Frameless Shower Openings – Modern to be Square (and Plumb and Level)
When building the opening for your frameless shower enclosure, one of the most important things you can do is make sure all walls are plumb, level, and square. Heavy glass custom frameless showers are not very forgiving of a poorly constructed opening.
There are a number of considerations regarding the “squareness” of the shower door opening and tolerance. The following are the basics for measuring out of square and detecting out of plumb. Out of plumb refers to the orientation of walls, steps, or buttresses along the vertical plane.
outside the square
For standard inline configurations (such as a fixed swing door and a stationary panel), measure the width of the opening at the bottom along the sill and along the approximate top of the unit, not the top of the unit. opening, unless your shower extends to the ceiling. . It is important to measure to 1/16″ and measure from tile to tile. You cannot perform the measuring step until the opening has been completely tiled.
If the top and bottom width measurements differ by at least 1/4″, you have an out-of-square condition and the glass may need edge cutting to ensure a proper fit. Once you have determined that the opening is out of square, the next step is to determine which wall is causing the out of square condition. To do this, keep a level on each wall.
It may be the case that only one wall is not plumb. For example, assume the right wall of the opening slopes in at least 1/4″ more at the top than the bottom. This scenario definitely requires an out-of-square edge cut for the glass to fit properly. .
In the event that neither wall is plumb, the interruption of each wall must be considered separately. If, for example, both walls are out of square by only 1/8″ (and the total cut is 1/4″), then there will be enough play on both sides of the opening and an out of square cut can be avoided.
arched walls
Arched walls present an especially tricky challenge. If you have a wall that bows at any point other than at the top or bottom of the opening, you may have a problem. Technically, if the arc is less than 1/8″ and not on the hinge side of the door, you should be able to bend the channel into place and the glass should have enough room to maneuver. Anything larger than 1/ 8″ however, and you will need to modify your opening.
It is also possible that your wall will bend. If your opening is for a single door, no problem. However, if your opening is for a door and panel and the arc is not on the hinge side of the door and the arc is less than 1/8″, you may need to apply some additional silicone to close. the space behind the channel. If the gap is greater than 1/8″, you may need to modify your opening.
If your wall slopes in or out on the hinge side of your door, consider the following. If the wall slopes inward (away from the door), then the only real concern is that you’ll have a slightly larger gap than normal. Since most shower heads are located close to where the door hinge is (and spray in the opposite direction), there should be no concern of water leaks.
If the wall slopes toward the door and the arc is greater than 1/8″, your opening may need to be modified. The most important thing is that the hinges are aligned so that the door swings correctly. If the wall bows in the middle, you may end up touching the glass. The gap between a plumb wall and the glass where the door hinges is 3/16″.
out of level
Being out of level is very similar to being out of plumb. As mentioned above, being out of level by 1/4″ or more requires the glass to be cut at an angle. The same principle applies if your opening is not level on the bottom. If it is out of level by less than a quarter inch, there must be enough play to secure the glass or you won’t notice the problem.
Suppose your sill is not level 1/8″ below your door. You may be having issues with your door sweep providing too much friction on one side and not enough coverage on the other end. You can easily modify the sweep so that it fits snugly to the outside of the opening level but cutting the vinyl at an angle with a razor blade.
what it all means
Hopefully by now you recognize the importance of building an opening that is plumb, level and square. While framed doors have higher tolerances for out-of-square conditions, frameless showers are custom fit products. To ensure that the glass fits into your opening with minimal gaps, additional cuts are required in the glass to compensate for any angles in the opening. These additional cuts equate to additional costs.
It is equally important that you accurately measure the opening when ordering a frameless shower door. It is essential that you provide information about the verticality, degree of leveling and degree of inclination of the walls that make up the opening. If your measurements are wrong, the manufactured glass will not fit correctly.