4–6 inches
A standard curb
Built on the existing floor, nothing structural touched. This is what replaces a fifteen-inch tub wall, and for most people it is the entire problem solved. Included at every tier.
THRESHOLD HEIGHT
How low the step can actually go
Most people asking for a "curbless" shower want the tub wall gone, not a structural renovation. Beaver Bath Co. builds all three heights, and this page is about which one your situation actually calls for.
Low-threshold or curbless entry, shot low to show the threshold height clearly
THREE HEIGHTS
What you are choosing between
For reference, the tub wall you have now is roughly fifteen inches. Every option below is a large improvement on that.
2–3 inches
A low-threshold curb
A shallower curb using a low-profile base, still built on top of the existing subfloor. Easier to step over, still contains water reliably. Usually possible without touching structure, though it depends on what the floor is doing.
0 inches
Curbless, zero-entry
The shower floor sits flush with the bathroom floor. To get there, the pan has to be recessed into the floor structure, which means cutting and sistering joists. This is a real structural job with a different price and a longer schedule.
WHAT DECIDES IT
Four things under the floor
Whether curbless is possible in your bathroom has almost nothing to do with the bathroom and everything to do with what is underneath it.
Which way the joists run
If they run parallel to the shower drain line, recessing the pan is straightforward. If they run perpendicular, the work is significantly more involved and sometimes not advisable at all.
What is under the bathroom
A first-floor bathroom over a basement or crawlspace gives us access from below, which makes everything easier. A second-floor bathroom over a finished ceiling means opening that ceiling and closing it back up.
Whether the floor is concrete slab
On a slab, recessing means cutting concrete. It is possible, it is loud and dusty, and it is a different conversation about cost.
How the water gets managed
With no curb, the slope of the entire shower floor and a linear drain do the work the curb used to do. Get the slope wrong and water leaves the shower. This is where curbless jobs fail, and it is why it is a separate skill.
THE HONEST VERSION
Most people who ask for curbless need a low curb
If a wheelchair has to roll into the shower, curbless is the answer and there is no substitute. That is a real need and we build for it.
If the concern is a parent who has started finding the tub difficult, a two-inch threshold solves the problem for a fraction of the cost, with no structural work, on the standard 4-day schedule. We will tell you that even though the other job is worth more to us.
Get my fixed priceBEFORE YOU DECIDE
The two pages that answer most of it
QUESTIONS
Straight answers
- Do I actually need curbless?
- If someone in the house uses a wheelchair or a walker that has to roll in, yes, and nothing else substitutes. If the concern is a parent who finds the tub wall difficult, a low curb almost always solves it at a fraction of the cost and disruption. We would rather tell you that than sell you the bigger job.
- Why is curbless so much more expensive?
- Because it stops being a bathroom job and becomes a structural one. Joists get cut and reinforced, the subfloor is rebuilt, and often a ceiling below has to be opened and repaired. That is a different trade mix, a longer schedule, and a real engineering consideration, which is why it sits in its own tier well above a standard conversion.
- Can it still be done in 4 days?
- No, and anyone who tells you otherwise has not done one. Our 4-day schedule assumes we are working inside the existing footprint without touching structure. A curbless build adds days and we will tell you how many before you commit.
- Will a curbless shower leak into the rest of the bathroom?
- Not when the floor slope and the drain are done correctly, which is exactly the part that requires care. The whole shower floor pitches to a linear drain, and the waterproofing extends past the opening into the bathroom floor. When curbless goes wrong, this is always what went wrong.
- Can you tell from photos whether curbless is possible in my house?
- No. Photos tell us the room; they cannot tell us which way the joists run or what is under the floor. That answer comes from the in-home visit, and if the answer is no we will say so rather than find out during demolition.
Send two photos. Get a real number.
No appointment to book, no email address, no sales visit. We text you the tier and range, and the free in-home estimate sets your fixed price in writing.