With summer in full swing, we’re finding ourselves yearning for the great outdoors—even when it comes time to shower. While you could go all out with a sleek professional job, there are plenty of DIY options that could have you showering in your backyard this weekend. Here are some of our favorite homemade installations.
Beat the Heat: 16 DIY Outdoor Showers to Cool You Down
Nothing feels better on a hot summer day after hitting it hard outdoors, than showering outdoors. Even if you can’t swing a pool or spa on your property, an outdoor shower is an affordable luxury, no matter what your style or budget. Outdoor shower kits are readily available in most big box hardwares. With some basic DIY skills, you can design and build your own little bit of bathing paradise with a some fixtures on a wall, a simple stall, or even by utilizing a tree in your yard. Make a retreat under an arbor. Or, create an enclosure with the corner of a patio and a sweeping, circular curtain rod. The options are almost limitless. Take a look at these creative outdoor shower ideas, and find the design that suits your needs.
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Summer Showers
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Metal Works
Corrugated metal adds a bit of sheen to your backyard while offering you a place to rinse off after a day working in the garden or lounging by the pool. Add a third wall for greater privacy or—for a more ambitious undertaking—incorporate a hinged door to enclose the shower completely.
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Surf(board)'s Up!
Channel your inner beach bum with this inventive surfboard shower. The trimmed edge of a salvaged board becomes the ideal upright for a shower installation, and the stone base diverts runoff to the surrounding plants—a twofer, provided you use mild, plant-safe detergents.
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Curtain Call
For a transportable or low-commitment outdoor shower, purchase a stall kit that can be hooked up to a common garden hose. Add a colorful curtain, and voilà! Your summer weekends just got a little better.
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Slatted Beams
If you aren’t too modest, a straightforward stacked-slat construction is a modern option for an outdoor shower. We love the clever addition of stone ledges wedged between the slats to provide a home for soap and shampoo.
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Fully Exposed
No neighbors? No need to worry about privacy, then. This exposed, wall-mounted outdoor installation requires nothing more than assorted pipe fittings, a shower head, and access to a water line. The towel hook is optional but convenient.
Jennifer Harrington / sunset.com
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Beneath an Arbor
Arbors are meant to be walked under, so why not shower under one too? This outdoor shower not only looks inviting but provides just the right amount of shade and bathing privacy. If you can manage the plumbing, you can easily install an arbor.
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Canvas Enclosure
Plumbing pipe is an inexpensive—and intrinsically waterproof—framing system for an outdoor shower. Curtains can be mounted on hooks for easy disassembly during winter months. Be sure to use a heavy-duty waterproof material like canvas to prevent the buildup of mold and mildew.
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Bamboo Bower
If you desire a more tropical look, you can create a setup with framing lumber and bamboo blinds. This outdoor shower happens to be in Maui, but there's no reason you can't bring a bit of paradise to your own backyard.
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Patio Divider
No reason why a free-standing patio wall—either existing or newly built—can't house an outdoor shower. If existing, no need to conceal plumbing; just mount to the wall, affix a shower head and connect to a water source. A circular shower rod will easily provide draped privacy.
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Rain Forest
If you lack plumbing skills but have a good sturdy tree, here's the easiest outdoor shower solution of all: Simply attach a shower head to your garden hose and drape it over a branch, just like SweetPaul did here. Don't forget a vintage ladder as a rustic towel rack!
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Modern Painted Tin
Corrugated tin makes a modern backdrop for an outdoor shower, snuggled up to the back of the house. The abstract picket fence styled coat rack is an artful place to hang towels.
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Cedar Shakes
This outdoor shower incorporates architectural elements of a traditional cedar shake home. A pergola ceiling tops walls faced with shakes and a barn-styled door. Though clearly a modern addition, this shower fits right in with its historic environment.
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Glassy Green
A wall of green glass mosaic tile blends into the treelined background of this contemporary outdoor shower. Add a rainfall shower head to this simple and minimalist design, and you may feel you've stepped out into the rain to bathe.
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On a Tree
The shade of a tree provides the canopy over an outdoor shower mounted to its trunk. There's no better way to exit the lake than by showering off with it still in view.
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Assembly Required
This beautiful sustainable hardwood shower stall is completely temporary, can be moved at will, and taken down for storage at the end of the season. No trench digging required. Despite that design, it certainly looks like a permanent fixture.
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For More...
For more on outdoor structures, consider:
How To: Make an Outdoor Shower
How To: Create a Spa Bath at Home
10 "Dream-Worthy" Swimming Pools
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