Although shower curtains remain popular in many homes across the country, shower screens are much more practical. They are easier to keep clean and don't suffer from mildew as much. They are also more stylish whether they are used for an over-the-bath shower attachment or for a dedicated shower enclosure. There are five main types of shower screen to choose between and each works in a slightly different way to prevent water from splashing into your bathroom from the shower. What are they?

Frameless Shower Enclosures

A so-called frameless shower screen is made of clear glass without an edge to it which means that it is a good option for smaller en-suites that you'd like to appear as uncluttered as possible. This type of shower screen moves into the enclosure rather than outward to save as much space as possible. However, they can be difficult to close when you are inside the enclosure. The lack of a frame can mean minimal amounts of water escape, but they are easy to wipe down after use.

Sliding Door Enclosure Screens

This type of shower screen is exactly what you'd expect. Functioning much like a sliding patio door, one section of the screen remains in place while the other is moved back and forth, overlapping the first when it the door is opened. All that is needed is to push it back in place when you are showering. These screens are good for large walk-in shower enclosures which have replaced baths.

Pivot Shower Screens

These shower screens are attached at the bottom and at the top on a pair of pivots which either go into the floor or the ceiling. Therefore, they can swing open to allow access. A range of materials are suited to pivot shower screen – anything from toughened glass to plastic and polycarbonate is used. This type of screen needs to reach as high as the ceiling to work, however, so it is not great in tall rooms.

Hinged Shower Screens

Much like a pivoted shower screen, a hinged one swings back and forth depending on whether it will be open or shut. However, they are attached to a pair of hinges that are fixed to the wall, not the floor and ceiling. This means that they are equally suited to fitting on a bath as much as a floor standing shower enclosure.

Bi-Folding Shower Screens

This type is used where there is limited space for a fully opening shower door. A bi-folding one has two sets of hinges which work in the opposite way to one another. Ideal for smaller bathrooms, they fold up on themselves when opened but extend fully back into place when closed. Due to the additional moving parts and framing parts, they take more maintenance and cleaning than other types.