Most shower door guides start with installation. This one starts earlier — with the information that changes what you order, what you pay, and what you end up with ten years after install day.
1. "Frameless" Does Not Always Mean Frameless
A genuinely frameless door has no aluminum channel on any glass edge. "Semi-frameless" uses frame hardware on some edges — typically top or bottom — but gets marketed as frameless.
The practical difference: truly frameless doors require 3/8 in. (10mm) glass. Semi-frameless doors often use 6mm glass because the frame compensates. Before ordering, ask directly: does any aluminum channel contact any edge of the glass panel?
2.Glass Thickness Is Almost Never in the Product Name
Read ten shower door listings on any retail platform. Almost none display glass thickness in the product name or first paragraph.
Glass thickness — 6mm or 10mm — is the single most important specification for how the door feels and performs for the next decade. It is also the specification most consistently buried or omitted.
Rule: if the listing does not state glass thickness upfront in millimeters or fractions of an inch, assume 6mm until confirmed otherwise.
3. Showroom Price Includes Four Layers of Markup
The same door that costs $650 factory-direct costs $950–$1,200 at a showroom. The extra $300–$550 pays for: national distributor margin, regional sales rep commission, showroom overhead, and showroom retail margin.
Factory-direct pricing removes all four layers. The savings are structural — not a promotion.
4. "Free Shipping" on Glass Is Not Always Free
A 60-inch frameless door panel weighs 80–180 lbs. Shipping requires LTL freight, custom crating, and liftgate service — approximately $150–$350 per shipment.
Some retailers add a liftgate fee at delivery after checkout. Genuine free shipping covers LTL freight, crating, and liftgate with no add-ons on delivery day.
5. Sales Tax Can Add $50–$100 Depending on Where You Buy
Online sellers collect sales tax only in states where they have physical presence. Most local showrooms collect 6–10% in your state — that is $45–$90 on a $720 door.
Sellers with nexus only in NJ and CA, for example, do not collect sales tax in the other 48 states. For buyers in Texas, Florida, Colorado, or most other states, that is $45–$90 that stays in the budget.
6. Measure After Tile — Not Before
Tile adds 3/8 to 1/2 in. of thickness per wall. A 60-inch rough opening with tile on both sides produces a finished opening of 58.25–59.75 inches.
A door ordered to pre-tile dimensions arrives too wide for the finished opening.
Correct sequence: tile first, grout cured 72 hours minimum, then measure the finished opening at three heights. Use the smallest reading as the ordering dimension.
7. Coating Determines Whether Cleaning Takes 5 Minutes or 20
Uncoated glass accumulates soap scum and mineral deposits that bond within 4–8 weeks of regular use. Weekly maintenance: 15–20 minutes. Annual deep clean: 2–3 hours.
A permanent factory-applied hydrophobic coating raises the water contact angle above 100 degrees. Water beads and runs off. Weekly maintenance drops to 3–5 minutes.
The detail most listings skip: most coatings are applied to one side only — the interior shower-facing surface. The exterior accumulates fingerprints and ambient humidity. Both-sided coating protects both surfaces.
8. Hardware Grade Matters More Than Hardware Finish
Chrome, brushed nickel, matte black — the finish is what buyers notice. The grade determines whether it looks the same in year five.
Zinc alloy with chrome plating is visually identical to stainless steel on install day. Around year three, plating wears through at high-contact points. Once through, the base metal corrodes.
316 stainless contains molybdenum that resists chloride corrosion — the mechanism that humid bathroom air and chlorinated tap water accelerate continuously.
Ask for the grade number — 304 or 316 — not the finish name. A supplier who cannot provide the grade is almost certainly supplying zinc alloy.
9. The Finished Opening Width Is Almost Never the Nominal Size
Nobody has a true 60-inch shower opening. They have a 60-inch rough framing dimension that after tile produces a finished opening of 58.25–59.75 inches.
Measure three times at three heights — 6 inches from the floor, mid-height, and 6 inches below the top. Use the smallest reading. Order to that dimension.
10. Door Height Should Match Ceiling Height — Not Just Tile Surround
In a bathroom with 9-foot ceilings, a standard 72-inch door leaves a 36-inch gap above the enclosure. That gap reads as a proportion mismatch.
An 84-inch door in the same 9-foot bathroom leaves a 24-inch gap — the same proportion a 72-inch door achieves in an 8-foot ceiling room. The door looks sized for the room rather than inserted into it.
84-inch height is available at the same price point as 76 and 80-inch configurations at factory-direct pricing. The proportion decision costs nothing extra.
Summary Checklist Before You Order
- Confirmed glass is truly frameless, not semi-frameless
- Glass thickness confirmed in writing — 3/8 in. (10mm) minimum for frameless
- Price compared factory-direct vs showroom
- Freight and liftgate confirmed included in shipping cost
- Sales tax nexus checked for your state
- Tile installation complete and grout cured before measuring
- Coating confirmed on both sides, not one side only
- Hardware grade confirmed as 304 or 316 stainless in writing
- Opening measured at three heights after tile, smallest reading used
- Door height matched to ceiling height ratio, not just tile surround
Frameless shower doors from $650. 3/8 in. SGCC-certified tempered glass standard. EnduroShield coating both sides standard. Free nationwide shipping including liftgate. Custom dimensions quoted in 2 business hours. Shop frameless shower doors with 10mm SGCC glass · Custom dimensions — quote in 2 hours · Contractor wholesale pricing
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