Author Topic: fitting clawfoot tub with shower  (Read 5615 times)

uhohspaghettio

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fitting clawfoot tub with shower
« on: January 13, 2014, 12:29:38 PM »
I have an old clawfoot tub in the bathroom, which I like aesthetically. But I also have an 8 gallon water heater, which I like economically. But I'm tired of mostly cold baths and want to add a shower fixture and D-ring shower curtain rod. The problem is that the faucet and shower ring combos run about $220 (the cheapest ones) (http://www.amazon.com/Add--Shower-Set-Clawfoot-Tub/dp/B003VSBQSI/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1389638484&sr=8-4&keywords=clawfoot+tub+shower)

That is way too much money to pay for a shower on a stick, a faucet, and a metal ring. Any ideas how to piece one together without paying so much?

Greg

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Re: fitting clawfoot tub with shower
« Reply #1 on: January 13, 2014, 04:32:23 PM »
I made one with copper fittings and 4 gate valves.  The curtain ring you can make with 1/2" soft copper ends, bent to match the shape of the tub lip, and 1/2" copper rigid for the sides.  Kind of cool and rustic.

The hardest part is creating mounting struts and flanges to screw it to the wall or ceiling.  I made flanges by splitting open the through part of tee fittings and flattening the sides of the fitting so they could be screwed to the wall. 

I'll look for pictures and post if I can find them.

ellevendollarbill

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Re: fitting clawfoot tub with shower
« Reply #2 on: January 13, 2014, 06:47:32 PM »
We had this problem (actually we installed a clawfoot tub thinking it would be cheaper than installing an enclosure, etc) and ended buying the cheapest option, right around $200 as you mention.  Don't do that to yourself. The cheapest option is not worth the cost - our curtain rod often came apart, the water pressure was junk, etc.  If I could do it over again I would do as Greg suggests and piece it together using heavy duty plumbing parts and make a "look" of it.
Also, plumbing materials are not cheap in general, so I wouldn't be surprised if you end up paying ~$200 to piece something together. Doing it right is well worth it over time.

Greg

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Re: fitting clawfoot tub with shower
« Reply #3 on: January 13, 2014, 07:33:33 PM »
Found a pic, here it is in the background:

jawisco

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Re: fitting clawfoot tub with shower
« Reply #4 on: January 13, 2014, 09:17:12 PM »
I bought the $200 set and I agree with previous poster - it is extremely poorly made and really just crap. 

I ended up making a great ring with copper that I glued together - it works great, looks great, is totally solid, and cost about $40 in materials if I remember correctly and a few hours of time (mostly in planning). 

Like anything DIY - very customizable for individual tubs or situations.  The original crappy $200 set had a pretty small shower area, but the homemade one provides plenty of room.  I could post pics if you were interested.

Greg

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Re: fitting clawfoot tub with shower
« Reply #5 on: January 14, 2014, 09:37:03 AM »
Most of the shower curtain rings available are self-assembled with very small screws and small threaded areas that strip out way too easily, and the fit of one section into the next is too loose, leading to things falling apart soon.

The shower-faucets are remarkably expensive.