I wish they would too. We are replacing our shower doors and for all the reasons you named I would prefer acrylic. Also one that applies to CA, earthquakes. Sounds silly but during the last one in 1989 I knew someone who was taking a shower when it hit and he got hurt crashing into the glass panels.
Clare

I know you say that scratching wouldn't be an issue but I have an antique china cabinet in which one of the curved glass panes was replaced by plexi and it looks horrible! It's all scratched up and it's not even a heavy use item. The tiniest bit of dust on a rag seems to drag all over it and create even more scratches. If you look at it funny it scratches. I would never put plexi in my house as a finish intentionally and one of these days I will get around to replacing that POS plexi with real glass in my china cabinet.

Yes, aptosca-in fact as strong as that tile floor is now, I'd consider making the master bath our safe room in case of an earthquake, if we had acrylic.

And kgwlisa, I'm sorry, I was typing too fast (I see another thing I said wrong in the original post too). There is a type of plexiglass that has "abrasion resistant" coating which I would think would alleviate some of the issues of scratching on regular plexi. I'd like to know what abrasion-resistant plexi's stats are as opposed to glass. Off to research...

And from the little bit of research I've done, it's kind of a wash, because regular acrylic can be resurfaced to smooth, but I don't think abrasion-resistant plexi can (because of the coating). You have to hope it doesn't get scratched. I don't know which would be better.

Shaughnn (sp?)? Mongo? Tom?

I found these from a manufacturer of acrylic shower doors for boats...

I also see that it's mentioned as something that is made, in the smartgeek description of what plexiglass is used for.

Just more grist for the mill...

Here is a link that might be useful: care for acrylic shower door

Since you can make an aquarium out of it, I see no reason you couldn't make a shower door. It's actually clearer than glass, and more insulating. Lighter, too, which could be an advantage.

I'm looking into using a sheet of acrylic hung from an overhead roller like they use on barn doors-- the exterior grade ones should be plenty water proof. I think the result would be waaaayyy cheaper than a glass frameless slider.

Hi Flyleft,
I can't say for certain but I think it's primarily a durability issue. Even those "scratch resistant coatings" aren't going to protect the clarity of an acrylic panel for a single application of X-14 or Softscrub. As well, when you do manage to break plaxiglass, it cracks and then springs back into plane while tempered glass shatters into a bazillion pieces. In the event of a crack, whatever is pressed up against the panel is going to be pinched HARD by the resilient panel. I can easily see a clumsy bather loosing half of a butt cheek if the soap slips. Not a pretty picture at all.
Shaughnn

Now there's a visual...thanks, shaughnn! :)

Hmmm...why do they use it in showers on boats, then? Must figure this out. What I'd like to use it for is the top of a pony wall between shower and tub...

Does anyone *cough cough--MONGO!--cough cough* have anything else to add about the acrylic/glass issue?

No way...acrylic.

Tempered glass is the ONLY product to use in a shower. It is the most durable and if properly maintained, will last the lifetime of the shower.

You cannot just install glass and expect it to remain in new condition without properly cleaning and protecting it with the proper products. Tempered glass has a very very low probability of ever breaking, so that is not an issue for comparison. The only way to break tempered glass is upset the surface that is under compression...by piercing the outer layer, or a hard blow to one of the corners, which is not likely for shower doors or panels.

Acrylic in a shower will be scratched to the point it will look hazed over in a whitish hue in short order. It will not tolerate any particals between the squeegee and its surface..scratch city. Did you ever see acrylic window panels after several years?

There is a crazy unreasonable mark up on frameless glass shower doors. The best thing you can do is mine the internet and have the system sent to you via freight. I am finding the glass cost 1/3 (and less) of quotes by local glass installers. Home Depot/Expo being the craziest of pricing. The last glass I installed cost $600, and the quote from the Expo was over $3,000. I cannot figure it out, because the install is very quick to do. The longest time issue is trying to drill through porcelain tile, other than that, it is kind of a 123 thing. The big thing is super accurate measurements and taking into consideration plumbness of walls.

O.K., Tom, thanks. I guess even though it's considered clearer than glass that the clearness will not last--even if properly cleaning it and protecting it with the proper products?...Oh well.

So you got online glass *less expensively* than local glass? Are you installing it yourself? That's one reason why we would want acrylic, actually, so we could install it ourselves...large 3/8" panels of glass give me the shivers when I think about installing them myself. I had found local prices much better than, say, wilsonglass--what online source did you find? And how was it to install? I'm assuming you had all that equipment, e.g. suction cup handles, etc...

Well, dam_ the torpedoes, full speed ahead. I have similar need and have bought a 1/2 sheet of plexiglass I am using to seperate a tub from a shower stall (used to be a wall there for the neo shower kit- replacing with travertine tile and frameless shower kit). Have all the concerns above, but decided to proceed as tempered glass takes several weeks and when my prior shoer door broke and I replaced it with plexiglass it actually seemed to hold up better than expected (but 1/4 in was a bit wobbly). anyway. I am happy so far (not using it for entire enclosure-just this custom piece). I was trying to research potential coatings I could apply (found none) and discovered that you can order Polycarbonate/Lexan sheet vs plexiglass sheet for a bit more- wish I had discovered this before getting the plexiglass- try this eBay express link: http://search.express.ebay.com/Industrial-Supplies_Material-Handling_Plastics-Equipment_W0QQManufacturer946977f1ZLexan45eb26cQQ_pgnZ2QQ_pgnZ3

Help! We R desperate. We just spent a huge amount of $ redoing our bathroom and now find with the layout, we cannot support a heavy glass door so really need a lighter door like plexi. What should we do? Is there one? Thank you

Guys, We are doing up our bathroom in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and came across this discussion while looking up options for a walk in shower door: Glass Vs Plexiglas. We had bought a nice glass wall for nearly 600euros but while installing it, the plumbers managed to smash it today!!! Now the plumbing company is willing to replace it with a plexiglas door. I have not seen the replacement they are offering but apparently it is the same model as the one smashed.Not the same make/brand though. Should we accept the replacement or insist that they buy us the same one that they smashed? I am not sure what would be better- glass or plexiglass- in terms of looks, maintenance, durability etc. I also suspect that they are offering us plexiglass because it is cheaper than the glass version they smashed. In which case, should I demand they give us the balance back?
As you guys seem to have a pretty good know-how about such things, I was wondering if you could kindly advise?
Many thanks.

I am doing the "big yuck" in my expensive bathroom remodel: shower curtain and "hotel" look with initialed over-curtain for the shower stall.

I'm at a point in my life at which ease of cleaning is utmost. My best friend cannot complain more about water stains on her shower surround. I would rather buy a bunch of water-proof liners and change often (I'm going to wash them in the washing machine--not throw in the dump).

For the same reason, the sink must be integral to the vanity with no seams!

When we had all the windows in the house replaced, I used textured glass in the bathrooms, hence no window hangings.

I also buy nothing but white towels for all uses. (I bought brown for my daughter to take off her eye-makeup, but she didn't use them....) No towels that people cannot use and they all look great, even in the closet!

If anyone else has "ease of care" bathroom remodel/other tips, please let me know!

I would rather buy a bunch of water-proof liners and change often

I used to think the waterproof ones were the best, but actually the fabric liners get less skanky, stain less (I dye my own hair), and can be cleaned more easily. They wash better in the machine than the vinyl ones do.

Don't listen to the guy who said tempered glass is the only way to go. Got home last night to find my tempered glass shower stall had a panel that spontaneously shattered into a million pieces. Went on line to find numerous consumer safety warnings about this - it's not an uncommon problem. Next time it's acrylic. Not going to have that happen again.

Acrylic (plexiglass) and polycarbonate (lexan) both are clear, or come in a wide variety of colours. Both scratch very easily. However you can get them in white, which wouldn't show scratches, lets light through, and gives you privacy. Both are much cheaper than glass, and can be worked with ordinary wood tools.

Re: Exploding glass landing on my babies - We went for a low-tech solution - shower curtain! But I approached it in a high-tech way. I measured the inside of the existing frame for the glass doors and designed a part that fit inside the frame, with a hook below for the curtain. I then made 13 of those with a 3d printer.

So we will hang the curtain from the existing glass-door frame...

Bought highest mm possible etc best glass door selected, came off tracks a year in, slivers of glass off the top edge, rang vendor 'we think it's not our problem, send in photos.' Not told it was weakened due to this event and therefore not safe. 6 weeks later the door came off again whilst my teenage daughter was showering, other daughter ran to help whole lot exploded, both got deep cut to hands, other cuts, now scarred. Could have been far worse but was frightening enough. Need this to be more public knowledge and a better alternative on the market

Better alternative to what? A propwerly installed shower door would not have this issue. Slding shower doors are installed everyday and there are millions in installed. I have not heard of inherent problems like that even with the cheap crap on the market.

OK, well you've heard of it now. My little boy has a permanent scar on his perfect little body. And some shower door mfgr has a few bux in profit.

Very sorry to hear about your son.

Just had our shower door explosion last week. Was looking for plexiglass alternative and ran upon this thread. Yes it will explode at will. 22 stitches later I have no desire to ever have glass again!

We are replacing our shower and don't want glass after reading about the explosions. We are looking at these accordian style shower doors. Has anyone used them or do you have links to something similar?

https://showersolutionsusa.com/magnafold-elite

Initially we may just hang a shower curtain.

Hammacher Schlemmer sells a vinyl shower curtain that is mildew resistant and washable and has a nice see-through section on the top. $30

I used some sort of acrylic for a shower enclosure in a house in Mexico. I liked it very much. It had a frosted pattern.

Avoiding glass like the plague. I work in hotels and they thought it would be a nice modern design look, which they are, but glass is unstable, tempered or not. 2 of the hotels I worked at started having glass shower doors shatter spontaneously and not from abuse. One happened while the guests were dead asleep and POW! glass everywhere, not an easy clean up either. Another guy was standing at the sink shaving and the shower door exploded behind him leaving him standing there bare foot with broken glass all around him. He did cut himself trying to walk out to call someone, and the hotel paid dearly, and yet they still keep gambling on glass doors.

What about a frosted plexiglass panel so that scratches are less of an issue visually?

We had our shower glass explode... twice. Now we're looking at Plexiglas.

The first time, we thought it was shoddy construction -- the folks who remodeled our house did a sloppy job in several areas. So when the glass panel exploded in the middle of the night, we called up a contractor who was highly recommended by our home inspector (who was, in turn, highly recommended for his high standards) and got the whole thing replaced (two panes and a shower door). 6 years later, the door explodes, this time while my husband was sitting on the toilet (luckily, just out of range of the flying glass). Now they're trying to talk us into all sorts of different kinds of glass, but we never want to go through this again. We're super lucky neither of us got hurt in the first two explosions (although I'm *still* stepping on glass splinters on rare occasion, even after sweeping and vacuuming and everything we could think to clean up). We're not going to tempt fate again.

We don't care what it looks like -- we fully intend to live and die in this house, so we don't have to worry about anyone else's opinion of its aesthetics. We just want it to be safe.

One of the framless glass panels exploded and because of cost my husband put up a very durable piece of plexiglass or acrylic or polycarbonate, I’m not sure.. At first I was upset thinking it would look tacky but after a few years use I am amazed at how clear this acrylic door remains to this day. We regularly use a squeegy to clean all the doors and walls after each shower and every couple of months I scrub the acrylic door, and the rest of the shower with a simple soap, ive used shampoo too, and the acrylic door is scratch free! So I want to replace the one remaking glass slider with acrylic too and dang I can’t find any! so we will just have to find a piece of whatever this type of acrylic door we now have and make it up ourselves. I still worry the glass door will shatter so when I find the right material I’ll come back to this thread and post what type it is.

rhondalb

Would love to see a picture.

I'm so glad this thread is still active. The contractor went to install our shower doors on Saturday and it exploded in his hands. Lots of cuts and blood. I DO NOT want glass now but am having a difficult time finding anything but glass for sliding shower doors. I also do not want to use a shower curtain.

If anybody has any links it would be appreciated.

Right now my only idea is to order barn door hardware and go to the local Tap plastics to order the panels. Which seems like alot of work.

Back in the 1950’s-‘60’s they made shower doors & the typical sliding shower door kits with plastic that was sort of frosted. I dont understand why they stopped unless the glass manufacturers somehow put them out of business. I think it was Sears that sold them as my Dad built our house and bought everything from Sears.

“Acrylic, many times called plexiglass, is often preferred because of its moderate properties, easy handling and processing, and low cost, but behaves in a brittle manner when loaded, especially under an impact force.”. From this website.

It makes me wonder if it could turn into shards if you fell into a sheet used for a door. I wonder how well the polycarbonate sheets used for greenhouses would work? They are layered to make a two-walled sheet with air in between. They are not like clear glass, but appear like wavy glass, but are smooth on both sides.

If any of you look into it, ask how the plastic you are considering will react to hard water (if you have it) and shower scum. Will it wash easily? Should you simply wipe it clean after the last morning shower? I know that my solid surface shower walls (like Corian) do not build up with anything. We use liquid shower soap and either wipe or squeegee the walls and wipe down the chrome.

@lmsparkle I also thought a sliding bar door would look really cool and so much safer without glass. What did you end up doing for your shower door? We're just about to start a bathroom renovation.

People who's shower glass exploded/shattered. Was it really loud? Was it the moving part i.e. door (sliding or hinged) that shattered or the fixed part? We have fixed shower panels (without doors) in our bathrooms and now I'm concerned about the safety of family. Apparently there is a 3M film that helps keep the glass in place if it shatters but its an added expense.

I gave up and used glass.

We had a shower glass door explode a couple of weeks ago. Nobody was at that end of the house and nothing fell onto the door. We had the 3M type film that Atif referred to. It still shattered into many thousands of pieces. The insurer would not pay out because we could not give them a specific reason it shattered. They said that they can't just shatter on their own. Since I put my experience on Facebook seven friends have told us that it also happened to them.

I have a huge shower with sliding tempered glass doors. One of the (VERY HEAVY) glass panels came off the rail today and fell into the showering area *while* my teenage son was taking a shower. Fortunately, it landed in a part of the showering area where my son was not standing and it didn't shatter or break, so he didn't get hurt.... but, now, i am absolutely terrified of having glass doors for the shower. If it had landed on him, he would have been crushed to death. The tempered glass panes are huge and **heavy**. These glass doors were installed brand new 7 years ago.

"The tempered glass panes are huge and **heavy**."

Not looking to make light of this but they are not huge nor are they that heavy but yes they can be dangerous. Nothing wrong with glass shower enclosures, just get quality products installed properly.

@Megan Aken I gave up and got one of those partial glass 'walls' I called lots of different plastic and acrylic manufacturers looking for ideas. Nobody thought it would hold up to the heat and thought it would be massively expensive.

"they are not huge nor are they that heavy"

The glass is custom 1/2" thick glass 5 1/2 ft tall sitting on top of a 2ft high tub wall. Each pane is well over 100lbs, there are 3 panes across (pic attached). If a single pane is on the floor and you've got 2 guys prepped to lift it, i guess it's not that heavy. If you're a kid taking a shower and a

100+ pound pane whose top height is 7 1/2 ft from the floor comes down on you, that's a different story.

Edit: i wanna say it's actually closer to 200 lbs per pane because i have glass in my other shower too, and it is much lighter than the glass in this shower.

Question for Glass installers here: How often does your installations of Tempered glass shower partition/enclosure explode spontaneously? We got tempered glass shower partitions from a reputable company, but ever since I heard of these spontaneously exploding I'm always a bit worried. Especially during winter season when bathroom/glass is cold and I take a hot shower, is there a higher chance of glass breaking? Is the 3M safety film worth it?

That accordion door posted above - we had that in our bathroom back in the 80's. Had forgotten all about that, little flashback haha. We just do shower curtains. The tub that was here when we bought the house had sliding doors on it. One had a mirror on the outside and the other was sort of frosted. I hated those doors. Metal track just got gunky. I know they're different now, but still.

Atif, people won’t necessarily look as often as new posts on old threads, so if you want to have your question seen by the most people, post it as a new question.

Main reason they don't is money. Glass breaks a lot easier meaning more sales and more profit. Just boils down to greed as usual.

" Main reason they don't is money. Glass breaks a lot easier meaning more sales and more profit. Just boils down to greed as usual. "

Lmao. And your reasoning comes from where? Have you actually thought your response out?