Whether someone is handicapped or not, it feels great to take a soothing and refreshing shower. There’s no better bathing experience than having water rain down on your head and body. In addition, you can get in and get out of a shower a lot faster than sitting in a bathtub, waiting for it to fill and drain.
But if you are disabled or have restricted mobility, you know that having easy access into and out of the shower is critical. This is especially true if you use a wheelchair. The two types of showers for disabled people that you should be considering are handicap walk in showers and level access shower cubicles. Let’s examine each closely.
Walk In Showers For Disabled Persons
These types of showers come in different sizes and configurations. When you purchase one of them, it’ll consist of a shell or enclosure that has three walls and there will be a floor tray (or pan) with a drain. These handicap shower stalls are made of either fiberglass or acrylic.
If you’re building a new home, you can purchase the entire shell and floor as one seamless molded piece. Otherwise, you’ll have to buy a version that has be assembled. This is because the one piece unit wouldn’t fit through your doors and down your hallways. As an example, a typical handicap walk in shower might have the dimensions of 80″ high x 48″ wide x 37″ deep. And rather than having a door, these showers will usually come with a shower curtain and rod.
Other key design considerations that make these showers different from some other walk in showers include:
- A curbless or lipless floor tray. This will ensure that the shower floor will be flush with the rest of the bathroom floor. So someone in a wheelchair can be rolled right in and be transferred to a seat. Most manufacturers will offer a removable water barrier that can be placed along the edge of the tray to keep excess water from leaking. By the way, this is why you’ll often hear these showers referred to as wet rooms or wet floor showers.
- Handicap shower grab bars -- They are necessary for providing support and aiding in transferring someone to and from a wheelchair. These bars need to be able to support at least 250 pounds.
- Handicap shower seats -- They are usually made of polyurethene or plastic and look like little benchs. You should be able to fold it up when not in use.
Naturally, you can get all kinds of fancy handicap shower accessories options. But for a standard handicap showers expect to pay $1000-$2000 plus the cost of installation. This type of work should only be done by a professional and it shouldn’t take them more than a half a day to complete. This assumes that no special work has to be done such as removing an old bathtub or replacing outdated plumbing fixtures.
If you’re curious about what it will take to install one of these showers, then check out the video below. The company in the video doesn’t specialize in handicap showers and I’m not endorsing their product. However, you’ll get a good idea of what you can expect.
Level Access Showers (Cubicles)
These types of showers for disabled persons are usually set up in a corner of the bathroom — although that’s not a requirement. Again, it comes down to having sufficient room for wheelchair access, if that’s important. Plus, locating the shower in a corner allows you to maximize the usage of space in your bathroom. A stall that’s 3 feet wide by 6 feet long should be large enough for even someone using a wheelchair.
These showers differ from handicap walk in showers in that there is no shell enclosure to buy. Instead, you would set up the shower in your bathroom where the walls have already been tiled to provide a water barrier.
In this instance, the shower kit would consist of a curbless shower tray for the floor, door panels, and a wrap around curtain rail and curtain. Of course, you can get grab bars, a showerhead, and a seat that can be attached to the bathroom walls.
Just like the walk in showers for disabled people, the curbless tray would be flush with the bathroom floor. It would also be installed so that it touches the two corner walls. If wheelchair access is not critical, you can get one with a lip to help as a water barrier.
There will be two shower panel enclosures that surround the two open sides of the shower tray. The panels are only 30″-35″ high, which is why these showers are called cubicles. But they can be higher if you want. You can see through them like regular shower doors. The panels can swing open and close and you can get them as bi-parting doors, making it easy for them to collapse like an accordian and rest against the walls. They also help to keep water from leaking, although this won’t be a major issue because the shower tray is designed to channel water toward the drain.
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The shower rail and curtain will be about 6-7 feet off the floor. The wrap around curtain will provide additional privacy.
You can expect to pay $200-$1000 for this set up, plus the cost of installation which shouldn’t take more than a few hours.
The type of disabled shower you choose depends on a couple of things. Of course, the obvious one is budget. But it also depends on the size and configuration of your bathroom. Is your bathroom designed in such a way that it can accommodate a handicap shower that has a 3-wall shell? If not, you’ll have to pay additional installation costs.
On the other hand, if a level access shower cubicle seems more in line with your budget, is there a corner in your bathroom that has water-proofed walls? If not, you’ll have to get this done.
Unlike walk in bathtubs, the great thing about the above types of showers for disabled people is that the price range is not more expensive than traditional showers.
Finally, you should ensure that your handicap shower design is in compliance with all applicable regulations including:
- Uniform Plumbing Code (U.P.C.)
- Standards for Plastic Showers (A.N.S.I. Z124.2)
- International Plumbing Code (I.P.C.)
And while the Americans With Disablities Act http://www.ada.gov/ establishes standards for commercial use products and projects (not residential), it’s a good idea for your shower to meet those requirements as well.
Ultimately, what you’ll find is that other a few small but very important design differences, showers for disabled people are similar to all others.