Shower Curtain Size Calculator

Why? Because fabric bunches in center and there’s an opening on one side where water falls out onto floor. And the curtain sticks to your legs as you reach to close it. It happens all the time, and most often, it has nothing to do with the curtain at all.

What is it about? It is about proportions of the fabric to the rod. Buy yourself a beautifull linen drape. But if the proportions aren’t right, it won’t work. Fullness are at the root of nearly every problem. In clothing design, fullness mean the amount of fabric needed to fill out a certain width. Think of a high fullness dress, which has excess fabric that give it flowing folds. It is the same with a shower curtain, but most customers overlook this.

How to Measure for the Right Shower Curtain

A curtain that matches the width of your rod will appear tight and flat. To form gentle folds and then move easily across the tub, you need additional width. After plugging in your desired drape style and rod width into the calculator, it do all the math for you. A typical rod is 72″ wide; add about 20% for the fullness and voila, an 86″ wide curtain is what’s called for. The additional 16″ makes the difference between a curtain that swishes or one that is simply like a stiff piece of plastic.

For most straight tub configurations, this is roughly the right length. Another issue is stall showers. These tend to be narrow (compared to a tub), but sometimes their curbs is also quite different in height. Sometimes the shower stalls are taller (which means more ceiling height). The shower wall may end three inches above floor, which allows steam to escape. Or, it may end at floor, where it can get wet and grow mildew. The customizable aspect of the tool on this page fits those differences of height.

Does your stall door open onto a fifty-four-inch-wide area? No need for curtain as wide as a tub. What you want is a narrower curtain with greater height.

The drop is realy important, since you’re measuring from the hook… Not the rod. So if your decorative ring hangs down an inch, the actual curtain will drop by an inch, meaning bottom edge will be an inch farther off the tub rim. It is a small detail but it can make a difference in keeping the bottom part dry.

Clawfoot tubs are outliers. To wrap your fabric around all those freestanding clawfoot tub, you’ll need a track system that wraps around multiple sides. Accessing it from opposite sides call for a track system that wraps all the way around the tub. Your rod width isn’t simply the space between two walls anymore; it’s now total circumference of the tub including any returns to seal the edges. So if you’re looking at a tub that isn’t just a straight line but has round corners like an oval, then according to the reference table on the page your width go up (the width in a straight line becomes the width of an oval). Instead of one panel, you could be looking at three. Multiple panels makes it easier to open and close since you won’t have to drag a huge sheet around a corner.

The liner is workhorse of the tub, so don’t forget it! Unless it overlaps by a couple of inches on both sides (the norm), water won’t stay in the tub. And sizing the liner with the width of your rod doesn’t gives it enough wiggle room. A gust of wind that opens or closes the door, or even just moves things around, will expose the liner. That added protection is inexpensive peace of mind about having a wet bathroom floor.

Finally, is it exact? No. But it’s about knowing the room. What’s length of the drop? What’s width of the rod? How much drape do you want? Let the numbers guide you on the size to purchase. You should of wanted something that makes the room look great. You want your feet to stay dry. Only with the math can you have both.