I would like to know a little about putting together a shower system. I am wanting a simple shower with some style. I like the idea of having a wall bar and a movable shower head that runs up and down the bar for different heights. I want the shower head to function as a hand held shower as well, to help with cleaning the shower. I have not determined if I will replace the tub for a tub/shower configuration or make this into a shower only system. This is a daily used BR but is very small - about 5'x7.5'.

I know there has to be some behind the scenes parts and this depends if the water mixes behind the wall or in the exposed fixture. BUT I don't know a whole lot more than that:)

In the bath in question for this post I would like to look into options to use a line of Axor.
1. Can I piece this together out of parts?

2. What parts does one need to install a wall shower with wall bar and tub
filler?

3. What parts are needed for just a wall shower with wall bar an
handshower?

4. Are there other quality showers that are cheaper?

As a side note, I like the Axor Montreux look. And would consider this line for my shower. I might rather use a modern minimalist style for easier cleaning though.

In my larger bathroom I am going to install an Axor Montreux tub filler with handheld shower. There will not be a shower surround, but a cast iron tub.

Thanks for any thoughts or ideas that you can share.

(Speaking of the plumbing: the thingee with all the valves and whatever the H that all is in there, when I showed it to DH after a long day of demolition, he stared at it for a minute, cracked open a beer and said "I don't know what that is and I can't learn right now." It is kinda complicated looking :)

It a general overview.

The issue you have is that with Hansgrohe everything is pretty much single-function. Just a temp control. Just a volume control. It's the multiple trim packages that kill you $$$.

I'll try to write more later.

Anyhow, going with the Montreux in the "modern" and "easy to clean" look. For that I'll recommend levers over cross-handles. There are a few ways to do this, but here's a basic list. Any links I provide are just generic hits:

With either a shower or a shower and tub spout, you need a valve to set the water temp. Hansgrohe has two valves, the 13gpm Ecostat and the 20gpm Ecomax. You can use either, but the Ecostat 15737181 has more than enough flow-through:

That's just the rough valve. You need a trim set to make it all pretty. Since you wrote "modern" I'll link to the Ecostat Montreux lever kit instead of the cross handled kit, but you can choose any Ecostat trim kit.

You can use the above valve for just the shower head, or for the shower and tub combo.

For the shower head, you want Axor Montreux on the slide bar, it includes a hose:

You need the Axor Montreux handheld:

You need a wall outlet to connect the handheld hose to the plumbing within the wall:

If you go with the tub spout, you'll need that:

All of the parts listed above give you the ability to set the water temp they allow you to get the water out of the walls via the handheld shower or the tub faucet. Now you need a way to control volume and to direct the water from the mixing valve to those outlets.

If you just have the shower and no tub, you'll have the hot and cold water supplies feed into the respective side ports on the Ecostat mixing valve. The outlet of the mixing valve will connect to a volume control. The outlet on the volume control will connect to the handheld wall outlet. For the volume control you need the #13974181 rough valve and the trim kit.

Although I added the tub spout in the parts listed above, if you forget about that, everything else is what you;d need for a "shower only" setup.

To add the tub spout, you can do it in one of two ways. You can simply add another volume valve and volume trim kit, the same one that's listed above to control the shower volume. If you did that, you'd again have the hot and cold supplies feeding the Ecostat temperature control valve. The top outlet port of the control valve would lead to one volume control valve, which would feed the handheld shower. The bottom outlet port on the temp control valve will feed a second volume control valve, which will feed the tub spout.

OR...

You can omit the two volume valves and replace them with a single diverter valve. If you did that, the top outlet port on the Ecostat temp valve would feed the Trio Diverter. The outlets on the diverter would then feed the handheld or tub spout.

Use the Trio Diverter valve body...

With the Trio Montreux Trim Kit...

You will only be feeding a handheld or a tub spout, so you can use all 1/2" valves, 1/2" fittings, etc. If I linked to a 3/4" valve that was by error. Again, the websites I linked to were happenstance.

Again, there are a few ways to skin this cat. The above is just one way using a thermostatic valve and staying within the Hansgrohe Axor Montreux family..

That's it for now.

Really good info in the replies! I didn't see this addressed so I'll ask again, do you only have the handheld on the slide bar OR a fixed shower head and not both?

Thanks

Deedles, What I want for my "little bathroom" is a wall bar with shower head that can be lifted and used to spray down the shower walls. I don't want an additional shower coming out of the wall. I have not decided yet if I will replace the tub and need a tub filler too, or just the shower business without the tub.

My "big bathroom" will have a tub only and I have the wall mounted Hansgrohe Axor Montreux style tub filler with handheld shower head that rest on a cradle above the tub spout as in my posted picture above. The tub/shower diverter is incorporated into the fixture as is the mixer because it is a bridge style. I haven't read Mongoct's total info yet but I think I need to get a gizmo for behind the wall for the temp balance.

on other brands, i was quite happy with the quality from grohe, which also has some clean, modern looks, and is quite easy to put together because there is a large selection of trims to work with its control valves also. you might also want to look at jado or cifial. for the showerheads, i like the offerings from the speakman eco line and hansgrohe which offers some showerheads that inject air to give the feeling of stronger pressure while still conserving water.