From all the years of completing these types of bathroom renovations, especially in Perth, I’ve learned that everyone has a different tolerance for excess water. A few drips on the floor might not bother some people, but for others, it can be a deal-breaker. The name of this bathroom style comes from the idea of being able to walk straight in, rather than having to open a door.

Functionality for everyone — from grandkids to grandparents.

With multiple generations now living under one roof in many Australian households, it’s more important than ever to have a bathroom that works for everyone. A walk-in shower is a smart renovation choice, but it requires real expertise to get right — particularly when it comes to floor plumbing and achieving the correct tiling falls.

Below, we’ll break down the pros and cons of this style.

One Size Fits Most

One of the biggest advantages of a walk-in shower is the accessibility it offers to people of all ages, sizes, and abilities. Its open and relatively flat design makes it easy for a wheelchair to roll directly under the showerhead without any difficulty. The absence of a door also creates a more comfortable experience for anyone who may find small handles hard to grip or children to swing a door into the wall.

The Hate of Cleaning

This one’s simple — the less shower screen you have, the less cleaning you need to do! Cleaning a small corner or alcove shower enclosure can be an awkward, elbow-bruising task. By removing this enclosure entirely and keeping just a single glass panel, you can cut your shower cleaning time in half.

Affordable

Compared to many other shower screen configurations, the fixed-panel walk-in shower screen is one of the most affordable options on the market. Its frameless design adds a touch of luxury, and the ability to match the bracket finishes to your tapware helps create a cohesive, high-end look.

So Much Bigger

Walk-in shower screens help create a more spacious feel in any bathroom. In many cases — like the renovation shown below — we relocate the shower to an external wall, removing the narrow “corridor” effect and giving the room a greater sense of openness. As an added bonus, this layout often allows us to include a handy shower niche for extra storage and convenience

Disadvantages of a Frameless Walk-in Shower

Too little privacy – Since a frameless shower is open it does not offer as much privacy as a shower enclosure. It is possible to minimize this problem by using obscure glass, glass blocks or curtains.

Water can get out – One of the main challenges with this type of shower setup is that there’s no curb to contain the water within the wet area. To minimise this, we use what’s known as a sloping wet floor, as shown in the image below. The slope is gradual but effective. It’s also important to remember that with this style of shower, some water can still escape through splash or mist from your body and may travel past the shower drain toward the external drain — depending on how you shower.

This issue can be minimised by choosing the right products to make an open shower work effectively. It’s important to remember that wet room–style walk-in showers are, by nature, wet. While the level of water spread can vary, you should always keep this in mind when planning your bathroom layout.

One simple tip to help reduce water escaping is to use a rain head. A rain head keeps the water concentrated in one area, unlike a sliding shower rail, which can easily spray outside the shower space if it’s angled incorrectly.

Heat will escape the shower making it colder – This is certainly a drawback since there is an opening in a shower without a door. This is not to say you will be freezing but you can’t keep the hot water on and steam up the shower like I may do time to time!

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It’s important to note that all our advice is general in nature, and every bathroom is unique. For the best results, always consult a qualified local tradesperson.

At On the Ball Bathrooms, we value your feedback—so feel free to leave us a comment below. If you’re in Perth, Western Australia, and looking for a bathroom renovation quote, contact us on 0419 964 678 or email us at info@ontheballbathrooms.com.au.

This article was written by James McLoughlin, co-founder of On the Ball Bathrooms. With over 20 years of experience and more than 3,000 completed renovation projects, James brings a wealth of knowledge to every project. We hope you’ve found these tips helpful—or at the very least, enjoyed some beautiful renovation inspiration 🙂.