloped at a 5-degree slope to enable the water to flow toward the drain. Without this slope – sometimes referred to as the “pitch” – the curb would have stood water on top or could leak water onto the bathroom floor.

Tip 5: Slope of Shower Seat
If you are considering a built-in shower seat, make sure that the seat slants toward the drain at a 5-degree slope. This allows water to flow off of the seat and into the drain.

Tip 6: Plumb Walls
In order to prevent gaps, uneven joints, and hinge “bind”, any wall that meets a door or glass panel must be precisely vertical (also called “plumb”). If the wall is more than ¼” out of plumb will be both prone to leak and be unsightly.

Tip 7: Minimum Width of Glass Panels
Each glass panel should be at least 4½” wide, which is the minimum width for tempering glass and supporting the hardware. The door must be at least 22” wide but no more than 36” wide.

Heavy frameless shower enclosure Raleigh Tip 8: Glass Tiles
When designing your shower enclosure, avoid any plans that involve mounting door hinges and glass clips onto the glass tiles. These situations often cause breakage, adding time and expense to your new enclosure.

Tip 9: Soffits
The eaves along the top of your shower are called “soffits”. In order to avoid an uneven look, your soffits must line up perfectly with the angles in the curb below.

Tip 10: Shower Head Position
Insider tip: If possible, make sure to position your showerhead toward tiled walls or fixed panels. This minimizes leakage. Whatever you do, never place your showerhead opposite another door or opening unless you have a low-flow showerhead or one that points straight down to the floor.

Tip 11: Raised Tiles and Overhangs
It is the goal of any professional installation to ensure that nothing interferes with the door’s movement and leave no gaps between the door and the wall. This situation can often arise with raised decorative tiles or overhanging tiles, but these can be modified to allow for proper door usage. You should note, however, this is sometimes done using filler, which may negatively impact the look of the finished product.

Tip 12: Curb Tops
Solid pieces of tile, marble, and granite are ideal for the curb top. Tiled curb tops increase the chance of a leak, and can lead to mildew or mold down the line. The shower door seal functions best on a solid, smooth surface.

At Premier Hardware, we pride ourselves on offering the best quality frameless glass hardware in South Africa. Contact the Premier Hardware team today to learn more!