Fog free mirror solutions?

[One Hit Wonder]

Are there any plumbers/builders/handy dudes out there? I need ideas...

My wife and I are considering re-tiling our master bathroom including the shower. I am a shower shaver so this sounds like the opportunity to customized the shower space to be a better shaving environment.

One thing I need in my new shower/den is a good fog-free mirror. I've tried different mirrors you can buy that are supposed to be fog-free, but over time they all tend to lose their fog-free qualities.

So I wonder if there is a way to install a real glass mirror (like you'd have on the wall over your sink) into the tile with a heating system built in behind it to warm it and prevent fog.

Has anyone ever done this? I have thought up two ways but I'm not sure how feasible either one is so I'm looking for suggestions.

First, could I somehow route a hot water line behind the mirror so that the heat from the shower would warm the mirror?

Or, are there other heating devices that might work? I thought of the kind of heater that they use for underfloor heating, but it seems like that would be really expensive.

Any ideas or suggestions would be appreciated!

 

[Pine.Clad.Hills]

I think the best solution is to fix the fog/steam problem at the source. Install a exhaust fan that can move much more air. All my mirrors used to fog up before installing a proper exhaust fan. Work out the cubic feet of your room and then find a fan that will move it out as quick as possible. The best exhaust fans are squirrel cage fan design and low sone (least amount of noise) My is .9 sone and its great... not bothersome at all. highest CFM fan you can afford with the lowest sone will more and likely do the trick.

Hope it helps
Cheers

 

[arross2]

I don't know if it interests you, but if you don't mind the upkeep, there is a low-tech option. You can simply make an anti-fogging solution and use it on the mirror whenever it starts to take condensation again.

From my two minutes of google research, 2 oz. of white vinegar to 1 qt. of hot water makes an easy anti-fog cleaner for pennies. I imaging a quart goes a long way to cleaning a shave mirror, so I would experiment with reheating the solution, instead of making a quart each time your mirror fogs up, to pour out after.

I understand the convenience of having a mirror that simply does not fog due to some clever mechanism. I would merely point out that the mirror will need regular cleaning, and you might be better served with an economic solution.

 

[Gruder]

I recall seeing a heated back mirror in a Tokyo hotel bathroom, so they do exist. Whether they're available/allowable by code in the U.S. is another question -- I don't know. I'll admit to having considered the same thing for some home construction of my own in the future.

 

[4th and Nesbitt]

I used to be a shower shaver myself before I started DE shaving. About 3 weeks before I used my last M3 cartridge, I purchased and installed a Showertek fog free mirror. As far as fog free shower mirrors go, this thing is the Cadillac. Since I now shave at the sink, I have uninstalled the barely used shower mirror. Here is a link to the exact model I have:

Showertek Fog Free Mirror with Magnification

 

[MedicBill]

Every "fogless" mirror I have purchased is great for the first few showers, then they all start to fog up. I have an exhaust fan in my bathroom, and it's always on when I'm in the shower.

 

[Pogo]

A mirror installed with the tile in your shower will probably lose it's reflective backing over time and need to be replaced, a costly and messy operation.

Running a hot water line behind the mirror will also be costly. A plumbing leak between the walls would be a disaster.

Beside powerful exhaust fans and vinegar, mirrors can be made fog-free with expedients such as spit, soap, or Rain-X.

In your position, I would buy a suction-cup mirror or hang a mirror from the shower curtain rod, defogging it as necessary.

More important is to install adequate lighting in your shower.

Perhaps even more cogent and useful would be to learn to shave without a mirror, q.v. the current thread: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=143411.

Please let us know what you decide.

Pogo

 

[hairscraper]

My bathroom mirror is fog free cause it´s warmed electrical.. Don´t ask me how, the former guy who lived there build it in.
When I switch on the bathroomlight it´s activated. Works great!!

 

[knlgskr]

There are a number of fog-free mirrors available; AquaTek has worked well for me for 20+ years.

 

[RazorPete]

if you take just the tiniest dab of shaving cream or soap and rub it on any mirror, it will do a nice job of keeping it fog free for weeks. Of course in a shower environment, it might not last quite as long, but its pretty easy to do.


nb: when I was in Fukuoka Japan at the Sea Hawk hotel, they had a fog free patch about 12 inches square on their bathroom mirror that was fog free, not sure how they did it, but being 6 foot 6 inches, it was too short for me and I had to slouch down to shave, ha ha.

 

[elmuncy]

I bought a mirror at Menards that attaches in line with the shower head, hot water runs through it. It works great. Check your hardware stores

 

[smrex13]

I stayed at a hotel in New Orleans that had a heated mirror in the bathroom - it stayed fog free. Not sure how they rigged it up, but it was pretty neat.

Scott

 

[Gammon]

Obviously, I can't recommend this because it may break local/national building codes or be flat out illegal, but,

If I were to try something, this is what I'd do:
They make electric heat tape for keeping outdoor fuel tanks from freezing. I'm thinking that would do wonders for the back of a mirror. And, assuming you have plaster or drywall or the likes behind the mirror, there's very little risk of fire.
I may attempt something like that someday. But first I'd have to drywall behind the mirror (the previous owner cheaped out there, yeah, there's NO wallboard behind the mirror).
I have a small bathroom with a big exhaust fan, but there are days in the winter when I'd much rather have heat tape drawing power than run the fan and suck all the heat out of the house.

 

[sgtslaughter]

Walmart sells a heated fog free shaving mirror that mounts into the shower head. The water runs behind the mirror. It has a water saver switch and a shut off switch to turn off the water when you aren't using it. Sells for about $20.

 

[shmeegs]

There is something about a nice shave at the sink but shower shaving might be something to think about whenever the wifey and I are rushing in the morning.

 

[One Hit Wonder]

I've tried those ones that attach to the shower head. They're okay, but I don't like having to stand right under the shower when shaving. Also, they tend to get gunked up with mildew inside over time.

I found a source online that actually sells a heated unit that gets hard wired in. It is made to be installed right into the tile like I was hoping for. It was $200, which seems like a lot for a mirror (at least in my wife's way of thinking...she just doesn't understand), but in comparison to the cost of the rest of the bathroom remodel, it is pretty small.

For now I'll try the methods mentioned above (Rain-ex, etc.) and see if that helps.

Thanks everyone!