Don't Turn a Beauty of a New Shower Into a Beast

Q: DEAR TIM: I need a new shower door for my bathroom. While visiting a showcase of new homes, I saw lots of interesting shower doors that had very different glass. After seeing all of them, I'm convinced that I want a frameless shower door that will make my bathroom like a dreamy spa. What do I need to know about these doors before making a decision? What do you recommend to ensure that the shower door doesn't leak? -- Patty P., Stoneham, Mass.

A: DEAR PATTY: A glass shower door, especially a frameless glass shower door, can really add to the eye appeal of a bathroom. As with many building products, shower doors have come a long way since the first sliding door that my dad installed in our home more than 40 years ago. Cleaning that beast was almost impossible, as gunk would accumulate in the track on the tub edge.

Recently, my wife and I installed a frameless shower door in our master bathroom. I've always wanted one, but never realized how dramatic the look would be in our own home. We also have a neo-angle shower door in another bathroom, but the aluminum framing around each panel of glass, plus the aluminum at each corner, makes it look clunky compared with the new door.

Before you make your final decision to buy a new door, there are quite a few things you need to consider. First and foremost, you should make sure you're dealing with a company that sells both standard and custom shower doors. Look for a dealer that's been in the business for a long time, preferably more than 30 years.

You should be able to choose from numerous frame finishes that should match the fixtures and faucets in your bathroom. In our bathroom, the new shower door handle is polished nickel that matches the finish on the shower faucet as well as the nearby vanity faucets. Better yet, the style of the shower door handle also matches the design of the faucets. They look like they were made by the same company, even thought they were not.

It's important to have a range of options for the glass. My wife was able to pick from 16 types of glass. Our pattern is called Rain, and looks like random vertical grooves made by water drops that might run down a glass panel. The grooves are on the outside of the panels, making it easy to squeegee the inside to keep it sparkling clean.

Your shower door must have a good seal, and the curb the door assembly rests on is the foundation of a leakproof installation. In my opinion, it's mandatory to use a solid material with no or minimal seams for the curb. I used three pieces of granite for my curb, and the seam at each corner of my neo-angle shower where the granite meets is bonded permanently with epoxy. You can use marble, solid-surface material, cast stone, etc. I would never recommend ceramic tile for the curb, as each grout line could eventually leak.

The curb should also be sloped back toward the shower. It must be level side to side, but it should slope inwards to the shower so that water doesn't pool against the intersection of the shower door panels and the curb.

Make sure that the wall surfaces are clean before the new shower door is installed. This ensures that the caulk used to create the leakproof seal will adhere well to the wall surfaces. Follow the manufacturer's recommendations as to wait time before you use the shower. Some want you to wait 24 hours to allow sufficient time for the caulk to cure.

Tim Carter can be contacted via his Web site, http://www.askthebuilder.com/printer_Submit_Question.shtml.