When a shower has a swing door in place, the door will typically have a slight gap at the bottom. While this helps to ensure that the door opens without scraping on the floor, the gap can let water run out of the enclosure into the bathroom and this has potential to cause slipping problems for those showering. To avoid this a shower door sweep can be used to better keep water in the enclosure. A sweep is basically a thin strip of material that attaches to the bottom of the door.
When fitting a glass door in a shower it is important to ensure that the bottom of the door does not touch the floor, both to protect the glass from damage and also to save the floor material from wear and tear. While many manufacturers will include a glass shower door sweep with their doors, this is not always the case, although it is simple enough to buy and add these if required. The sweep generally comprises a strip of material that attaches to the inside of the door at the bottom.
A typical sweep includes a drip edge which helps to direct water running down the door back into the enclosure, and the sweep also glides across the floor as the doors opens and closes to push water into the enclosure and stop it running out onto the bathroom floor. The sweeps typically come in flexible plastic, such as vinyl, to enable them to easily glide across the floor.
Those that chose the frameless shower door style, usually do so to produce a clear look without the intrusion of a surrounding frame. When adding a frameless shower door sweep, it can therefore be sensible to choose a transparent style to maintain the look and blend the sweep into the overall frameless look. This is simple to do as there are many clear vinyl sweeps on the market, with online retailers such as All About Doors and Windows having options available. The sweeps typically come in a few different sizes, making it relatively simple to find one to suit the gap on a door.
One of the most common options to help with the waterproofing of an enclosure is a vinyl shower door sweep. Vinyl is a flexible material that works well to seal the bottom of a door and keep water in an enclosure. Vinyl also comes in a variety of styles from a clear look to a number of shades and colors. This provides options in terms of coordinating the sweep into the overall design of a bathroom. Vinyl sweeps can be purchased individually to a set length, although many manufacturers sell by the foot, enabling a homeowner to buy a length of sweep and cut to suit their enclosure doors.
Most shower door sweeps attach fairly simply to the bottom of a door. In some cases the seal will stick to the frame of the door, while for frameless doors the sweep can be designed with a shape, such that it simply clips around the bottom of the door. While sweeps are fairly robust, the constant action of gliding across the floor will wear them out eventually.
Shower door sweep replacement will typically be required occasionally to ensure a door remains waterproof. However, most sweeps are relatively easy to remove and replace, and it should be a quick task for a homeowner to do. Home improvement stores, such as Lowes, and online stores, including Hardware and Tools, offer a variety of sweep styles at affordable costs, making them simple to find and buy.
Keeping a shower enclosure water tight is something that most homeowners will want. This helps improve safety by keeping water off the bathroom floor and reducing the chances of a slip, and also reduces the clean up required after a shower. A small but important piece of equipment that can help keep an enclosure more waterproof is shower door seals and sweeps. These effectively seal the small gap at the bottom of a shower door, to stop water running from the enclosure into the bathroom. They are generally simple to attach to the bottom of the door and for the useful service they provide are something that most homeowners should consider for their enclosure. A variety of styles and looks are available, making it easy to find a sweep style that matches in with an enclosure.
A shower door sweep is a simple and affordable piece of hardware and for the advantages that it provides in terms of waterproofing a shower enclosure should be used. Many doors will come supplied with a seal, although homeowners should find the task of buying and fitting a seal a simple enough task, should they need to do this.
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