Shower Curtains vs Over Bath Screens

Shower Curtains vs Over Bath Screens

8:50 AM, 12th October 2012, About 12 years ago 10

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This article which looks at “Shower Curtains vs Over Bath Screens” is the fourth in a series of articles by bathroom water damage prevention specialist Steve Dalloway.

In my experience of over 20 years as a landlord, screens leak and don’t keep the water in the bath. That’s a fact ! They look nice but they don’t do their job properly.

Replacing screens is expensive and even though the replacement seals are available for them now they still leak and they still are hard to keep looking nice and fresh. They also let water out in terms of spray and as screens are generally only 800mm long, the floor still gets wet. My opinion for what it’s worth, is go with a quality shower rail and a curtain. The curtain can be easily replaced for around £20.00 or less and a quality rail looks good for years.

But I hear you say, “water gets past the corner of the curtain and drenches the floor !”

Well that used to happen but there are things out there that can stop that happening really easily and I should know, it’s the first product I ever invented and patented. It’s called a “Dripguard” and it’s a must in any home, let alone a rental.

If anyone has questions, I’d be happy to answer them or offer advice on best practice.

My next article is about Sealing in Baths and Shower Trays to avoid expensive leaks and also black mould.


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Comments

19:08 PM, 12th October 2012, About 12 years ago

Shower curtains are great IF tenants can actually be bothered to use them! Bath screens do their job very well if they are fixed and siliconed in place - and rarely need replacing !

11:49 AM, 13th October 2012, About 12 years ago

Shower screens are indeed mucky - they get limescale etc all over them (which tenants never clean off) and mould underneath the rail. We have cheap (£5/6) white textile shower curtains which can be soaked in neat bleach if/when they get mouldy on the bottom, which keeps them good as new, esp if ironed. Or can discard at end of tenancy. You need a splashguard as well, for the bit between wall and curtain. We use the tidee tub. We tried it out at home and now have it in all our properties, it works perfectly.

Joe Bloggs

11:20 AM, 14th October 2012, About 12 years ago

re 'dripguard' there is nothing to stop the water running along the moulding and dripping onto the floor when it reaches the end. its missing a curved end to direct water back into bath.

14:24 PM, 15th October 2012, About 12 years ago

Hi Jones, I had not come across the tidy tub, looks quite good. When we were developing Dripguard we went to several hotel chains as we had initially a similar deign. Hotels rejected this triangle design some 10 years ago as if could if someone fell on it cause injury. ( To be fair, most things can cause injury..... ) Anyway with the help and advice from various respected hotel maintenance managers we came up with Dripguard. It’s been in production 10 years now and in excess of 20,000 pieces in the UK. It’s a niche market, but our customers seem to like using them as they are quite unobtrusive and work well.

15:26 PM, 15th October 2012, About 12 years ago

Fair point, but if they are if siliconed in place an aweful chore to clean. You have to get in the bath to clean the corners.....

16:27 PM, 15th October 2012, About 12 years ago

Not quite true there Mr. Bloggs............ This will only happen if the bath is put in very badly and out of level severely.
With 20,000 sold, I think we might have had a few customer complaints if they didn’t work.
Our feedback on our website and my own personal usage tells me that they work pretty well.

Joe Bloggs

18:40 PM, 15th October 2012, About 12 years ago

so when the water reaches the end of the moulding, how does the water know to turn into the bath rather than onto the floor, seeing as the rim of baths are horizontal?

12:01 PM, 16th October 2012, About 12 years ago

Its purely a matter of physics. water will find the quickest way to a lower level and if you block one path it will find another - 99% of thetime back into the bath. Best you find the product on our site and read the reviews or I will send you one to try if you have a need......

Joe Bloggs

19:13 PM, 16th October 2012, About 12 years ago

yes, but the floor is also a 'lower level'. you are referring to the effects of gravity and this will only divert water into the bath if the rim slopes into the bath. if the rim is horizontal (which is the norm) then youve yet to explain why water will not be on floor.

11:03 AM, 14th December 2012, About 11 years ago

I think I prefer over bath screens in the shower but I have curtains actually. I think it's time to redecorate my bathroom. I will check Roca's bathroom catalogue, they've great products.

Diana

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