plumbing question - not in garage

[Buickspec6231]

I have a question about a bathroom plumbing idea. The issue is I have designed a bathroom setup and my girlfriend has designed a different bathroom setup. Guess who's opinion is stronger?

Anyway, the bathroom style she wants is a walk in shower where there is no shower door, just a 2/3 glass wall. The issue comes with the layout of the other fixtures. The way she wants the shower layout would put all the plumbing in the exterior wall. Thats obviously not going to work. We definitely live in an area where the pipes could freeze. Her reason for wanting the plumbing on that wall is because then it is a clear path from door to shower with no obstacles to go around (i.e. - toilet).

In an attempt to compromise, I was wondering if I could install the mixing valve and supply lines in the interior wall, and then run the mixed water up the interior wall, through a conditioned attic space, and down inside the exterior wall. My thought for doing this is two-parted. First and most important was that I was thinking that once the water was shut off at the mixing valve that the water in the shower head would drain out, leaving the exterior wall plumbing empty after use. Although, I don't know for sure if the shower head would drain or if it would act like a straw with my finger over the end when raised out of a drinking glass. The other benefit I thought of doing the plumbing this way, is that you could set your water temperature from out of the spray path and walk into the water when you are ready, instead of dodging the water when you turned on the valves.
She's pretty set on the doorless shower setup, and I do like the look of it. I'm just kicking ideas around and trying to come up with reasonable solutions. I have also thought about creating a false wall and running the plumbing up through that, which could allow it to stay on the exterior side of the shower? A rainfall shower head from the ceiling is also not an option. Neither of us like them. No matter what I do, everything has an inspection to it and must meet code.

Sorry for the lengthy message. I'm open to criticism and suggestions (However, I will not dump my girlfriend on your suggestion).

This is my idea for the plumbing to make her shower work. I'm not artist. Sorry if it doesn't make any sense.


This is the bathroom layout.

 

[alcorelli]

Avoid ANY plumbing in exterior walls.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

 

[cdestuck]

Wondering if your shower area is large enough to spare 4” on the exterior wall. Meaning, the exterior wall, well insulated and drywall or plywood sheeting. Then build a 2nd 2x4 wall to house the plumbing and shower valve. With that setup, there would never be enough low temps to free the supply lines.

 

[dfiler2]

i'm also wondering if you could drop the ceiling a couple of inches so the lines would all be inside the insulation.

 

[59 wagon man]

run under the slab

 

[BehanCS]

you can put them in the exterior wall if you have enough room to insulate. typically would require packing the wall out.

 

[pmiranda]

Last time I checked attics weren't insulated, either.
If you have 6" or bigger walls so you can properly insulate outside of ALL the pipes and electrical, and insulate both the hot and cold pipes, I think it's OK to run water in an exterior wall. But I have never lived in NY!

Edit: BTW, in my master bath, we have the valve on an interior wall where you enter the shower, away from the spray, and the PEX to the shower heads runs through the slab and then up an exterior wall. It's really nice to reach in to turn on the shower a minute before hopping in.

 

[dfiler2]

My attic has 32" of insulation and around here that's considered a little light.

 

[Buickspec6231]

Thank you everyone for the suggestions. We have narrowed it down to either running the plumbing under the R-49 insulation (warm side) or making some sort of chase/drop ceiling to run the plumbing in on the interior and having the fixture exit from the ceiling. All the valves and controls would still be mounted on the interior wall.

I didn't think I would have this problem so late in the planning stages. The bathroom is the only room she has wanted any real input with. So, it's in my best interest to try to accommodate her simple wishes of a "fancy" shower.

Hopefully our Governor will allow construction to resume at the end of next week. We were supposed to break ground on this house the week he deemed residential construction non-essential.

 

[rayra]

what's outside the bathroom, can you mirror-flip the whole layout so the wet wall is an interior wall.


girlfriend? designing a house build together? Building a house together?

 

[Buickspec6231]

what's outside the bathroom, can you mirror-flip the whole layout so the wet wall is an interior wall.


girlfriend? designing a house build together? Building a house together?

The interior wall backs up to the master closet, and the foyer closet. Which would seem like an easy way to mirror flip everything, but in doing so would block the linen closet (not represented in the drawing) which took a corner out of the master closet. Apparently linen closets are a must have in the bathroom. I only need one towel and one wash cloth at a time. I didn't realize a whole closet was a necessity.

As far as the designing the house with the girlfriend part, the house was designed and signed by the architect while I was single and she lived across the country. The rest of the floor plan is designed to how I wanted my house to be. Everything was laid out to be simple and efficient. This silly shower is the only thing creating a problem with the plan. I would have just put in a bathtub with a curtain and have been done. As far as building it together, we are leaving much of the work to the professionals, but are planning to do a lot of the interior work ourselves. I am physically able to do the electric, plumbing, well-pump, and radiant floor stuff. Just trying to educate and get it right the first time around. Since the code enforcement guy is part time and is probably being harassed by the rest of the people waiting to get started on their projects, I don't want to keep calling him and get on his bad side just yet.

 

[pmiranda]

I would have just put in a bathtub with a curtain and have been done.

And that's why you were smart to consult your girlfriend. If you go to sell it, it will pay off

 

[larry4406]

In our new construction homes (2x6 walls R21) we will add a 2x4 wall and run the plumbing in it at exterior wall locations. We close cell spray foam these walls.

I have a house under construction with a rain head on the ceiling. We installed a pop up bulkhead plywood sealed on the top side of the attic trusses then built a dropped ceiling below. This was closed cell spray foam insulated to R49. The rain head is in the dropped bulkhead. This particular shower has a Kohler digital controller with remote electric diverter valve. Customer can select one or all of rain head, shower head, or slide bar spray.

 

[CraigStu]

I like the idea of running the line across the attic. But am thinking of a variation and not sure what would be available to make it work aesthetically. What if you put drywall on top of the bottom 2x4 of the truss to make maybe a 6 inch wide channel for your water line to go through. And then closed off the bottom of that channel flush w/ the rest of the ceiling w/ something like vented soffit.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Georgia-Pa...9a&gclid=CO3d98jxpukCFZaPxQIdzVkEpw&gclsrc=ds
Or maybe some vents
https://ventcoversunlimited.com/resin-vent-covers/
Of course a little extra attention would be needed for coating the inside of this channel because it will get the moisture effect from the shower. But your pipe would stay at or very close to the room temp in the bathroom.