Remediate RenovationBay Area and Dallas–Fort Worth · 24/7, a person answers
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Steam showers
Remediate Renovation builds steam showers in the San Francisco Bay Area and Dallas–Fort Worth, and a person answers the phone 24/7. A shower that turns into a steam room at the press of a button. It takes more than a new valve: a closed glass enclosure, a vapor-proof layer behind every tile, a ceiling that sheds its drips and a generator sized to the room.
- Insured
- Design, permits and plans handled by us
- Free consultation and quote
Steam is not spray
What makes a steam shower different from a regular shower?
An ordinary shower only has to handle water running down a wall. Steam fills the whole box, pushes into every pore of the grout and condenses on the coldest surface it finds. Four things change because of that.
It is closed on every side
Glass runs up to the ceiling, or to a transom that can open, and the door seals. If steam can escape over the top, the generator works hard and the bathroom fogs instead of the shower.
The walls stop vapor, not only water
Warm vapor travels through materials that stop liquid water. Behind the tile goes a membrane rated for steam rooms, on the walls and on the ceiling.
A generator makes the steam
A small boiler, hidden in a nearby cabinet, closet or attic, heats water and sends the steam through a short pipe to a steam head in the shower wall.
The ceiling is built on a slope
Steam turns back into water on the ceiling. A flat ceiling lets those drops fall on your back; a sloped one sends them down the wall to the drain.
Before anything is torn out
Can your shower become a steam shower?
Often, yes, but rarely by changing only the fixtures. Most existing showers were waterproofed for spray, open to the room above the glass, and finished with a flat ceiling. At the consultation we check four things.
What is behind the tile now
If the walls have only a spray-grade layer, the tile comes off so a steam-rated layer can go on. Putting steam into an old wall is how hidden mold starts.
Height and size of the box
The steam fills every cubic foot, so a tall or very large shower needs a bigger generator. Makers suggest a ceiling of about seven to eight feet; lowering a taller one keeps the room easy to heat.
A place for the generator
It needs a dry spot close to the shower that can be opened for service: a vanity, a linen closet, the attic or the space under the stairs.
Power and windows
The generator needs its own electrical circuit. A window or an outside wall inside the shower cools the steam, so it is planned for, sealed or kept out.
The enclosure
How the steam enclosure is built, layer by layer
Every layer is chosen so the heat and the vapor stay inside the shower and out of the studs, the insulation and the room on the other side.
Solid backing for tile and glass
A cement-based or foam board on the walls and the ceiling, fixed for the weight of tile, stone and heavy glass.
A steam-rated membrane on every surface
Walls, ceiling, floor and bench are wrapped in one continuous membrane made for steam rooms, with every seam overlapped and every pipe opening sealed.
A sloped ceiling over the bench
The ceiling is framed on a slope, about two inches per foot in the tile industry's steam room details, running away from where people sit, so drops roll to a wall instead of falling.
Insulation where a wall faces outside
A cold wall pulls the steam out of the air. Where the shower meets an outside wall or an attic, the wall is insulated behind the membrane.
Glass to the ceiling and a sealed door
Fixed panels and a door that close the box, with seals along the edges. An operable transom at the top lets the steam out after a session.
The machine
The steam generator: size, place and power
The generator is the part people never see and the part that decides how well the shower works. Its maker's installation manual sets the rules, and we build to it.
Sized to the room, not the bathroom
The size comes from the volume inside the enclosure, then goes up for tile or stone walls, a high ceiling or an outside wall, because each of those soaks up heat.
Close by, dry and reachable
It sits within the distance its manual allows from the steam head, level, out of the wet area, behind a panel or door that opens for service.
Its own circuit
A steam generator draws a lot of power, so it gets a dedicated circuit and breaker run by an electrician, covered by the permit.
Water in, safe drain out
A cold water line feeds it, and the safety valve and drain pipe go where its manual says, so the generator can be emptied and serviced.
Controls inside and out
A control panel inside the shower, where you can reach it seated, and often a second one or a phone app to start the warm-up before you walk in.
Sitting in the steam
Bench, steam head and light: designing the inside
A bench you can lie back on
Steam is meant to be enjoyed sitting down. A tiled bench, sloped slightly so water runs off it, or a fold-down teak seat in a smaller shower.
The steam head low and away
The steam head goes low on the wall, away from the bench and from where your feet stand, so nobody touches it or sits in its jet.
Light, sound and scent
Vapor-sealed lights on a ground-fault circuit, the exhaust fan outside the enclosure, and optional extras many generators offer: an aroma well for oils, speakers, colored light.
How it goes
From the consultation to the first steam
Consultation
We measure the shower, look for room for the generator and check the panel. If the old shower shows signs of a leak, moisture readings come first.
Design
Design is included: the enclosure, ceiling, bench, glass, generator, controls, tile and stone.
Permits and plans
We handle the permits and plans the job needs, the electrical circuit included.
Construction
Tear-out, framing for the sloped ceiling, the circuit and the water line, the membrane, then tile, the generator, glass and controls.
The first consultation and quote are free.
Finishes
Materials that live with heat and vapor
You choose the look; the layers underneath are not where we save money.
Cost and planning
What changes the cost of a steam shower?
New build or conversion
Starting from bare studs is simpler than converting a finished shower, where old tile and backing come off first.
Volume and walls
A larger or taller enclosure, stone walls or an outside wall need a bigger generator and more insulation.
Power, glass and finish
How far the new circuit runs from the panel, glass to the ceiling, the bench, and the tile and controls you pick. The quote follows a visit, never a price list.
The first consultation and quote are free. Our work comes with a written warranty, its terms set in your contract, and financing is available through our lending partner.
After it is built
Keeping a steam shower dry between sessions
A steam shower stays healthy when it dries out after every use. That is a habit more than a chore.
Open up and run the fan
Open the door or the transom when you finish, and run the bathroom exhaust fan so the moist air leaves the house.
Rinse the bench and walls
A quick rinse and squeegee keeps oils and minerals from building up on stone and grout.
Service the generator
Follow the maker's schedule for draining and descaling; hard water shortens a generator's life without it.
Watch for the early signs
Grout that stays dark, a seal that no longer closes, a stain or bubbling paint outside the shower. If the vapor got into the wall, see water damage mitigation and mold remediation.
Related services
Where we build steam showers
We design and build steam showers in the San Francisco Bay Area and in Dallas–Fort Worth. See the cities we serve.
Questions
Steam shower questions
What makes a steam shower different from a regular shower?
A steam shower is a closed box. The glass runs to the ceiling or to a transom and the door seals, a vapor-proof membrane sits behind the tile on the walls and the ceiling, the ceiling slopes so drops run down the wall, and a steam generator outside the shower sends steam in through a steam head. A regular shower needs none of these.
Can you turn my existing shower into a steam shower?
Usually, yes. Most showers were waterproofed for spray only, so the tile and backing come off for a steam-rated membrane. The ceiling is often lowered and sloped, the glass is carried to the ceiling, and we find a place and an electrical circuit for the generator. We check all of it at the free consultation.
Where does the steam generator go?
In a dry spot near the shower that can be opened for service: a vanity, a linen closet, the attic or the space under the stairs. Never inside the shower and never outdoors. Each maker sets the longest steam line it allows in its manual, and a long steam line is insulated.
Why is the ceiling of a steam shower sloped?
Steam turns back into water on the ceiling. On a flat ceiling those drops fall on whoever sits below, and by then they are cool. A sloped ceiling carries the water to a wall and down to the drain. Tile industry steam room details call for about two inches of slope per foot.
Does a steam shower need its own electrical circuit?
Yes. The generator runs on its own dedicated circuit and breaker, run by an electrician. That circuit and the water line to the generator are part of the permit, and we handle the permits and plans the job needs.
Don't Wait—Call Remediate.
Plan your steam shower with us
A new primary bath, a shower you want to convert, or a steam room you have wanted for years. We come, measure and tell you what it takes.
Call (281) 671-7777