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Accessible shower in office building?

ILoveRed
10 years ago

My husband and I purchased an older brick building and have gutted it for our business. The walls are out right now. We have to have 2 bathrooms and both have to be accessible. We are still at the point where a shower could be added in one of the bathrooms and would like to do that for employees that like to work out.

Our contractor says that it would also have to be accessible.

This building will not be used by the public...just employees. Only one emplyee is in the office full-time. Would this shower need to be accessible? TIA.

Comments (16)

  • PRO
    Epiarch Designs
    10 years ago

    This is more of a question for your local inspector vs the contractor. We have gone both ways. Public buildings are never a question to make accessible, however private buildings you have some more leeway depending on the code official. however don't let the word accessible worry you. This does not mean you need a 5' roll in shower. 3x3 showers can be accessible, its just a matter of adding a bench and grab bars, again, if your local code would require it. I would present the case to the plan reviewer and describe to them the intended use. We have also done accessible ready, which means blocking is in the wall for grab bars and a bench to be added at a later time (never). They typically will allow this as well, even on public projects I have done.

  • ILoveRed
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks for the speedy response.

    Would "accessible ready" require us to do a flat threshold? I don't know if that is the correct terminology. Would we be able to use a glass door? Thanks.

    I'm almost afraid to call the building officials because I'm afraid well get the wrong person and he/she will automatically say no unless its huge.

  • PRO
    Epiarch Designs
    10 years ago

    flat threshhold would refer to a roll in shower. This would be required on a 60" unit. 36" units are not required to have roll in. They are required to have a space infront/beside the shower unit for wheel chair parking and transfering to a shower bench.
    3x3 showers are recognized by the ADA as an acceptible unit. Based on what you are suggesting as a use, I can not see them requiring a roll in shower. It would certinaly be a stretch.

  • palimpsest
    10 years ago

    Here the answer would be "yes". Even the private bathroom for the owner of the practice I work in had to be designed as accessible because it was in a commercial space. His inability to practice should he need an accessible bathroom was not taken into account.

    If this is a bathroom for employees I would be almost positive the answer would be yes to accessibility in the vast majority of locales. To not have one would also be open to interpretation that you would not hire anyone who needed an accessible bathroom, which could potentially cause some issues with employment regulations in your area.

  • ILoveRed
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    But Pal, the rest of the bathroom will be fully accessible. Just not the shower. But, I certainly see where you are coming from. Its likely that the only person that will be using this shower is our daughter who works long hours and likes to break up her days with a workout.

    What a pain.

    I guess I will make the call.

    I certainly appreciate the advice from both of you and I will let you know the outcome :-)

  • palimpsest
    10 years ago

    Unfortunately I think it is all or nothing--accommodation is accomodation.

    The personal bathroom of my boss was kept a "closet" until after the office was occupied, because there was no room to have two universal access bathrooms in the footprint. It's interesting because not having one at all was acceptable since the building has public hallway facilities. But if one was going to be built, it had to meet the requirements. At least that is how it was interpreted in this location.

  • PRO
    Epiarch Designs
    10 years ago

    Red-
    about the only thing unique here is the clear floor space required in front of the shower. this floor space can be overlapping the required space for the toilet as well. If your bathroom is not large enough to allow this, they may not let you. To be accessible ready, as I described above, you would still need the required floor space however. The grab bars and folding bench is what could be optional here, otherwise a fairly standard 3x3 shower would work.

  • ILoveRed
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Lzerarc,

    I wasn't sure how to post this, so I took a screenshot of it and zoomed in on the bathroom area. This shower is an afterthought of course but do you you think it would work as long as it is at least 3x3? Or does there need to be more room around it? There is already plumbing there and this is a slab so the shower has to be there, if we do it.

    The "Furnace" area will now be a closet. The slab had old heating vents in it and our contractor suggested new heat and air for a healthier building. This plan was done before that decision was made.

    A lot of the walls are not built yet, so there is still flexibility in the spaces to a degree.

    Thanks for your time. I appreciate it.

  • ILoveRed
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks Pal. So he kept it a closet until after they moved into the building and then converted it into a bathroom?

  • lazy_gardens
    10 years ago

    One way to deal with the accessible issue is to have a shower without walls.

    Just use curtains around that corner area during showering, or perhaps folding doors that can fold back for access.

  • PRO
    Epiarch Designs
    10 years ago

    rotate the shower so it faces the toilet so they can share the clear floor space and you should be good to go. Present it to the code official and get their feedback to prevent any inspection surprises.

  • lyfia
    10 years ago

    As long as it is 3x3 and has floor space in front, a fold down bench, grab bars, and an adjustable shower - the kind with a bar the shower slides on and can be hand held it would meet the accessible requirements in my area.

  • allison0704
    10 years ago

    Cities/counties are always changing the code. DH thinks it's a way to keep the inspectors busy now that the housing boom isn't booming like in the past.

    We built two 28K sf office buildings (twins, side-by-side). We used one of the spaces as an office while building out the buildings and afterwards. DH wanted a shower, so put in a shower unit from Home Depot. It did not have to be handicap accessible because it was not a public bathroom - it was a private bathroom within our office. The public bathrooms (one women/one man on each floor) had to be handicap accessible. Some wanted their own bathrooms: A large company had most of the 2nd floor in one building. They had large bathrooms with multiple stalls, but did not have to have an accessible stall since it was private.

    We also own several shopping centers. The cities require each tenant to have an accessible bathroom. Used to require water fountains too, but I think those are no longer required. We currently lease to a CrossFit and they have a shower, but it is not accessible... and it passed code. These are all in the same area, same city, same inspectors.

    So I'm afraid you won't get your answer until you call your city/county and ask. Don't ask the receptionist. Ask an inspector. Or can you look up online? Some cities have codes where they are easily available.

  • ILoveRed
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks lazy gardens- I hope I don't have to do that but it might be an option.

    Lzerarc--Ok, will do. I'm hoping that this will work...just one more question please. How low of a threshold do you think I will have to have?

    Lyfia-- any ideas on a fold-down bench? Thanks.

    Allison--thanks for the info. Sounds like lots of headaches for the two of you...I will just have to call the building inspector and present the plan as per Lzerarc's advice, and hope its acceptable. A town of 12, 000. And it may depend on what mood he is in that day :-)

  • allison0704
    10 years ago

    Any inspector headaches were given to DH, I do the paperwork/accounting. lol

    Yes, a lot depends on the mood they are in. When we still owned the office buildings, they stopped letting inspectors take their trucks home at night = Not. Good. Mood.

  • lyfia
    10 years ago

    Below is a link to pics. The ones I'm used to see in our area are the plastic seats.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Google images of fold down shower seats

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