The trend of creating luxurious showers in our home environments became popular in the mid to late 1990’s and with all of the plumbing products that I have seen introduced during my 20 year career as an interior designer and home builder it does not appear that this trend to create a spa like shower in the home will ever cease.

The manufacturers of plumbing products are always introducing new items and striving to improve the look as well as the functionality of what they manufacture. In the last ten (10) years we have seen an influx of water saving items and devices and now they are introducing products with anti-lime, anti scale and "sani-gloss" qualities so that our plumbing products are easier to clean and maintain.

The process of selecting plumbing fixtures for your shower and/or shower-tub combination can be an overwhelming experience with all of the choices on the market and all of the components which are required when you want to create a luxury shower experience with multiple functions. Below are a few pointers to help make your shower design and plumbing fixture selection a little less daunting. There are a lot of options and new products come into the market place all of the time thus the items I mention below are some of the most standard out there to choose from.

Single Function Shower Controls – these types of control systems operate a single showering device such as a shower head or a hand held shower. This is a basic set up found in all showers and typically has a single handle control that turns from the shower device from on to off as well as from cold to hot.

Thermostatic Control – this is an additional function that can be found on a single function shower control and is typically a separate lever on the face of the on/off control that can be set to a specific temperature so that your water always stays at the same heat [or cold] setting unless you adjust the thermostatic control.

Pressure Balance – this means that the amount of water from the hot inlet water source and the cold inlet water source will be mixed and distributed evenly to create an even water temperature.

Rough in Valve – this is the operating system of the shower which gets installed behind the walls of the shower; the type of rough in valve you purchase is determined by the type of Shower Control [or Trim] you select and the function you want it to serve.

Multi Function Shower Controls – these types of control systems will operate more than one item in the shower – they operate multiple showering devices such as a Rain Shower Head, a Hand Held Shower or Body Spray Jets and even just a regular wall mount Shower Head. The Multi Function system is the type of shower controls you will find in luxury spa like showers as it provides you with a selection of different showering devices in a single environment.

Thermostatic Control – this is an additional function that can also be found on a single function shower control and is typically a separate lever on the face of the on/off control that can be set to a specific temperature so that your water always stays at the same heat [or cold] setting unless you adjust the thermostatic control. A separate rough in valve is required.

Volume Control – In a Multi Function shower set the Volume Control is The device that turns the water on off; it controls the amount [or volume] of water that is distributed to each device. Some manufacturers will combine their Thermostatic Controls with the Volume Controls and some do not so you have to pay particular attention to whether or not the Thermostatic Control in a Multi Function application will also control The volume of water. A separate round in valve is required.

Diverter – this control is essential in a Multi Function Shower as it is the lever that distributes the water from one showering device to another. The lever turns in a clockwise motion and at each turn it will distribute [divert] the water to a specific showering device or a multitude of devices. For instance if you have 4 port diverter and only 3 showering devices such as a Rain Shower Head, a Hand Held and Body Sprays then the diverter could be installed in such a manner so that the first turn operates just the Shower head, the second turn would operate just the hand held, the third turn would operate just the body sprays, the 4th turn would operate the Rain Shower Head and the Body Sprays the 5th turn would operate the Hand Held and Body Sprays and the 6th turn would operate all 3 of the showering devices.

The Diverter also requires a separate "rough in valve" – this is where you choose either a 3 port valve or a 4 port valve depending upon how many different showering devices you will have in your shower and how many different functions you want it to have. A 3 port valve will operate up to 3 different showering devices; a 4 port valve will operate up to 4 different showering devices. If you just want 2 different showering devices then you would use a 3 port Diverter Valve and your plumber would just not hook up one of the ports.

Tub/Shower Environments – many times your bathroom might not allow for the option of having a tub separate from your shower thus you would have a tub/shower combination. The basic set up for a tub/shower combination is a control system that has an on/off and a built in diverter which distributes the water the either the tub spout or the shower head. In the most basic system the diverter is a pull up level located directly on the tub spout or a pull out knob located on the on/off control system.

Multiple Functions in a Tub/Shower Environment – you can still design a multiple function showering system in combined tub/shower environment. This can be done by having the tub controls completely separate from the shower controls and then using a multiple shower control system as described above or there are a few manufacturers out there such as Delta that make specific multiple function shower controls for a tub/shower environment.

An inexpensive solution to creating a multi-function showering environment would be to select the 2 different types of showering devices you want such as an overhead Rain Shower and a Hand Held Wall Mount Adjustable Height Shower Head and install them with their own controls; this give you multiple use without the expense of diverters and volume controls.

When designing your shower first determine how many showering devices you wish to have and this will then dictate whether you need to select a Single Function showering device or go with a Multi Function shower set up. Once you decide this then determine what type of finish you wish to use such as Polished Chrome, Satin Chrome, Polished Nickel, Satin Nickel, Bronze, Oil Rubbed Bronze, Copper, etc. Each manufacturer will typically have several different finishes you can choose from and not that not all manufacturers have the same types of finishes. The most common and most consistent finish among all manufacturers is Polished Chrome.

Once you have decided upon the type of showering system [single or multi function] and then the finish of the "Trim," you can then move on to the look and style of the Trim whether you lean more towards traditional design, contemporary or transitional. There is a lot to choose from so take your time, do lots of research and don’t be afraid to ask advice of a professional who designs and creates showering environments all of the time.