I wanted to share my experience for the benefit of anyone who is remodeling their bathroom soon or is handy with wiring and plumbing. I love long showers but in Arizona the water is scarce/expensive and it seems wasteful to heat a lot of water then let it all run it down the drain. Years ago, I came across the idea of a personal Steam Sauna/Shower and it has been a game changer for me.
A "Mr Steam" top of the line model steam generator costs upwards of $3-5k but there are many asian made boilers that are dead simple and work quite well. The heating elements do wear out (and are not easy to find replacements for) but at less than $500 a piece, you could go through 5-6 of them before exceeding the cost of a name brand device (and those wear out too and their heating elements are expensive). You need 220V power and heavy gauge wire (most require a 30-50Amp circuit) to safely handle the load. It's nice to have a drain plumbed but it's not strictly necessary (I have one plumbed in but I still actually drain the water manually to a bucket instead once a week and use it for watering plants (like I said, water is scarce in Arizona). It is best to get your shower and ceiling lined with a water/vaporproof membrane before the tile goes in to prevent vapor condensation and resulting mold in the walls. I have a full glass shower door with silicone gaskets. They aren't 100% vaporproof (some steam leaks out) but a 3x6ft shower with normal ceiling height can fill up nicely with only a 6kW steam generator. I could have probably gotten away with a 4kW but the 6kW was only a little more expensive. I use a steam head that has a little well for adding essential oils or whatever for "aromatherapy". Few things are more luxurious than a long steam shower and wet shave followed by a cold shower. Here is the steam generator I used. It is no longer sold under that name (had some bad reviews I think) but there are many others exactly like it (same photos and everything) easily searchable on Amazon or ebay. The installation instructions sometimes aren't amazing but if you have a good electrician they should be able to figure it out (these are really very simple devices with a small boiler, a fill valve, a temp sensor, a control panel, and a drain valve).
15 minutes of steam and a few minutes of face lathering make shave prep a breeze. A long hot steam shower with no water-wasting guilt (or high water bill) and a slow relaxing shave is a great way to start the day (or end it after a workout).
A "Mr Steam" top of the line model steam generator costs upwards of $3-5k but there are many asian made boilers that are dead simple and work quite well. The heating elements do wear out (and are not easy to find replacements for) but at less than $500 a piece, you could go through 5-6 of them before exceeding the cost of a name brand device (and those wear out too and their heating elements are expensive). You need 220V power and heavy gauge wire (most require a 30-50Amp circuit) to safely handle the load. It's nice to have a drain plumbed but it's not strictly necessary (I have one plumbed in but I still actually drain the water manually to a bucket instead once a week and use it for watering plants (like I said, water is scarce in Arizona). It is best to get your shower and ceiling lined with a water/vaporproof membrane before the tile goes in to prevent vapor condensation and resulting mold in the walls. I have a full glass shower door with silicone gaskets. They aren't 100% vaporproof (some steam leaks out) but a 3x6ft shower with normal ceiling height can fill up nicely with only a 6kW steam generator. I could have probably gotten away with a 4kW but the 6kW was only a little more expensive. I use a steam head that has a little well for adding essential oils or whatever for "aromatherapy". Few things are more luxurious than a long steam shower and wet shave followed by a cold shower. Here is the steam generator I used. It is no longer sold under that name (had some bad reviews I think) but there are many others exactly like it (same photos and everything) easily searchable on Amazon or ebay. The installation instructions sometimes aren't amazing but if you have a good electrician they should be able to figure it out (these are really very simple devices with a small boiler, a fill valve, a temp sensor, a control panel, and a drain valve).
15 minutes of steam and a few minutes of face lathering make shave prep a breeze. A long hot steam shower with no water-wasting guilt (or high water bill) and a slow relaxing shave is a great way to start the day (or end it after a workout).
