We're planning a long-overdue upgrade of our '80s master bathroom.

Wife wants to wall in the shower with a tile exterior rather than use glass doors because glass is too difficult to keep clean.

Anyone else remodel a bathroom and not use glass shower walls? How did it turn out?

We had ours remodeled a few years ago with no shower door. It was the old 3' x 3' square. They broke through the back wall and took up the hall closet making it about 3' wide still but 6 ish feet long. LOVE having no shower door. Have never missed it!

Edit to say the walls and floor are tile.

For handicap reasons + 80's upgrade
took out typ. 5ft tub/shwr
installed shower
the builder found textured glass & door that mitigates the need for cleaning so often ... FYI haven't cleaned it yet in over a year
Wellborn Water (= C.S. water, their source)

No door showers need a ton of space and best served with a 2nd drain just outside the doorway but that means breaking into a slab that could lead to cracks (think windshield cracks that spread)

That's a good point. My first house had glass on the shower, but it was a builder grade house, so I'm sure spending a little extra coin for better glass will go a long way.

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

The biggest issue for us is the aesthetic of having a tile wall that breaks up the bathroom versus a see-through glass panel (as you walk in, the side of the shower is facing you rather than the entrance to the shower). But I think if it has some visual interest, like inset shelves or some unique tile, it would be okay.

This discussion has been helpful. I appreciate it.

How wide is that space for your shower/tub? I've been playing with layouts for a remodel and our space is pretty narrow, but yours looks even narrower.

last week of our MBR remodel and we just have the glass to put in. Our bathroom did not lend itself to a big enough shower for glassless

htxag09 said:

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This was us and why we went with glass. Some spaces look better with walled/tiled in showers, for some spaces it makes the whole bathroom look darker and smaller, imo. Have pictures of your space? We did this reno in 2022 and, as I said, the glass is still perfectly clear. Not cloudy or anything. We have never once squeegeed or cleaned it after showers.

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That's exactly how our tub/shower are located, so we'd have a big wall at the foot of the tub.

The remodeler made the same point you did; it will make the room look smaller. And I was concerned that it would be too dark inside the shower.

Your new room looks great. We may have to reconsider.

We have just installed new glass.

I don't know how well it works, but there was an option to add some kind protectant to the inside that is supposed to eliminate/minimize water spots.

We went with a walk in our shower with no door or glass. I get that the glass makes the room look bigger, but you now see the soap, shampoo, and anything else in the shower. As for light, we put a light in the shower.

We put our valve on the wall opposite of the shower nozzle (just inside the door).

GrimesCoAg95 said:

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We went with a walk in our shower with no door or glass. I get that the glass makes the room look bigger, but you now see the soap, shampoo, and anything else in the shower. As for light, we put a light in the shower.

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Probably the biggest drawback to glass is that you're able to look all the way out to the County Tax Office, and you're able to personally watch them laughing as they jack those Anderson property taxes through the roof.

Squeegee

Update: Our contractor just finished our bathroom remodel and it looks great. We went ahead and walled in the side of shower facing the tub as discussed in OP; tiled the wall; and hung two shelves on it.

I can't post photos but it turned out fantastic.

We still have glass on one side of the shower (the side with the door) but it is now enclosed everywhere else. The big concern that the new wall would be distracting or would make the shower seem small didn't really pan out. Wife is thrilled with the look; that's all that counts.

If you squeegee the glass after each shower, it stays perfectly clean.

No big deal.

Where do you put any shampoo or products? I see none in the shower ?

water turkey said:

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If you squeegee the glass after each shower, it stays perfectly clean.

No big deal.

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This. I keep a small squeegee hanging in the shower. Clean off the glass right after turning off the water. Takes less than a minute.

cena05 said:

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Where do you put any shampoo or products? I see none in the shower ?

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We have these glass corner shelves in the corner just left of the shower door.

Floor and Decor GLass Corner Shelves

Just putting this idea out there...I've always liked this concept of having a "wet area" behind a glass wall. Keep the tub/shower behind it...or if the room is large enough, not even having a glass or tiled wall.

Where did you get that tile? I really like that.

AGREED!
I get to design very few of these and 50% of them are either European or well traveled over there.

My fav was a Japanese deep soaking tub elevated inside a shower for 2-3 with entire exterior wall = glass block that max.light but no-see-um bodies inside; next door was a sauna room & coffee bar

We're currently building and are doing a car wash style double shower. I'm starting to worry about it being chilly in the winter but it's too late to do anything about it now!

Get a bathroom vent fan with a heater. Solved my problems and guests always think it's the greatest thing.

Can I ask which photo? I made two posts with different showers. Regardless, I got all the tile at Design Co. in downtown Bryan. I can get you name of the tile. Just let me know.

vmiaptetr said:

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Can I ask which photo? I made two posts with different showers. Regardless, I got all the tile at Design Co. in downtown Bryan. I can get you name of the tile. Just let me know.

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The dark tile. Thanks!

texagpilot said:

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Doesn't it get cold and drafty in winter without a wall or curtain in shower?

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this.
My wife is a woman, so she would never agree to having an open shower to let all the hot air out!

We use a squeegee, takes 10-15 seconds and is routine now. Our glass is clean and 10 years old.

Sorry it took me a while. The company that makes it is Atlas Concorde USA, and the name of the tile is Forge Steel.