Left or right hand shower door: how to tell

A hinged shower door is left hand when its hinges are on the left, viewed from outside the enclosure. It is right hand when the hinges are on the right, viewed from outside. A sliding door has no hinges, so we never call it left or right hand. We describe it by the direction it slides to open.

What does left hand mean on our site?

We use one viewpoint for every hinged door: you stand outside the shower, in the bathroom, looking at the glass. Whichever side the hinges are on is the hand.

• Left hand: hinges on the left, viewed from outside.
• Right hand: hinges on the right, viewed from outside.

The configurator option reads exactly that, for example "Left hand: hinges on the left, viewed from outside". Other suppliers and brochures do not always agree on which drawing is left hand, so use our definition, not a label from somewhere else.

How do sliding doors work?

A sliding door is described by where it slides to open. The option reads, for example, "Door slides to the right to open (fixed panel on the right)". The door slides past the fixed panel, so the fixed panel is on the side the door slides to. You will not see LH or RH on a sliding layout.

How do I work out the hand I need?

1. 1

   Step 1: Stand outside the shower

   Stand in the bathroom where you will step in from, facing the opening. Do not stand inside the tray, because that reverses left and right.

2. 2

   Step 2: Decide where the hinges should go

   Pick the side the door should swing from. Usually that is the wall or the fixed panel beside the door. Check the door will clear the basin, toilet and radiator as it opens.

3. 3

   Step 3: Read off the hand

   Hinges on your left means left hand. Hinges on your right means right hand. For a slider, note which way the door should slide to open.

4. 4

   Step 4: Choose it in the configurator

   Select the matching option. The drawing shows the hinges on that side.

5. 5

   Step 5: Check the drawing before you pay

   The drawing caption shows LH or RH, or the slide direction. Check it matches your bathroom before you tick to confirm the drawing at checkout.

How does the hand affect a bath screen's corner cuts?

On a fixed bath screen, and on the fixed panel of a fixed and hinged bath screen, the hand decides which edge can take corner cuts. A corner cut is a notch taken off a corner of the glass.

• Left hand: corner cuts at the top left, the bottom left, or both.
• Right hand: corner cuts at the top right, the bottom right, or both.

A cut on the other edge is refused, and the configurator gives the reason. If you have not set the hand yet, the first corner cut you add sets the edge. So pick the hand first, then add the cuts. See bath screens for the layouts.

How do I avoid ordering the wrong hand?

The hinge holes and any corner cuts are made before the glass is toughened. Toughened glass cannot be drilled, notched or trimmed afterwards, so a door made for the wrong hand cannot be swapped on site. It means a new panel.

• Use our definition, viewed from outside, not a hand from an old screen or another brochure.
• Check where the door will swing and what it will hit before you choose the hinge side.
• Check the drawing caption at checkout. The checkout tick confirms you have checked the drawing.
• If you spot a mistake after ordering, use "Request a correction" on the Check your order page from your confirmation email while the window is still open.

Read drawings and checks for how the checkout drawing and correction window work.

Where to go next

• Choose your hand in the configurator: open the shower configurator
• Hinges, channels and seals
• Shower screens and enclosures
• How to measure for a shower screen

Questions we get asked