Some thoughts on the Shower

Now that I have had the Steam Shower for some time, it was time to give a far review.

There are several things I like about the shower. The pan, glass, and metal all seem very sturdy. The floor and ceiling are solid wood and fit well. The rainfall and handheld work well and seem heavy. The water jets are extremely powerful and stay in place once you adjust them. The stools seem a little short, but sturdy. The glass cleans very easily with just a squeegee. After using it, I simply squeegee the glass and floor in less than a minute.

The speaker is ok, just a PC speaker. I only use it for listing to the news in the morning and it is acceptable for that. Music is poor, so I don't listen to it. I find I actually like quietness when steam showering.

The display is responsive and easy to read. The lighting is plenty bright enough when using white, and relaxing when set to the darker blue. I didn't care much for red or green. Just not my colors when steaming.

Steam starts almost immediately, and quickly rises to 110 F in a few minutes. The temperature gauge is sensitive and accurate. I measured the temperature with an IR temperature gauge and it was within 1 degree. I put my essential oils on a pad or cotton ball at the exit port of the steam. That seems to work well, with plenty of aroma from a few drops.

There were some things that need improvement as well.
The wood floor fits very tightly, but needs to be removed occasionally to clean underneath. Removing the floor is tricky, as you have to nearly close the doors in order to lift it without banging the glass. You will need something with a hook to push between the slats and lift it up so you can grab it. I have already had to add some teak oil to the bottom slats.

The installation had some issues as well. Most of the holes lined up easily for the sides and I would recommend silicon sealant before pressing the sides together. Just a narrow bead will do, too much and it will all be pressed out. The hardest panel was the rear, curved piece. There are two L-shaped brackets that mount through the floor and to the side of the glass frame. Mine did not line up correctly. This caused leakage, as water would get behind the glass and drain down through the holes. I finally ended up removing them and siliconing the plug holes. Other than that, no leakage.

The icons on the water controls are impossible to see. The seem to be etched into the square trim behind the knobs, and should be painted or inked black. I ended up putting clear labels on the glass. The "Off" position doesn't line up squarely, and it could probably be fixed by loosening the fixture from behind and rotating it slightly. I also ended up putting threaded dow pins in the handles as indicators.

The solenoid that opens to provide water to the steam generator is very noisy. It makes a loud thump when opening and closing. I also think the water line is making some noise, but I am not sure how I will resolve this. Perhaps some of the foam insulation tubing. Once the steam shower is up to temperature, it will stop producing steam until the temperature drops 3 degrees, then it will fill and run again 1 or 2 times until the temperature is back to the set point.

I haven't quite figured out the fan, as it doesn't seem to do much. It would be nice if it pushed the steam down from the top. When sitting on the stools, it is a few degrees cooler than when standing. I don't use the fan.

Overall, it seems to be worth what I paid for it. It is more sturdy than the stand alone shower enclosures. I would rate it higher if the steam generation was quieter, but for what it is, I can tolerate it. I know I really enjoy steam showers before bed. I sleep and breath so much better.

And with that said, time for a steam shower!

Hooking up the electricity

The electricity was hooked up today after some discussions with the electrician, Atlas Tech Support, and some searching on the Web. Tech Support sent me their diagram which is similar to the Square D QO 230GFI model that I am using. Tech Support was again very prompt.

The steam shower was given a final sealing around the base with clear GE silicon.

The whole house surge protector and GFCI were tested and the steam shower powered on. The display was bright and clear. All functions operated, and the shower moved back into position. The steam generator filled the shower with steam and the default temperature of 104 F was quickly reached. A pair of Sioux Chief water hammer arresters will be added to the supply lines on Tuesday to reduce the noise of the water lines when the solenoid that supplies water to the generator opens and closes.

Finally back together

I should have finished all the painting, but I was to anxious to see how well the bed would fit in the room. I will just have to pull it away from the windows and carefully paint the trim. It will be nice to be back in my own bed after 3 weeks of sleeping in the guest room.

One...not quite done

Well the last day of construction was today. It was a valant effort, with the electrician staying until 6:30 and the contractor until 9:30, but things just didn't go smoothly as we had hoped. That is usually how things go, and the last little bit always seems to take a lot longer than planned.

To start, the shower was a bit difficult to level. That had a lot to do with the floors, as there is a drop to the center of the room throughout the whole house. It actually worked out ok though, as it will allow me to use a thick, soft and absorbent rug in front of the shower. The shower glass was assembled and sealed. That took about 3 hours. Some of the hardware was a little different than the directions, and some of the directions were just plan missing. The changes were actually better, so they must have made some improvements. It just took some thinking to figure out what to do with some of the parts. But we did get it together, and it looked nice.

The GFCI circuit was not as easy. The electrician is going to check with the factory to make sure that we fully understand it before applying the power. So no steam shower for a while until that is figured out. Better to be safe.

Still a lot to finish over the coming weeks. The baseboard needs to be painted, the venting for the exhaust fans needs completed. We also had some problems with the vanity. It did not come with any instructions, so once again we had to fumble through it. The chrome drain stem and the faucet lines were not long enough. We were able to get some extensions for the lines, but it was too late in the day to find the right stems. So the vanity is not yet usable. I opted to wait until we could get chrome rather than forge ahead with PVC pipe.

At least we know what it will look like now, and I can work on cleaning and painting.

Two..Almost Through

A morning of wall trim work and floor transitions. The 3 inch wide floor transition between the tile area and bedroom was joined by more of the hardwood flooring. The idea of doing either glass mosaic or some other material created too many different material transitions. Instead, we will frame the floor with some of the existing wood flooring that was left over from the previous floor installation. This will create a less dramatic change in flooring, and mend the two flooring types together. The bathroom window was framed and the toilet is ready to be installed tomorrow.

The Steam Shower was assembled and is ready for the final plumbing and electrical connections.

Three...The Calm before the Storm

There is no work scheduled for Wednesday. It is a day of rest for the paint, tile, and grout. Thursday the construction will be wrapped up, the floor transition will be completed, and the bathroom window will be trimmed out. The steam shower will be assembled and ready for Friday's electrical connection. The vanity should arrive either Thursday or Friday, as it is the last thing to be installed.

A couple more "additions" to the project has crept in. An RFFE20-BB Radial Flow Iron Reduction Cartridge replaced the first stage micron filter in the two-stage Big Blue whole house filtration system that was installed last year. The last time I changed the pleated filter, there wasn't much in it so it wasn't really necessary.

The first stage RFFE20-BB
filter cartridge is designed to provide an easy and effective method of reducing iron from water, which greatly improves the taste.  This cartridge will eliminate the orange and brown stains found in sinks, toilets, tubs, and the Steam Shower generator. It will also reduce the possibility of damage to pipes and the water heaters and reduces up to 3 ppm dissolved iron. It adds no harmful chemicals to the water, making it completely safe for drinking water applications.

The second stage CRFC20-BB
filter cartridge incorporates a 70-micron porous polypropylene outer shell and a spun polypropylene-wrapped core. The bed of granular activated carbon (GAC) between the outer shell and core creates a unique radial flow design which effectively removes chloramine, has a low pressure drop, and helps to reduce fines commonly seen in GAC-style cartridges. Fairfax Water uses two types of chlorine: free chlorine from April to June as part of their annual flushing program and chloramines the rest of the year, which is a chlorine and ammonia mixture. Don't want either of these in my drinking, cooking, or bathing water.

A whole house surge protector will be added to protect the electronics in the house. The electronics in the theater room, the  new appliances in the kitchen, and the computerized steam shower should all be protected now. After a lightening strike near my house last spring, I am not taking any chances.

Four.....Main area Painted

The contractor arrived bright and early today at 7 am. The main bathroom area was painted and some height adjustments made to the toilet stall door area to accommodate the unique accordion door. The tiles were buffed back to their original luster.

The main bedroom area paint is Valspar Blue Lagoon. A nice, relaxing blue-green.

The arrival of the vanity has been an ordeal. Although they typically carry this model in their warehouse, when I went to purchase it last week, they were out of stock. To further complicate matters, new stock was not expected until the end of the month. After further conversations with Home Design Outlet Center, we found one that could be shipped from their NJ warehouse. Unfortunately, I had to pay for additional shipping, but the alternative of waiting another week and trying to get the contractor back was not acceptable. The vanity should arrive at their warehouse by the end of today, and then I can schedule the home delivery.

When going through the Steam Shower boxes, I found some large brackets that were not described in the manual. I sent off an email to Ken at Atlas at noon, and within a few hours he had written back with an explanation. The brackets are something new that has been added to ensure that the shower rests firmly against the wall, but also provides the necessary clearance to prevent any wires, pipes, or other items from being pinched against the wall. It was a nice addition, and once again I was impressed with the quick response of Atlas tech support.