You will only regret it if you don't remove the doors.

I think this is one of those cases where it's really dependent on your family dynamic and life style. If I were in the situation you describe, I'd be removing them, but since we're empty nesters and our tub is only used once in a very blue moon, I'd probably leave them as is.

Another pro and con to the door vs curtain consideration is that with the doors, all the bottles, soap and what nots are in view but with a curtain, they aren't AND depending on what you choose, a curtain can add color or fun to the space.

As an after thought, can I add that one positive to the door when you have kids is the water on the floor factor. Once they are bathing on their own, that can be a problem with the curtain and a door will ensure water containment.

What will the tub edge/rim look like when you remove the doors?

It is not practical to bath a chiId in a tub with shower doors. However once your child begins to bath on their own closing the shower doors(adult remains in bathroom for safety) allows for lots of super fun splashing around, much more than a curtain.

I did remove shower doors in a fit of pique when pregnant belly of baby #2 no longer allowed for bathing of baby #1 due to doors. I was able to get the tub edge back to normal, but I did have to replace the wall tiles that had been drilled for the door installation. I had the tiles so it was fine, if I didnt it would have been a bigger issue.

lol, bpathome.

We removed shower doors in the hall bath eight years ago. The track had been caulked to the tub rim, but the nasty looking residue came off with a little scraping. I like it much better, but we have to be proactive when a new guest uses the shower--some folks, especially the younger crowd, do not always know that the shower curtain liner goes inside the tub, and needs to stay there, spread out, until the water on it has dried. We've had messes a few times, and a wet liner, left bunched, can develop mildew.

You won't regret it. You'll regret not doing it, as k9arlene said.

I took the skanky doors off the tub/shower in the master bath when I bought my house. Scrubbed the fiberglass walls and tub, filled in the holes, then painted the ugly green and cracked and disgusting tub and shower bright white using Rust-O-Leum's tub/shower painting kit. Then bought an arched shower curtain rod.

One of the best improvements made to this house.

I hate those sliding doors on tubs - definitely remove them. You will not regret it, you could always replace the curtain with a frameless door or a new door if you really wanted it back... but for tub shower combos I like a curtain because it allows full access for cleaning and adjusting water, getting in and out, throw the curtain in the washer and replace whenever if gets icky (cheap) and having a bath with sliding doors makes me feel claustrophobic.

Even if it leaves a mark (which hopefully it will not if carefully removed, use a Magic Eraser to remove any leftover residue) I think I'd prefer a mark to a double U-channel with the inevitable grunge!

We removed the doors from our master and one of our guest' baths. Have not missed having doors one time. We live in a hard water area and those doors were a pain to keep clean.

I have heard that using liquid soap instead of bar soap helps keep the scum off surfaces.

We had those sliding tub doors in the master bath of the house we bought, I removed them after a couple months of struggling to clean the tub and walls (impossible), it's been 6 years and I haven't regretted it for a moment.

When I remodeled my bathroom I opted for NO doors on the bathtub and went for a shower curtain with an arched rod. Great decision. Get rid of those suckers.

When I moved to my house 17 years ago with a sliding glass door over my tub, I thought I'd arrived. Two years ago I remodeled and got rid of them. Got a nice plain white curtain and a curved rod. Love it!! Best retro move ever.

We just reno'd our son's bath and after getting surprisingly high quotes on a half-glass pivoting door, we decided to nix our plans for the glass doors. And the plan was to use a shower curtain instead. But then it dawned on me that my son is the only person who ever, ever uses that bath - so until he starts showering, we skipped even putting up a curtain rod. It keeps it all opened up and less busy. So assuming no one ever uses this room for a shower, i'd forgo any sort of glass or rod at all. And if people use the shower only rarely, you can get a removable rod that you put up on those rare occasions.

I've had bathrooms where the sliding glass door handle was the only place to hang bath towels, especially in a multi-user bathroom. And I'd rather shower with doors than a curtain...but...yeah, they aren't ideal.

They're miserable for washing kids and quilts.

When we moved into this house in 2001, removing the shower doors was one of the first things we did. We took them down the very first day! They were beyond hideous - textured with swans etched on them.

For a tub, I certainly prefer curtains over doors! Easier to clean, for one.

I removed them from the 1939 upstairs full bath. Had the tub refinished, new subway tile and a curved shower rod -- using a white matelassé curtain with a liner. I showered up there for months while my downstairs master was completed. I thought is was so much better than glass doors on a tub.

What sort of water do you have? With the hard water I live with doors and the track are a nightmare. I prefer a curtain and would not hesitate to swap them out.

Thanks, everyone. Looks like those doors will come out pretty fast when we move in!

Be sure to get an arched curtain rod!

tibbrix,

you painted the tub? How has it held up?

We put a glass door in our master shower, and it's a huge improvement over the curtain. Plus, the room looks bigger and we can see the nice tile work.

In our hall bath (my bath), I thought I 'd definitely get a trackless door, but think a shower curtain is far more practical for a tub shower.

NSM, very well. I painted it five years ago. It cost me $100 to do the entire thing. Beats the thousands pros charge! and it was easy, so long as you follow the instructions to the letter. I'll probably put another coat on in the fall or next year, if I feel like it. I changed the hardware, and the new hardware is a different sizes, so a bit of the old green is sticking out from the tap. And there are two teeny chips on the floor, nothing you really notice, but I want to keep it up since I rent my house out.

If you do it, let it fully cure, and then some, before using it. It'll hold up very well if you do.

I'll go take a pic of it, NSM.

Here are pics, NSM The round gray circles are my camera, not the shower.

If you need a space for hanging towels, there are shower curtain rids with a second rod for hanging towels -- and hooks for hanging towels from the rod which would work with the curved rod. I wouldn't keep the doors for that reason

Wow, Tibbrix, that's amazing!

I love ceiling mounted tracks. You can have someone make you extra long shower curtains. I have seen a combination of clear curtains and fabric to make the room look spacious without the maintenance of glass.

https://www.houzz.com/photos/modern-bathroom-modern-bathroom-san-francisco-phvw-vp~7928673

Good luck!

Kids have fits. Girls of a certain age, perhaps 11 to 18, have demon fits. We removed an expensive shower door and replaced with happy fishies. And nobody got hurt by a smashed or fallen into door.

I would remove the doors in a heartbeat. If you don't want shower curtains, why not a European style glass partition? I can't find a photo of exactly what I want to show you, but it's a single frameless glass door. Hinged at the wall. Goes either way. About half as wide as the tub is long. Hope that makes sense.

Shower curtains are just fine. Glass doors in any form get water spots, yuck. Thanks, tho.