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Types of Shower Door Sweeps to Perfectly Water-Tight Your Shower
By zarafshan qayyum
Wet bathroom floor is an absolute deal breaker. It readily lowers the interior aesthetics. Moreover, wet floors are also a safety hazard. Anyone can slip and fall when the floor’s wet. But, it’s almost impossible to maintain a dry bathroom floor, right! How can one keep the bathroom floor dry when water is splashing from left, right, and center? It might come as a surprise to you that it’s actually possible to keep the bathroom clean and dry. In fact, some bathroom and shower accessories are specially designed for this purpose. Glass shower door sweeps and shower enclosure panels are two such elements. There are different types of shower door sweeps and enclosure panels suited for different door types. Let’s discuss these useful shower accessories in detail.
Table of Contents
Types of Shower Door Sweeps According to Installation Place
Shower seal strips are a practical bathroom accessory. The bathroom seal strips are typically made of plastic or vinyl. The difference is only characterized by the mechanism of installation and place of installation. Here are some common types of shower door sweeps, which can be helpful when performing a shower door glass replacement.
Bottom Seals
The most common type of shower door seal is the bottom seal. The name comes from the fact that the shower door bottom sweep extends through the entire bottom width of the door and it is installed at the door bottom. The bottom sweep has a drip edge on one side which is fixed towards the inner side of the shower area. You can install shower door bottom sweeps on framed as well as frameless shower doors with your bare hands. When considering shower door installation, it’s important to take shower door thickness into account to ensure a proper seal and fit.
Side Sweeps
Source: houzz.com
Door hinges are used to attach the door to the wall but they also offer an open spot for water splashes. Therefore, the side sweeps are specially designed to prevent the water from pouring out of the door side hinges. Side sweeps are relatively harder to install as compared to the shower door bottom sweeps.
Glass To Glass Door Jamb
The door jambs or door stops are used to save the glass doors from shattering or getting damaged in case of abrupt opening or closing. These shower strips run along the full length of the open side of the shower door. It is mostly installed where the glass door comes in contact with another glass door or glass panel. In cases where the seal wears out or gets damaged, replacing the shower door seal is essential to maintain the door’s functionality and prevent leaks.
Glass To Wall Shower Seal
These door seals are used in instances where glass doors close against the wall. These seals prevent the shower doors from crashing into the walls and getting damaged.
Shower Door Seals
Shower door seals or sweeps are vinyl or polycarbonate strips that are attached to the bottom of the shower doors. Some shower doors come with pre-installed sweeps while seal strips need to be installed on others. These shower seals stop the water from leaving the shower area and making the floor wet. They help maintain a clean bathroom with lower risks of slipping. By lowering the moisture, shower seals also help prevent active mold and mildew growth.
Types of Shower Door Sweeps According to Shape
Shower Door Sweeps are available in different shapes based on their utility. Here are some common types of shower sweeps.
1. Straight Seals
These straight seals do not bend. They have a straight shape. They are used to make rectangular, square, and geometrically designed shower enclosures watertight.
2. Magnetic Sweeps
These door sweeps have magnets in their basic construction to keep the shower doors properly shut. Magnetic seals ensure a tight door connection thus preventing any water splashes to leave the shower area. They can be installed horizontally or vertically on the shower doors.
3. Round Seals
Round seals are used to prevent water leakage from curved shower enclosures. They are available in a variety of sizes and radii.
How to Replace Shower Door Seals?
Replacing or installing a shower door seal is super-easy. It doesn’t require any special tool kit or a proper skill set. You can do it on your own without any assistance. Here is how you can replace an old sweep or install a new one on the glass shower doors.
Here is what you need to proceed with glass shower door sweeps replacement.
- Replacement/ New shower seals
- Utility knife or Scissors
- Clean Piece of cloth
Procedure
Follow these steps to replace and install the seal strips on your glass door.
- Start with completely opening the shower door. Now inspect the method of shower door installation. Most seal strips are just attached to the doors without any adhesive. In this case, you only need to golf the seal and push it in the opposite direction. The seal strip would easily come off especially if it’s old and brittle.
- If the sweeps are fixed with an adhesive, you can use a sealant remover or a scraper to gently remove the seal strips off the glass door.
- Once you are done removing the seal strip, take a clean piece of cloth and clean the glass door surface.
- Now take the new seal strip and align it along the glass door such that the drip edge of the glass shower door sweep is facing toward the inside of the shower area.
- Check if the seal strip is exactly the size of the door bottom. If not, take the utility knife or scissors and cut the strip according to the size of your door.
- Now install the replacement seal strip on the shower door by placing one end of the strip on the bottom of the door and pushing it upwards along the door width. Apply adhesive if needed.
- Close the shower door gently to check if the seal strip is installed properly. You have a shower door with a brand-new seal strip on.
Note: Sometimes minerals are deposited on the seal steps due to which the seal strips are stuck in their place even when damaged. You might need to exert more pressure in order to remove the jammed seal strips.
Key Takeaway!
There is no doubt about the practical worth of shower door seals. They still are sometimes overlooked during bathroom interior design. Tiny yet highly useful shower door seals keep the water inside the shower area rather than allowing it to leak out onto the bathroom floor. Shower sweeps are super-easy to install and replace. They simply snap into position. You only require a few basic tools to fit them in place. Moreover, they are inexpensive. So, make sure to elevate the functional value of your bathroom with some simple yet effective accessories. For all your bathroom accessories and more, consider browsing a glass and mirror online store for a wide selection of high-quality products.
