Who: Carol & Robert Young

Where: Westerville, OH

What: Aging-in-Place Tub-to-Shower Conversion

Products: Smooth Brecchia shower surround with matching bench seat and 4-shelf shower caddy, biscuit shower base. Cayman sliding shower door with brushed nickel frame, and Wynford collection shower fixtures also in brushed nickel. 

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Aging-in-Place Tub-to-Shower Conversion in Westerville, OH

Updating the master bath with a comfortable, safe shower 

When Carol and Robert Young moved from Phoenix to the Columbus area in 2018, the originally looked at condo options, but weren’t happy with the layouts available. The ranch-style home they found in Westerville fit their needs much better, but the couple soon found that the bathroom layout was less than ideal. 

“I have fibromyalgia and some other issues, so I needed a larger shower where I could sit periodically if I needed to,” Carol explains. The home’s originally master bath layout included a standard shower stall and separate bathtub. The shower was standing-room only with nowhere for Carol to rest, and the bathtub was too difficult to climb in and out of.  

“We had several companies lined up to interview, and we found Improveit through HomeAdvisor,” Robert says. “We looked into some options like ceramic tile showers, but after talking with the designer from Improveit, we found that we could remove the tub, relocate the shower, get all the design features we needed, and the results would be much easier to keep clean than tile.” 

The Improveit team worked with the Youngs to take out their tub, install a larger shower in its place, and finish the old shower walls for future use as a linen closet. “The whole installation took about five days, and the team was just so focused,” Robert says, adding that he was excited that Improveit offered a sliding shower door just like one he had his eye on. “I saw a shower door like this at a hotel we stayed at. I even made Carol take a picture of it! They did a great job installing the whole project for us.” 

Carol adds that the shower is the perfect size. “My daughter has a larger shower and she says she gets cold in there sometimes because it’s so big. This one is just right. I have room to sit down, the grab bars are there for when I get in and out, and the heat from the shower is good for my bones, my muscles, and my sinuses. I’m very happy with it!” 

What makes Carol even happier is when someone else cleans the shower! “We used to have a housekeeper that came to help us with the cleaning, but during Covid we started cleaning it ourselves,” she says. “Now Robert cleans it with glass cleaner for the doors, and in the shower he uses the cleaner that our installers recommended. It’s really good and so much easier to clean than tile!”