Surf the channels on your television at any given moment and chances are you’ll come across a home design show. It’s no surprise that home remodeling has become the national craze that it is today. It’s common to concentrate on modernizing fixtures and hardware as well as tiles when updating a bathroom, but installing custom shower doors can make a big difference as well.
Shower doors have evolved a lot since the days of smoked glass panels that rolled sideways on a track along the floor. Today the choices are numerous and installation can be completed in no time at all. Shopping for the type that best fits the overall décor of your bathroom can be done online or by visiting a glass shop in your local area. Most shower door installers will take measurements of your shower for you so you can be sure that your order is right when it arrives.
Shower Door Options
When customizing a shower door your choices should be fully explored not just in terms of visual appeal, but functionality. A swinging (as opposed to sliding) door should be considered if you have a medium to large-sized bathroom. Since regulations require that single-action hinged doors open out to enable someone who is suddenly ill or injured to exit, they’re quite safe to use these days.
Framed shower doors tend to be the cheapest type. Designed very simply these doors are basically thin plates of glass, normally around 3/16 of an inch thick, inside a metal frame. The frames can be of various metals–from nickel to deep bronze. Whether framed shower doors are as attractive as unframed ones is a matter of opinion, though most people seem to prefer the clean look and easy maintenance of a frameless shower.
Frameless shower enclosures give a minimalist, spacey feel to your bathroom. And since bathrooms–particularly those in condos or apartments–can be small, that can be a good thing. Corrosion collects along the frame of a framed shower, so in addition to its aesthetic appeal custom frameless shower doors are also more sanitary and easier to clean. Keeping a shower door free of the scaly film that can accumulate on its surface over time just requires spritzing the glass regularly with a good glass cleaner or spraying on glass sealant that you wipe off with a microfiber rag afterward.
When you’re shopping for custom glass shower doors there are a variety of glass types to choose from. There’s clear glass. There’s also obscure glass, which has a cloudy finish and is not fully transparent. Then there are beveled and fluted surfaces, which feel less modern and create more of an antique atmosphere. Don’t overlook the handles that you select for your shower door. Details are important and help to give a room an air of completeness. Standard pull handles can have a variety of finishes, including brushed nickel or chrome. Explore your choices. You’ll be surprised how much a shower door can add to a bathroom once you decide to customize it.
No comments yet.