VA bath retrofit w/ Best Bath experienc
IronHelix
| Posted in General Discussion on
On a small side job I have been asked to “blueprint’ a 1″scale plan for a retro fit of an existing bath to meet VA standards for a now disabled WWII veteran.
The preferred supplier for the barrier free 48×48 4 pc shower is a company called Best Bath. I’ve visited their site and there are lots of choices and information.
The download for their PDF files has been unsuccessful and usually generates an error message and shutdown….probably a MicroSoft glitch!
Has anyone had an install experience with this product?
Any input would be appreciated !
……………..Iron Helix
Replies
Bump............try again!
I have no experience with the product.
I went to the web site and can download and look at the .pdf files OK though. Is this the web site? http://www.best-bath.com/products/access/access.htm
Attached is a .pdf for a 48x48 "barrier free" shower. Maybe that will work for you.
Or, if you want, post the link(s) for the for the shower(s) you are interested in. Then send me an E-mail. I'll E-mail the pdf file(s) back to you. Maybe that will work for you.
Matt,
Thanks for your efforts!
Still can't open any PDF...seems that there is an error in the verizon brower that I have. The error message from Microsoft directs me to reload my browser for a new update.
Should be able to do the PDF after the repair/reload!
.................Iron Helix
Edited 3/19/2007 6:44 am by IronHelix
or trying reloading the Adobe Reader.
Okay.....good thought for this computer tech phobic!
I can build a house....can't do squat with a computer problem!
Your direction is appreciated!
................Iron Helix
Iron.... i looked at matt's pdf...
other than the threshold detail , the shower looks like a POS.. the threshold is a rubber extrusion bulb to keep the water in.... covered by a removeable FG cap ( for looks ? )
it looks like a wheel chair can roll in ... or roll out.. but it can't turn around ( well maybe )
what about a conventional FG shower say.. a 36 x 48... or a 36 x 60 ? it would seem to me the only problem would be getting in or out.. but a ramp could solve that
reason i ask is because i'm always looking for a better solution for HC showers than the traditional straight mud-job....
Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Best Bath units are specified by the Veteran's Administration. I have inspected one at the end of a VA project.....the price definitely was not POS and the weight of shipping was not a POS, it was heavy.
I think we are stuck with their specs if we want the VA to participate in the rehab expenses.
I called the contractor on the one I have seen and he recollects that three years ago the cost was over $3400 and the shipping weight was about 6-700 LB. The contractor said he would meet with me if I needed that, but he said the install was as per mfg direction and not difficult....pay attention to details!
Ti,e will tell!....................Iron Helix
WOW ! thanks for sharing... that decision would be real easy for me
my tile guy would be all over that like white on rice
i'd bet that VA would approve tile and i bet they have some shop drawings to boot
i wonder if VA has different reg.s that the rest of the federal Govt
don't they all come under the ADA ( Americans with Disabilities Act )
here's the design guidelines for the ADA
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/adastd94.pdf
go to page 45 for the showers.... guess what . the regs and diagrams haven't changed a bit since i bought the guidelines from the Eastern Paralzed Veteran's Association back in '93
anyways..... good luck with your project... and let me know what transpires.... i'm very interested in Handicap Design
Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Mike:
When I did the apartment complex the H/C showers were pretty similar - a rubber bulb gasket (or whatever you call it) at the threshold, although they were 42x60 - I think it was. Of coarse they were 1 pc, but this was new construction - I always hated multi piece showers, but then again I don't do remodeling. Anyway, they were inspected by a state agency that strictly enforces H/C codes. I can pretty much tell ya that a regular shower isn't gonna work for these people. I even had a H/C heavy equipment operator come in - or should I say wheel in - and check out one of the H/C units. It was pretty interesting to hear impartial input on the facilities form definitely qualified view on the bathrooms, kitchen, etc. He didn't like the roll in showers because the seat was on one end and the shower valve was on the other. He wanted them both on the same end so he could adjust water temp from where he was sitting.
Since then my co went to mud bed/tile H/C showers, as they found they were more cost effective. The real-deal F/G units can get expensive when you get them with the grab bars and the whole 9 yards. The PIA is that either way, there has to be a depression in the floor for the shower to sid down in. On the apartments all the H/C units were on the first floor which was a slab.
the VA ( ADA ) specs call for 30 x 60 or 36 x 36.... neither of which makes much sense to me
i would be looking for more like 36 x 60 or 36 x 48
and , i would agree.. my tile guy can do a better job than most of the fiberglass units... .. question would be cost....
Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
I'm thinking the fully compliant heavy duty 1 pc F/G units were around $2k.
Swanstone makes a 36x36 barrier-free shower, which I have - all that would fit in the space I have - and also a larger one that fits in a bathtub's worth of space.
Try http://www.swanstone.com.
do you like it ? what about a seat ...
i'm planning on a 32x60Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
It's OK - at the time, it was all I could find for my DH, who was having trouble walking, & it fit in my small bathroom.
(I have to laugh at those 'small bathroom' threads that only have 8x10 to work with - all 4 of mine are about 4x6, & nowhere to expand them to -)
Now I notice that Lasko has them at HD & Lowes - I'd say the Swan is comparable.
Because it's so small, we used a portable shower stool.
Now, I'm looking for a piece of Azek molding to glue in across the front, just to catch the bottom of the shower curtain.
DH died, & I don't have trouble picking up my feet - yet!
i'm sure the mfr's will have lot's of product for us and the baby-boomers followingMike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Matt,
I finally did it....PDF files now works!.......Thanks for your help!
Looks like the project is a go!
.....................Iron Helix
Yes! I just talked my sister out of the "walk-in tub", using all the good points folks had posted here. She's remodelling her house in MA., as she has bad knees & bad hips. People like her, with real needs & not much info, are ripe for the picking!
By which I don't mean that all mfgs are bad, or anything of the sort.
It is interesting to see how much more fogy-friendly stuff there is around today, compared to just 4 years ago...
i think the tip-off was when they had Ed McMahon start selling the walk-in
Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore