What decisions do I have to make when planning my frameless shower?

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1. Glass Style: There are a lot of glass styles to choose from but the most popular are:
   • Clear Glass: recommended for darker tiled bathrooms; has an inherent slight green tint to it which you'll notice on the edge of the glass
   • Low-Iron Glass (such as Starphire): higher transparency glass that allows the true tile color to show through. Recommended for white or light tiled showers. Provides a truly elegant shower appearance.
   • Frosted Glass: this partially opaque glass is made from acid-etching or sandblasting and can be done the entire glass pane or made into a design.
   • Rain Glass: is a factory made design that runs the glass to add texture and privacy to your shower.
   • ShowerGuard: This type of glass, made by Guardian, is not a coated glass but fabricated to resist hard-water stains, corrosion and etching caused by mineral deposits in water. ShowerGuard glass comes in two styles: Clear and Low-Iron (very clear).
     
     Note: certain style of glass, such as a color tint or pattern, may only be available in 3/8-inch glass thickness. ½" thick glass carries fewer style choices.
2. Glass Thickness Type:
   • Frameless showers: The strongest glass we offer for frameless showers is 1/2-inch architectural glass, which is recommended for frameless showers. 3/8" glass is available for frameless showers. We can make a recommendation on which thickness to choose based on your shower design.
   • Framed showers: We recommend 3/16" or 1/4" glass for framed showers because the glass is lighter but the doors are very sturdy given the metal frame.
3. Glass Shower Door Hinges
   • Hinge Types:
     • Pivot hinge: for those who want the largest amount of glass surface in a frameless shower, pivot hinges are the best. Pivot hinges mount to the top and bottom corners of your shower door and are hardly noticeable.
     • Side mount hinge: for those who are looking to bring an accent into their shower design side mount hinges can be the answer. Side-mount hinges are notched into the sides of the shower door so the hinges are visible.
     • Glass to glass hinges: allow you to connect two panels of glass for a seamless look. These hinges allow you to open the glass door panel 90 degrees.
   • Hinge design:
     • There is a large selection of hinge styles to choose from. In general, there are two basic styles, square hinges and rounded edge hinges. Square hinges tend to be suited better for contemporary looks while rounded hinges lend themselves to a more traditional look.
4. Connecting Hardware Types
   • Clips: Glass-to-glass metal clips are only about two inches wide and are notched directly into glass panels. When placed correctly, metal clips provide ample support.
   • U-Channels: metal channels that provide continuous support of the glass, especially heavy glass. Like hinges, U-channels come in decorative finishes that can be matched to shower hardware and are often chosen because they bring style and definition to a shower.
5. Hardware Style: There is tremendous variety in hardware styles. We offer the full line of CRLaurence hardware because they are known for their quality, durability and options.
6. Configuration: Your glass shower configuration will first be determined by your existing bathroom space and where your plumbing is now unless you are completely remodeling or newly building your bathroom. We have decades of experience helping homeowners plan the best shower configuration for their bathroom and we'll be delighted to help you find a configuration that best fits your bathroom.