Our solution to a window in the shower.
Here’s the Before-and-After of the bath renovation.
Here’s an index of all bathroom remodel posts
We have a large window IN our shower– not unusual in old houses.
Below is the bathroom before we began the remodelā¦ the layout was awesome.
You can see that our ever-creative, previous owner applied his signature-brand of totally-impractical-I-found-this-in-the-trash-and-couldnāt-pass-it-up-solution.
I will give him credit for ONE thing, though– he used a luxury ledge tub… The side of the tub thatās against the wall has a ledge 4″ wider than normal.
That doesnāt sound like much, but it really is… especially if you’re concerned with being too close to a shower window.
As we planned the new bathroom layout, (which involvedĀ gutting the room down to the studs, and moving the sink over to the same wall as the super-fancyĀ concealed trapway toilet, we considered rearranging the shower location.
But the room is narrow, and we decided there was no good way to align the tub with another wall.
Here’s the window before. Ā It was the original one, and trimmed out in wood… Please don’t ask me about the sill. Ā I DON’T KNOW.
We also considered putting in a smaller windowā¦ Ā and moving it well above the shower area.
But in the end, I didnāt want to give up the natural light– I like the large window!
Also, I like my bathrooms to be BLINDINGLY bright… Iām really not kiddingā¦Ā I would put floodlights in, if Paul didnāt stop me.
Plus?Ā By the time we began the bathroom remodel, I had decided that having a giant window in your shower is a total luxury.
What initially felt like a design-challenge is one of my favorite elements of this bathroom… Ā In the summer, it feels like an outdoor shower.
If you donāt have one?Ā I suggest you go hack a hole in the side of your house RIGHT NOW.
I should say that privacy is not an issue for us, so I get this may not work for you, but either way,Ā here is my not-very-technical summation of how we waterproofed the window in the shower.
I do not pretend to be an expert on any of this. At all.
Mostly I held things.Ā Or handed things… Ā Or provided valuable commentary that Paul could not have lived without.
I have so many good suggestions ALL THE TIME.
Like what?Ā Iām so glad you asked!
Like: all grout should be PERFECT.
And?Ā Guess who is the grout-inspector.
That is correct. Ā I was BORN FOR THIS JOB.
- We (Paul) backed the subway tile in the shower with Wedi board.
- He cut and installed the Wedi boards around the sill, continuing it around the window edge, right up to the frame.
- Then we tiled right up to the window.
- We used a narrow marble sill on the bottom lip.
- Remember to caulk, not grout the change of planes.
We ordered a window with vinyl interior trim, and pebbled privacy glass.
Theoretically the water wouldnāt hurt the window– itās just vinyl and glass. Ā Plus the whole thing pops out for cleaningā¦
But Paul wanted to keep the water from hitting the window directly, so to make it REALLY classyā we cut a piece of plexiglas to cover just the bottom half of the window.
It’s held in place with four small dots of caulk. Itās actually great, because you can pull it out to clean it, it doesn’t block the light, and the window stays remarkably dry.
If you donāt have an old house, you may not understand that sometimes the ultimate solution is unconventionalā¦
And, there is really no way to make plexiglas sound like anything other than how you might fix a window in your Appalachian shackā¦ so I won’t try to convince you.
index of all bathroom remodel posts
February 19, 2014 @ 9:23 pm
Could you give me the details on the subway wall tile? Size? Grout color?
February 21, 2014 @ 6:32 am
Tile is from Lowesā¦ I explain our tile-decision-making-and-specifics towards the end of this post http://wp.me/p36IiD-XY (it’s about our bath fixtures and choices.)
Grout is whiteā¦ but I do not remember which of the 9,000 shades of white I looked at… it was back before I understood I needed to record every single detail because someone would want to know.
March 1, 2014 @ 10:19 am
I love the window in my shower and the first thing my husband wanted to do was rip it out! While he was gone one day I installed a d-shape shower rod and an adjustable rainfall shower head. He loves it and I get to keep my window.
Don’t feel bad about the plexi glass I use it for a lot of projects. I love glass but with my family it would never work to design with in our home. Plexi glass allows me to keep my style and not have it broken by God only knows what.
March 8, 2014 @ 10:30 am
I too have a window in the shower of our 100 year old house. We had the bathroom redone 4? years ago. The window is vinyl and the tub is right beneath it like yours. The tub area was tiled to a height of approx 54 ” above the tub, and above that was tongue and groove painted white. I wanted the windows to match the “country” appearance so had them trimmed with wood 4″ wide with a small backband, which I painted with a white alkyd paint. To solve the privacy issue I got a piece of plastic “frosted” film from the H Depot and covered the bottom half of the window. It looked great for about 3 months until the wood started moulding and rotting. We ended up putting a shower curtain in front of the window- but it looks awful. I hate windows in the shower now! I will be redoing it soon and am thinking of using a piece of outdoor siding to get the effect I want, but am a bit hesitant. The other option I’m thinking about is to get sill, jams etc fabricated from a piece of marble – but that is only water “resistant” I think. I just don’t want to be continually redoing this bathroom – it’s discouraging
December 14, 2019 @ 10:28 am
Which wood rotted? The tongue and groove or the window trim? Or both?
March 12, 2014 @ 7:21 pm
I love the way you kept the woodwork around the top of your window and how you transitioned from the tile below to the woodwork
April 24, 2014 @ 9:03 pm
You should know, at approximately 4:30pm I googled ‘shower windows’, which led me to pintrest, which led me to your website (obviously). It is now 8:00 pm and I have only stopped to make a sandwich and make more tea. I’ve read most of your website and think I’ve found a weird internet kindred spirit.
My husband and I just bought a 1913 home – our first house.
I’m the kind of person that needs to have everything organized and in it’s place, STAT. But I also have 29,238 ideas that I want done equally as fast as blinking. I think I’m doomed, as well as my poor husband who already works 2 jobs. Wish us luck, and thank you for reminding me that things take time!
(also of note: you mentioned several times having a magical house cleaner {I may have added the word magical} – I am that magical wonder woman. I am buying one of those fancy beautiful toilets ASAP.
June 18, 2014 @ 12:28 pm
Really beautiful bathroom makeover! And I am so amused at how your thought patterns are so like my ownā¦it gives me comfort to know that I am not the only one that can obsess over every little detailā¦in fact I would have to say it is entertainment for me! I am currently planning three bathroom remodels – oh the possibilities!!! Thanks for sharing. You are a hilarious and very talented writer. Keep ’em comin’!
August 22, 2014 @ 10:10 pm
Just put a shower curtain on the back wall too,and close it over the window when you take a shower. luxuryremodelingco.com
November 16, 2014 @ 1:36 pm
I love your solution. Is it totally gauche that I chose to put a hoop shower curtain in my shower to protect my beautiful window in the shower? The wood moldings were so pretty, and we knew boat varnish over paint wouldn’t last forever with water beating on it. Getting ready to retile. Love this series, so many great ideas and products, thank you! I totally agree, polished chrome!
January 11, 2015 @ 2:54 am
Love your shower. Does the picture show the plexiglass solution? I can’t tell if that is the glass or something else over it.
July 24, 2015 @ 12:25 pm
I also have windows in my 2 showers. In one we hung a rod and have a curtain to block it during use. Not ideal, but workable and easily pulled back for light. In the other we had the shower glass people make a swinging glass panel to fit in the alcove and sit on the sill. The sill is slanted for water to go out into the tub, and the glass piece has the rubber gasket along the bottom to help keep water on the inside. We don’t need a gasket on the edge due to the angle of the water, but one could be added if you had water spray hitting a vertical edge. Behind it is an old, groddy, wood window. You’d never know (the shower pane is frosted). So, if you tire of the plexiglass, talk to a shower door person about a glass panel on hinges. I’d send you a photo if knew how.
August 16, 2015 @ 11:37 pm
We were happy to see your post when planning our bathroom remodel as I wanted the shower next to the window as well but there were a lot of haters (project before & after here: http://theecofeminist.com/2015/07/15/before-during-after-ripiping-and-remodeling/), but we forged ahead! We took another site’s suggestion to use topside marine paint on the window frame to waterproof it, which is great, however we’ve found water is finding it’s way through a crevice in the (vinyl) window to the outside! So – long story short, I can’t see the plexi you’re referring to in your pictures – is it there but I’m missing it? I’d love to see it attached and am curious, on warm days can you still open your window for ventilation or is that now a moot point with the plexi? thanks!
February 4, 2016 @ 1:57 pm
Hi Victoria! I just found your blog! Very impressive. My wife and I are fixing up a house from 1900 in Lancaster PA. I want to leave my window in my shower as well and this post has been a big help. I was wondering about the plexiglass. Where does it attach? Is it just stuck on to the sliding bottom panel? Thanks for your input!!
June 19, 2016 @ 9:22 am
Good topic, but your blog writing is excessive and filled with unnecessary filler. You lost me in the first paragraph. Get to the point please.
December 14, 2019 @ 10:31 am
I like the wordplay! Otherwise Iād just read a manual.
August 24, 2016 @ 9:40 am
We are facing this design challenge in our recently acquired 1910 bungalow so I am studying your post. I cannot find a photo of the plexiglas cover – unless it’s so subtle over the pebbled glass? I love the window in the shower but moisture is bound to be a problem. Thx
September 17, 2016 @ 1:19 pm
Great job! Can you tell me the name/manufacturer of the shower faucet? I have a sloped wall on the shower faucet wall of my bathroom and need to maximize the height of the faucet, your faucet is just what I need. My husband is 6′ 4′!
Thank you
May 15, 2017 @ 8:50 am
Hi! I know this post is a few years old :), but I am wondering where you ordered your window from? Thank you!
May 15, 2017 @ 10:26 am
Ours is Pella… but you should be able to order a vinyl-on-interior window from anywhere you’d normally go– Home Depot, Loews, etc. Good luck!
August 13, 2017 @ 9:25 am
you crack me up. and i am living your exact life!!! so funny. great writer/sharer. thanks! i have a window in bath too that i want to keep around as well. going through all the same motions.
December 21, 2017 @ 9:51 am
We are currently redoing our bathroom… almost a complete gut. We also have a window in our shower. Can you explain two thibgs for me? 1) what did you mean when you said caulk, not grout the change of planes? And 2) does the plexiglass cover the whole window or just the bottom half? And you said you can pop it off to clean… so the caulk that holds it on just pops off with it?
Any answers would be great! We have been going rpu d and round about our window… š
February 17, 2018 @ 8:37 am
My bathroom is slightly smaller.
There is a window over a nasty boxed in tub that I wanted to convert into a shower. Until I found your blog I thought that I would have to get rid of it.
Just last night after measuring 53″ for the space with the same left tub wall jutting out 4″ I thought that I might be able to create storage if I use a 48″ shower pan.
This morning I discovered your design.
August 29, 2018 @ 11:18 am
I realize this was posted a long time ago but I am curious what you store on those long narrow shelves at the back side of the tub/shower? We have a bathroom we are gutting and it is very similar and I am trying to find a creative way to use that space and I like this idea but have also thought of making open shelves facing the shower/tub area and tiling them like the rest of the tub/shower area.