All posts by : Bluestone Digital

You’ve finally made the decision – it’s time to upgrade your out-of-date shower with a new custom glass enclosure!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!

Bathroom remodeling is the most common home improvement project for homeowners. As many as 81% of all projects involve updating the bathroom.

Frameless glass shower doors are trending as the modern way to enclose your shower. This glass minus the hardware will not only improve the look of your bathroom but is easier to care for too.

Considering frameless glass for your shower? Consider these pros and cons before you make the decision.

What are Frameless Glass Shower Doors?
The goal of a frameless shower door is to embrace minimalism. You will see them and not realize that you have.

There will be a distinct lack of hardware around the glass. Gone are the days of the gold and silver frames around the outside.

Typically, there are a few clips holding the sheet of glass in place. You’ll find that the glass in this system is much thicker than the framed option.

Pros of Frameless Shower Doors
There are many benefits of upgrading to frameless shower enclosures. Some are cosmetic, but there are also functional benefits.

Style
A minimalist interior design is trending right now. This trend has made frameless glass showers popular.

If you are looking to sell or rent your home, this will make the bathroom desirable. Having a frameless glass shower enclosure will be deemed as upscale.

Once you eliminate the hardware, you are no longer limited to how you decorate the rest of the bathroom. This gives you complete freedom when decorating the rest of the bathroom.

No Limits on Sizing
When you buy framed glass shower doors, you will find a standard set of sizes. Hopefully, your bathroom works with one of those sizes.

Alternatively, you can cut frameless glass to fit whatever size you need. This gives the doors a lot more flexibility.

Think of this as an opportunity to customize your shower doors. You can make them slide, or create any sized door.

No Corroding
When there is no hardware, there is nothing to corrode. Corroded metal is the most common reason for replacement of traditional metal framed doors.

Your shower will continue to look great long into the future. You will also save money by not having to make the replacement as soon.

Maximize your space
Sure, a frameless glass shower enclosure cannot magically add square footage to your bathroom. What it can do is trick your brain into thinking the bathroom is bigger.

If you currently have a shower curtain, this is like a fabric wall dividing your bathroom. It makes the bathroom look smaller.

A glass wall is transparent, so while it still divides the room, you don’t see it that way. Your bathroom will feel brighter, bigger, and airier.

Minimize the Mold
Mold will have fewer places to grow when there is no hardware for water to collect around. Framed shower doors give water the chance to collect under and around the door’s seals.

This collected water and your bathroom’s warm temperature is the perfect environment for mold to grow. You are then fighting the never-ending battle to remove it.

Frameless doors are the easiest to clean. Just wipe down the sheet of glass and squeegee. Once you’re done wiping, the glass is clear and you are clean.

Cons of Frameless Glass Shower Door
There are some cons to consider before making the commitment to a frameless glass door. Price tends to be the biggest deterrent to those looking to make the upgrade.

Price
The initial price of a frameless shower door is higher than that of traditional framed doors. If you are on a strict and tight budget, this may not be the door for you.

However, you need to consider more than the initial investment. You are giving your home an upscale and modern update.

You are also increasing the time of use before you need to replace this door. The money you spend on the glass now is well worth the benefits.

Chance of Leaks
The metal frame around traditional glass doors act as an insulator. This keeps the water in the shower, and out of the rest of your bathroom. Without this insulation, water can leak out as you are bathing. Keep this in mind when considering the placement of your shower head.

You won’t want the shower head pointing directly at the glass or gaps, as this may cause water to leak out. Having the glass cut to precise dimensions by a professional is the way to go in order to avoid this issue from even occurring.

A professional will measure and cut the glass to fit your shower dimensions specifically and make the gaps as small as possible.

Heat might be a problem
This is a very rare occurrence. Frameless glass shower enclosures are made from tempered glass. On very rare occasions, the glass cannot withstand the heat from the water and the glass will shatter. This is a rare thing to happen and framed doors face the same potential problem. Do not let this very small possibility stop you from giving your shower a beautiful new look.

Give Your Bathroom an Upscale and Modern Look
Your bathroom and kitchen are the two places in your home that people notice the most. When remodeling your home for sale, these are the two rooms to do.

Keep this in mind if you are thinking about giving your bathroom an update. You’ll want to pick features that give your home a modern and upscale feel.

The best way to do that is by installing frameless glass shower doors in your shower. It’s like adding square footage without breaking down walls.

Not sure where to start? Contact us and let us help put you in touch with a few of the reputable companies that use Premier Hardware products.