Personal hygiene is a matter of great importance to many of us, that is why our bathrooms are one of the most frequently visited parts of our house. Therefore, it is important for us to pay extra care and attention when we are setting up different components of the bathroom.
The shower curtain and shower liner are an important part of our bathroom and you will learn about setting them up in the extract below.
Shower liner vs shower curtain: what’s the difference?
A shower liner is tucked inside the bathtub to prevent shower water spillages. It is made of water-resistant polyester and vinyl, thus it prevents mold growth in the shower curtains. Meanwhile a shower curtain is on the outer side of the bathtub and provides privacy and decorative purposes.
Table of Contents
Each bathroom has a separate bath or shower area, usually having bathtubs and showerheads. To provide a line of separation and also a bit of privacy, shower curtains and shower liners are popularly used to cover the bathing area.
However, shower curtains and shower liners are not the same thing and both serve different purposes.
A shower curtain is used to prevent water spillages from the bathing area into the rest of the bathroom. They are usually decorative and consist of various designs and colored patterns.
But the shower curtains are usually made of cotton, linen and fabric which often becomes moldy on extended exposure to water.
Shower liners are used alongside shower curtains to prevent the curtains from getting moldy and to avoid water spillage as well. Unlike shower curtains, liners are not decorative and are made of water-resistant polyester and vinyl.
Since the shower liners are not visually pleasing and also poor at maintaining the showerer’s privacy properly, it is used alongside shower curtains.
Another difference between shower liners and shower curtains is their dependency on each other. Shower liners are primarily made of water-resistant material which is why you can use them without any shower curtains at the compromise of privacy.
Whereas shower curtains can be used independently but it is recommended to use a shower liner as well. Although shower curtains can prevent water spillages, they are not as good as shower liners and they can get moldy on extended exposure to water.
To summarize, the differences between shower curtains and shower liners are:
Shower liners can prevent water spillage better:
Since shower liners are made of water-resistant material, they do not absorb water at all and all the water spilled into the liner gets bounced off the surface.
However, shower curtains are not made of water-resistant material, which is why they absorb some of the water and they climb down the curtain to reach the floor.
Shower curtains provide better privacy:
Shower liners are clear and transparent, meanwhile shower curtains have different colors and designs in them which provides better privacy to the showerer.
Do you need a shower curtain and liner both?
Shower curtains and shower liners both serve similar purposes but they have many differences in their properties, material composition as well as appearance. Shower curtains primarily serve to provide privacy as well as decorative looks to your bathroom.
They are made of materials such as fabric and linen – which is why they are more suited for appearance rather than being water resistant.
Shower liner, on the other hand, is made up of polyester and vinyl which works best to keep water from spilling over and does not absorb water or moisture at all. However, shower liners lack the visual appeal that shower curtains have.
Shower liners do not have any sort of design or pattern and are usually clear and transparent – which makes it poor for maintaining privacy.
Whether you need both shower curtain and liner is a personal preference since many people only use shower curtains or liners.
However, it is recommended that you use both shower curtain and liner because you need liner to prevent water spillage efficiently and curtain to make up for privacy and improve the looks of the bathroom.
What is a normal size shower curtain and liner?
Shower curtains and shower liners are placed inline with one another – with the shower curtain facing the outer side of the bathtub or bathing area whereas shower liners are hung facing the inner side.
That is why it is important that the size of the shower curtain and the shower liner match each other, or else they will look strange and ruin the looks of the bathroom.
But it is easy to make sure that both the shower curtain and the shower liner are of the same size because both of them are available at several standard sizes. Usually the standard sizes of shower curtains and liners are 70”x70”,70”x72” or 72”x72”.
So if your shower curtain is of either of these sizes, you must choose the shower liner of the corresponding size.
However, that’s not all – before you choose a shower curtain or shower liner, you must measure the length of the shower curtain rod in order to make sure that the curtain or liner you chose fits the rod size.
How to use shower curtain and liner?
In order to have a spillage free and comfortable bathing experience, it is essential that you know how to properly use your shower curtain and liner. In the list below, you will know the necessary things to look out for while using a shower curtain and liner:
Holding the curtain or liner by their rings:
After you enter the bathtub, the first thing you do is unfold the liner and curtain – but if you do that by dragging them from their body, you may end up unhooking their rings from the shower rod.
Instead you should drag the liner and the curtain across the rod by pulling them by their rings. You should unfold the curtain first, which is on the outside, and then the liner.
Tucking the liner inside the bathtub:
The liner is mostly responsible for making sure no water gets spilled out, which is why you need to tuck it into the inner portion of the bathtub to make sure that the water bouncing off the liner stays within the bathtub.
Letting the curtain hang outside the bathtub:
The shower curtain is there to provide you with privacy and does not prevent spillage just as well as liners, which is why you should let the shower curtain hang outside the bathtub.
Spread the liner completely:
To ensure that no water reaches the floor or other parts of the bathroom, you need to make sure all the water from the splashes remain within the bathing area. For that reason, make sure that the liner is extended fully from both ends and is taut.
How to install shower curtain liner and curtain?
The steps to install a shower curtain and a liner is described below:
Shower curtain
Insert the rings into the shower curtain:
First attach the shower curtain rings into their designated slots in the shower curtain. There are usually 12 curtain rings, so insert all the rings into the hooks.
Hook the curtain rings into the shower curtain rod:
If the rod is detachable, remove the rod and align all the curtain rings to insert into the shower curtain rod. If the rod is not detachable, take each of the rings and manually hook them into the curtain rod.
Tightly fasten the rings:
Once all the rings have been hooked into the rod, make sure none of the rings are loosely attached by double checking them and tightening the lock on the rings.
Shower liner
Align the shower liner with the shower curtain
If you are attaching the shower liner along with the shower curtain, you should align them on top of each other.
Insert the rings into the holes of both the curtain and the liner
Insert the rings into both of them through the holes present at the topmost portion of the curtain and the liner.
Hook the rings into the shower rod
Finally hang the rings into the shower rod with the liner on the inside and curtain on the outside.
What kind of shower curtain does not need a liner?
If your shower curtain is made of polyester, you will not need a liner because the polyester curtain is water-resistant and does not absorb water. If your curtain is thick enough and has a high proportion of polyester to fabric ratio – a shower liner would be unnecessary.
A shower curtain with 100% polyester works just as effectively as a liner.
Final Thoughts
A shower liner avoids shower water spillages by being tucked within the bathtub. It is made of water-resistant polyester and vinyl, which keeps mold from growing on the shower curtains. Meanwhile, a shower curtain hangs over the bathtub’s outside wall, providing privacy and decoration.