The picture is right side up on my computer. I don't know how to fix it on GW. Sorry!

I don't know about the limitations of glass... but can you split the difference? With the ceiling already be flat v the vault, I don't think it will look bad to be an 8' ceiling, but I could see how you'd be worried about the proximity to the window. Can you bring the ceiling down 1' and the tub wall up 1'?

You can definitely get glass larger than 72", your GC needs to call another glass shop as he has been given bad info.

This post was edited by millworkman on Sun, Mar 2, 14 at 10:39

(Or, it is possible he doesn't want to pay the upcharge for a larger sheet of glass...)

...or he doesn't feel comfortable handling/transporting it. They make much larger glass than that.

That is what I was thinking, that possibly he didn't want to pay for the upcharge. The manager said it was a safety issue--that glass that tall can't be used in bathrooms. I thought it if it was tempered glass that it would it would be safe. I am no expert though, so I wanted to check here.

Picture now right side up.

Cool looking bathroom!

I had two thoughts:

1) it's going to be hard to clean the glass if it extends up past 8 feet. Although I guess that's what extendable squeegees are for!

2) The bigger the volume of the shower area, the harder it is going to be to warm it up when you turn the water on. And all the heat is going to escape up to the ceiling. This thought is brought to you by Canadian winter.

I wouldnt want a 10' ceiling in a shower area. Too cold. Frame it down shorter. And NOT with that impossible to clean ledge for fake plants either.

I like a hot, steamy shower - so the idea of dropping the ceiling in the shower sounds like a good plan regardless of the availability of the glass. And if you do the rainfall shower head, that would bring it down a little closer to you as well.

Thank you, aries, for fixing my picture!
kirkhall, it is an idea to split the difference. And a 1' lowered ceiling would not be right on top of the window, which would be good. I'm just not sure how it all would look, and if there is larger glass available, I do think we should get it since it was the builder's mistake in the first place AND he didn't notice for five months.

dekoeboe,
We have double front doors and high ceilings, so I would think it would not be that difficult to carry 8 ft. glass in--as long as it can be carried sideways.

ropotropolis,
Thank you. It looks really nice in person, and we do get to choose our own tile and accents. The kids love it. :-) I'm not too worried about cleaning the glass. In this case I am definitely form over function!
Yes, I have thought about it being not as warm as an enclosed bathroom, but I am hoping it won't be too bad. We are in Florida though! I'm pretty sure I would not be doing a a walk-in shower in a colder climate without heated floors/walls/towels/ect.! :-)

I'm envious! And heading to Florida in t-5 days.

robotropolis,
you should have good weather. It was gorgeous today! Where are you headed? I'm in the Tampa area. I grew up in Michigan though, so I've experienced plenty of freezing winters. :-)

Hollysprings, that plant ledge is deleted in our plan. My thoughts were similar to yours.

JenBL, I would not have been against lowering the ceiling if this could have been incorporated in the planning stages. Now, to lower the ceiling to 8 ft. means the ceiling is within 2 inches of the window, which seems to me like it would look low and weird. But maybe I'm wrong? And then how should the rest of the ceiling be framed? Still cathedral starting at 10 ft? Or cathedral but start it at 8 ft? It is really frustrating having this sprung on us last minute. Plus it is hard for me to visualize what it would look like.

Sarasota! Well, Lakewood Ranch. Pool and beach for two solid weeks.

My choice would have been to lower the ceiling.

But, since you feel the window would be too high, is it an option to build a 2' wall, hanging from the ceiling? Same idea as the 2' wall on the back of the tub, but on top of the glass instead of under it.

Update:
Thank you Kirkhall, for your idea to split the difference with the 2 ft.
We did find out we could get 7 ft glass, though not 8 ft, but the glass company refused to warranty it. This made us nervous, so we have decided to split the difference and lower the ceiling 1 ft, and build up the back of the tub deck 1 ft. This will also allow us to have a niche on the shower side of the tub deck.
I will post pics when we are finished. Thank you for the help.

Here are a couple of photos of stacked tubs/showers to give you an idea of what it will look like with the raised wall behind the tub.

The first one is very similar to yours. The second one is only open on one end but has the decorative tile on the raised wall as well as inside the shower to add a little more interest.

I will say I don't mind the privacy that a partial wall gives. :)

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Are the valves to the shower off to the left and right? If so, wouldn't it be a little annoying to have to open the door and reach out to adjust the temperature?

When we renovated our last home, we added a large glassed in shower to the guest bath. And yes, the glass was 8', and the frameless door was also 8' x 30". The glass was 3/8" thick if I remember correctly. I find it odd that they say they can't get glass that tall, unless there's something I'm not seeing. I ordered the glass directly through a glass company, not cheap. I think just the door alone was over $1500 (13 yrs ago), not including install and the nickel hardware.

I said it originally that he was wrong. I a in the glass business and it is sold everyday 8' of larger.

sundownr, thanks for the pics. :-) Ours will be much like the first one.
Shicksal, yes, the valves are off to the sides. There is no door though.
Joyce and Millworkman, yes, I do think they could've gotten the bigger glass if we'd made enough of a stink. There are other issues where we are putting our foot down that are more important, we decided. And we really don't want to create any kind of riff with the builder. We just decided to accept it, and we are getting the shampoo niche on the back side of the built up section of the tub, so that will be nice.
Thanks for all the help and advice. I will post a pic when it's done.

A couple of thoughts...

Often when you see glass going all the way to the ceiling, it's because it's a steam shower.

If you do go with glass to the top be careful that your ceiling is both waterproofed and tiled. In the photos it looks like just sheetrock. With that much steam being concentrated at your ceiling, you'll need tile and a vapor barrier.