LUXE Linear Drains Plays Crucial ‘Aging in Place’ Role

 

LUXE Linear Drains played a crucial role this summer in the creation of a barrier-free, easy-access shower and open-plan new master bath design for a senior aging in place at home in Beverly, MA.

The owner of the luxury custom home alternates with her sibling and hosts her elderly mother for six months of each year. As her mother continues to need more and more assistance in her daily life, she wanted to provide her with a safe, easy to use custom bath suite while in her care. This new barrier-free, wheel-in-entry shower complete with the LUXE Linear Drain helps provide her mother with an extra measure of privacy and independence at home.

In addition to delivering design elegance and modern appeal, the award-winning collection of architectural-grade, 100% stainless steel LUXE Linear Shower Drains have proven ideal for creating barrier-free, wheel-in-entry custom showers to meet demand for the continued increase of seniors choosing to age at home as long as possible. All LUXE Linear Drains can be placed anywhere in the shower flooring layout, whether at the entry threshold or back against the far wall, providing safe and easy to access showers that gently slope just ¼” per square (2%) in one direction toward the LUXE Linear Shower Drain.

 

The homeowner has been working with the same contractor for 20 years, Michael Kenny of Custom Carpentry. In fact, just one year ago Kenny renovated the master bath for her master suite on the other side of the home. Kenny’s design for this more open, much safer and easier to use master bath features three different styles of porcelain tile set in unique patterns to accent the LUXE Linear Shower Drain that runs the length of the entire far back wall of the new wheel-in-entry shower. In addition to the greatly expanded space, new stylish fixtures and custom LED lighting, the zero-threshold shower entry features a frosted pocket-glass door that swings open easily in both directions.

Anchored by the style, form and function of the architectural-grade, 100% stainless steel LUXE Linear Shower Drain, the new shower features two LUXE Linear Shower Pattern Grate drains with the three different styles of large-format stone-look porcelain tiles. The greatly expanded shower required Kenny to couple a pair of 48” wedgewire channel grates to stretch the full length of the 96” (8 foot) far back wall.

In preparing the plywood substrate foundation he custom built and installed, Kenny used Schluter®-Ditra uncoupling, vapor control and waterproofing membrane to protect the LUXE Linear Shower Drain installation and the large-format porcelain flooring and wall tiles from the threat of harmful moisture penetration. The membrane bonds directly to the mortar bed Kenny built over the plywood substrate and ties out easily with the architectural-grade, 100% stainless steel linear drain. The porcelain tiles are then easily set directly in the second layer of thin-set adhesive that Kenny troweled directly on to the same Schluter-Ditra mat, where they are grouted and sealed as the finished surface for barrier-free, easy to use wheel-in-entry shower.

For this new custom bath specifically designed to accommodate the homeowner’s elderly mother aging at home, Kenney chose to angle the 12” x 12” porcelain flooring tiles in order to form a staggered, repeating diamond pattern. For the shower walls, Kenny specified large-format, 24” x 12” white marble-look tiles complete with dark, natural gray veining in a repeating brick-stack pattern. The walls are interrupted with a band of linear, random-length tiles in a darker blue, gray multi-color scheme that also surfaces the back wall of the custom soap and shampoo niche.