At the Intersection of Art, Architecture & Design » Body Jets to Relieve Back Pain – At the Intersection of Art, Architecture & Design

Body Jets to Relieve Back Pain

Jackie Braitman — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 11:35:52 +0000

I’m currently designing a bath remodel for a client in Washington DC with back problems. Her initial thought was a whirlpool-type jetted tub to help with her frequent pain. She had only used whirlpools in hotels and spas; she had not experienced the bi-monthly cleaning requirements (and the mold and bacteria that spews from jets that aren’t cleaned frequently. When she learned that she would be required to flush the jets twice monthly with a combination of bleach and dishwasher detergent, she became less enamored with one in her home.

Body Sprays - Flush with Wall

I suggested body jets in the shower as an alternative. Because they don’t recycle water, they don’t have similar cleaning requirements but do offer a variety of therapeutic pulse and spray options.

Some sprays lie almost flush with the wall (first image) and don’t offer much in the way of adjustment. Others extend beyond the wall and can be rotated to hit just the right spot and have adjustments for different pulse or spray options.

Adjustable Body Spray

Custom configurations, like the image below left, are infinitely variable but significantly increase plumbing costs. You can also purchase shower units that require only a single plumbing connection allowing you to replace an existing shower combination without needing to re-tile the bathroom, like the image below right and the one below it.

custom configuration vs. prefabricated systems

And of course, the prefabricated towers can be found in both modern and more traditional designs. Here’s another example below with even more features.

Shower Towers Come With Wide Variety of Options

Steam showers – custom or prefabricated like the one below – combine the variety of jets with an enclosed steam room providing the benefits of both heat and massage.

Combination Steam & Jets

What Makes for A Comfortable Shower Size?

Jackie Braitman — Mon, 11 May 2009 18:18:05 +0000

34" x 57" Shower w/ Bench

What makes a shower comfortable in size and configuration for one individual to shower? While code says 30″ square is allowed, for me this is far too small — and I’m small to begin with. In my opinion, a shower needs to be at least 30″ wide and preferably 34″ to 36″ wide. The shower above is 34″ wide and 60″ deep (including the bench). As shown in this shower, comfort for me also means someplace to put up my foot (to better reach my feet and legs for washing). The shower size and shower heads needs to provide a place to get out of the spray and where possible, a separate hand-held shower as well as the shower head. In this shower, the hand-held is near the bench so one can sit and shower.

The shower, below, is only 30″ wide and 60″ long — it replaces a standard 30″ by 60″ tub. The ceiling mounted rain shower head placed so the bather can still get out of the spray and the hand-held mounted on a bar can be used as a 2nd shower head or as a body spray. Not visible from this angle is a ledge at the foot of the shower that doubles as a niche for bottles as well as a foot rest — it’s placed at a comfortable 15″ height.

30" x 60" Shower Replaces a Tub

The shower, below, in the guest room that I stayed in a few weeks ago is comfortable 34″ wide and 60″ long. Not visible in the photo is a bench located at the foot of the shower — where you see the hand-held.

34" x 60" Shower in New Construction

The master shower, below, is 48″ wide by 72″ long — larger than many of us can fit in the older homes that I usually remodel. It’s the master shower in the home that I stayed in several weeks ago. This shower is more than large enough for two with the hand-held helping to warm the 2nd person. If it were built for 2, though, I would suggest a 2nd shower head and perhaps a 2nd hand-held. In my opinion, it’s actually a bit too large for a single individual because of the distance from the bench to the shower head.

48" x 72" Shower in New Construction

The shower below is 34″ x 60″ plus an alcove for the bench. While the shower size is comfortable, the lack of a hand-held near the bench and the distance of the bench from the shower spray makes the bench only practical for placing your foot or for holding bottles. Sitting on the bench to shower is not practical.

30" x 60" plus nook for bench

So, in summary, I try to size a shower to be at least 34″ wide and 48″ deep with a ledge or bench. A 36″ square shower is acceptable IF you can fit in a ledge or corner bench. In my opinion, the neo-angle showers — are hard to work with because of the difficulty locating the shower head in a way that prevents water for spraying outside the shower and because of the difficulty placing a ledge or bench. Beyond size, a separately controlled hand-held is very nice. The other consideration shown in all these showers is a spray location that helps prevent unwanted spray out the doorway plus controls that are easy to reach without getting in the shower.

All images courtesy of Braitman Design/Build

Solid Surface Shower Pans

Jackie Braitman — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 21:17:33 +0000

Remodeling baths can give a high return in both enjoyment and resale. It’s also easy to spend lots of money in bath remodling. One place to save money without sacrificing function or looks is in yor choice of matrial for the shower pan. One option is tile, like the marble mosaic tile in the bath floor, above. But the traditonal method of installation is labor intensive and therefore more costly. Because of the slope of the floor, you also need to choose small tiles for the shower floor (like the mosaic shown). Sometimes this can look too busy depending on the other material choices in the bath.

My preferred alternative is a solid surface shower pan like the shower, above. While the solid surface material is more expensive than an acrylic shower pan, it has both a better feel on your feet as well as a high-end look. In fact, I prefer the feel of the smooth (but safe) solid surface than the feel of mosaic tile. There are many stock sizes to choose from. One of the reasons we didn’t use a solid surface shower pan in the first bath is that we couldn’t use a stock size pan. A special order size would have cost almost as much as the tile installation and would have taken several months to arrive.

While just a little trickier to install, it’s also quite possible to add a bench to a shower that uses a solid surface shower pan — you can just see the beginning of the bench in the shower, above.

Many makers of solid surface material — such as Corian — also make shower pans. It’s also now possible to purchase stone pans, like the one above. They are available in most of the commonly used stone varieties used in the bath including granite and marble.

Sources:
Solid Surface Shower Pans: Royal Stone Industries.
Stone Shower Pan: Buffalo Natural Stone Products

Images courtesy of Braitman Design/Build except Stone Shower Pan Image courtesy of Buffalo Natural Stone Products.