Replace tub with shower?

[Mike Cornelsen]

I added a shower over the bathtub back in the mid-80's. I can't recall taking a bath in 23 years (that will generate snide comments ), only showers. It's time for complete bathroom remodel and I'm considering removing the bathtub altogether and replacing it with a walk-in shower, something along the 60"x32" size. Anyone got rid of their bathtub and later regretted it? Only adults, no kids to bathe and I figure I'll die in this house so resale value is of no concern.

[Doug Jones from Oregon]

Mike, I'm going to speak on maybe an unexpected angle to this.

I have over the last couple of years, become mobility challenged to the point that stepping over the tub edge or even standing in the tub to shower is difficult. Getting out of a bath itself would be near impossible so shower only for me.

My recently deceased father had the same problem over the last few years (we actually installed one of those open the door tub/shower systems for him).

I guess my point is that as become an older society, there are more of us that experience a difficulty with dealing with the tub, and many that no longer desire a bath (after all, we do have those hot tubs out back, right?).

I personally would consider any house I looked at as a plus if it had not only a walk in shower, but, if spaced allowed, a roll in shower so if one was chair bound it was convenient.

What's the loss here in a large roll-in shower if not needed....two can shower at once?

Doug

[Lee Koepke]

check with the wife.

we have a small shower (for me) and a whirlpool tub (for her) .. I offered to remove the tub, build a larger shower and increase our vanity to give us more room.

I lost that battle ...

[Matt Meiser]

My parent's took out a tub around 1990 and installed a shower that size and I don't think they regret it. We have a shower that size in our master bath and I love it. In the past 6 months I remodeled both bathrooms and the showers were the only thing we didn't change in each.

We did put a separate tub in our bathroom. I think I've used it twice in 6 months and my wife has used it a couple more times than that. Some friends that have both told us when we were planning our remodel that they could count on their fingers the number of times they'd use their tub in 10 years.

[Mike Cornelsen]

Excellent consideration. I'm no spring chicken myself (sorry, I've been reading the hilarious Missouri chicken post). When my dad got up there in years, we installed grab bars around the tub for him. A large shower would have allowed him extremely easy access and he could have taken a chair in with him.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

You might want to check with some realtors. IIRC in some areas, a shower is considered a half-bath.....the same bathroom with a tub is considered a full bath.....

[Mike Henderson]

When we did a remodel of our master bath in the house we lived in some years ago, we put in a large shower with two heads (with pressure sensing controls so the temp remains constant). Both my wife and I were working and both got up about the same time. That way, we could each shower without waiting for the other. And the shower didn't have to be that much larger.

Worked very well. I'd do it again if we were both working.

Oh, and no tub. Everywhere I've lived, a half bath only has a toilet and sink. If it has a shower or a tub it's called a full bath.

Mike

[Michael Gibbons]

We have 2 1/2 baths in our house. The hallway bath has a regular old tub with a shower head in it. Thats the one my wife uses because she works days and I work afternoons so she doesn't want to bother me with noise. My bathroom has a double wide shower that has 2 seats in it which is nice since I don't bang my head when I have to pick up the soap or shampoo bottle. I would like to take a scalding hot bath but either the tub is too small or I'm too BIG. plus I don't think there would be room for my rubber mitre saw.

[Joe Chritz]

That is about the size of my shower. Granted I have a big whirlpool corner tub which gets used like a hottub. I could live without a bath no problem.

I did my shower as a full custom. PVC liner, tile, etc. It was a big project but looks very cool when done.

Joe

[Mike Cutler]

Mike

I'm in the middle of a bathroom remodel myself,and will have no tub in the house at the finish.

The "Old Real Estate Sales" philosophy was that a tub was a selling point for people with children, and would devalue the home of not present.
In speaking with every person we know that has infants and toddlers, none of them use a bathtub. They site the safety concerns( drowning), The amount of water it takes to fill the tub, and the associated impact on their water bill, and the recovery cost of the hot water heater to reheat 25+ gallons of water as reasons for not using the tub.
All of them purchased a portable bath that worked from the kitchen sink to wash infants and toddlers. The kiddies went from being washed by the kitchen sink to using a shower.

Personally, I may put in a seperate whirlpool bath at a later date, but I don't see a negative associated any longer with not having a bathtub.
I think the last time I took a "bath" I was 9 (40+ years ago).

[Mike Cornelsen]

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the feedback. I'm in the very earliest planning stage; still just rolling ideas around in my head (and not much room to roll either!). Grab bars were already in the mix but thanks to Doug's response, I'm going to look at hand-held shower heads with a vertical height adjustment bar too.

[John Bartley]

In the plans for our retirement house we are including a walk-in shower, large enough to set a wooden chair into as part of the en-suite bathroom unit for our bedroom. There will be no tub. The guest bathroom (accessible to all in the house) will be much smaller with a conventional tub and overhead shower in the tub. In the en-suite unit we want to be able to either walk or wheel into the shower, and then sit down to shower should we feel the need.

cheers

[jeremy levine]

We also removed the bath from the mater bathroom, and installed a large shower.
No regrets, I love a shower with some space.

[Mitchell Andrus]

Check for code violations.... Some areas require at least one bathtub. You may not be able to sell it later on...

[Jeffrey Makiel]

In addition to the other good comments above. Looking at it from a safety standpoint...

As one ages, a walk-in shower is much more safer than a tub. If one is disabled, a walk in shower with an inexpensive shower chair and a shower head on a flexible hose is the safest and most conveint method of bathing in my opinion.

Tubs are now available with doors, but they are fairly pricey. A door can also be cut into an existing cast iron or steel tub for about $1,800. Neither of these options are very handsome...just functional. However, a walk-in shower is more roomier, and the theshold height can be as little as 2" when using a low profile fiberglass receptor base.

-Jeff