Shower Bath - Fixed Head v Shower Rail

youtheman

Folks,

I’m about to replace my bath with a shower bath, complete with thermostatic mixer and 2 bar pump. But I’m wondering if I should go for a fixed head or a shower rail (with removable head). I know you can get a unit that has both facilities, not really interested in that.

I like the idea of the fixed head, looks a lot neater. But I’m wondering which unit is likely to lead to less splashing (bearing in mind that a shower screen on a bath is not as effective as a shower door). Another advantage of the removable head is that you can get in the shower and point the head away and wait while the water heats up.

My eldest is 6 foot 3, and still growing, so I'll have to see if I have enough head room for the fixed head.

What would your preference be?. Any other considerations?

danjo-xx

Turn off your headlamps pls your blinding us

Joey the lips

Your thinking about it the wrong way so here is how i use to sell it.

A single fella usually goes with a fixed head. Why. No adjustment required. and the head is usually attractive when you have the o/h under it.

However a man living with a women realises a womens quirky ways.

A women will get up on a saturday. Have a shower. Go into town run around buying clothes get her hair done and the come home to get ready to go out. She cannot shower if its a fixed head it will ruin her hair and she cannot bath as the steam ruins her hair.

If you have a riser rail head she drops the head down and showers normall not wetting her chest.

So my suggestion to you would be buy a riser rail and set the lowest part that it comes down to chest height on yout wife and let your sons duck if it does not reach high enough.

Trust me. The peace will be worth it.

youtheman

Thanks Joey, you certainly make a good argument for the shower rail. So it's functionality over style (turns out I ordered the shower rail but I was having second thoughts).

And Banjo, didn't your mother not tell you 'If you have nothing good to say then better say nothing'.

Joey the lips

youtheman wrote: »

Thanks Joey, you certainly make a good argument for the shower rail. So it's functionality over style (turns out I ordered the shower rail but I was having second thoughts).

And Banjo, didn't your mother not tell you 'If you have nothing good to say then better say nothing'.

Bang on.... If it were style fixed head and concealed all the way. However sometimes life dictates.

If you want any more advice just ask.

items

Joeys fairly spot on with advice, fixed heads go the distance apart from the odd cleaning or limescale, shower rails tend to fall to pieces over the years but sometimes they have to be used, its for women mostly, they like to take head from rail to wash hair or save from hair being washed.

If possible I try to avoid the use of shower rails, I've been on enough jobs to see what happens to rails over the years, most tend to have bits replaced, even entire rail replaced leaving nasty looking holes in tile from a replacement rail that cant match up.

You can pick up double, triple, multiple outlet showers, on the doubles you can have both fixed head main shower and a small neat movable shower head for what ever use its needed for, hand set is the name of the smaller shower head, no rail needed, the hand set just slips into a holder.

This might be ideal for your case if you've not went and bought all the gear, would do no harm at looking into a double outlet shower complete with fixed head and handset.

Forgot to mention, its fairly obvious but just in case, with double outlet showers, user selects which head they want water coming out of, in the above case, either water coming out fixed head or water coming out of handset, not both at same time, sometimes the double outlet shower confuses people.

mossie110

http://www.taps4less.com/PI/MA-SCX099.jpg
just to give you some ideas best of both.

Joey the lips

mossie110 wrote: »

http://www.taps4less.com/PI/MA-SCX099.jpg
just to give you some ideas best of both.

Exposed type. Best option all around. however as suggested by items keep a couple of tiles in case you are left with holes in the future. Make sure the exposed valve opens at 2 bar(your pump pressure)

items

Joey the lips wrote: »

Exposed type. Best option all around. however as suggested by items keep a couple of tiles in case you are left with holes in the future. Make sure the exposed valve opens at 2 bar(your pump pressure)

Joey, notice how the poster kind of went for rail, one reason, not getting hand wet while turning on shower? Have you come across that much?

When I fit shower valves where ever possible I offset the valve to one side (shower entrance) and have spray head, either fixed or movable located @ shower center. Sometimes people call me out on it, saying its not right, looks wrong etc when I tell them why I've did it such a way sometimes they are amazed at something so simple being missed out an awful lot.

Fitting a shower valve directly under neath head when you have an option of moving it away to me is a fairly daft thing to do. Homeowner has to reach in funny to turn on valve without getting wet, no need for it.

In all shower magazines, brochures etc I've always found valve offset from shower head displayed in picture, still thats not enough as most cases I find valve directly under spray head, even in cases where the option to locate valve pretty much anywhere is available.

Joey the lips

items wrote: »

Joey, notice how the poster kind of went for rail, one reason, not getting hand wet while turning on shower? Have you come across that much?

When I fit shower valves where ever possible I offset the valve to one side (shower entrance) and have spray head, either fixed or movable located @ shower center. Sometimes people call me out on it, saying its not right, looks wrong etc when I tell them why I've did it such a way sometimes they are amazed at something so simple being missed out an awful lot.

Fitting a shower valve directly under neath head when you have an option of moving it away to me is a fairly daft thing to do. Homeowner has to reach in funny to turn on valve without getting wet, no need for it.

In all shower magazines, brochures etc I've always found valve offset from shower head displayed in picture, still thats not enough as most cases I find valve directly under spray head, even in cases where the option to locate valve pretty much anywhere is available.

Yes i have. Its the one thing i hate about manual valves. With all the simple technological inovations on the market I am amazed no one has worked out an alternative. For example use 3 way valves and dump the first few seconds straight into the waste. There has been a lot of broken shower doors due to the sudden blast of cold water. Some of the grohe electric showers have a tank where they keep a supply heated.

The point you make is why i never fit fixed head showers but most builders fit them as standard as the head comes free with the manual shower.