Outdoor Developed Areas: A Summary of Accessibility Standards for Federal Outdoor Developed Areas

Outdoor Rinsing Showers [1011.2, 1011.3, and 1011.7]

Outdoor rinsing showers allow people to rinse off sand, dirt, and debris. They are not intended for bathing. Outdoor rinsing showers generally don’t offer privacy and people usually are not allowed to disrobe when using them.

At outdoor rinsing showers, a minimum of 60 by 60 inches of clear ground space must be provided. The clear ground space must be centered on the shower head to enable people using mobility devices to turn in the space while rinsing. The shower pedestal or wall with the shower heads must be at the rear end of the clear ground space.

At least one hand-held shower spray unit must be provided. The hand-held shower spray unit must have a hose at least 59 inches long and at least one fixed position between 15 and 48 inches above the ground (figure 24). When vandalism is a consideration, a fixed shower head mounted at 48 inches above the ground is allowed in place of a hand-held shower spray unit. Outdoor rinsing showers can have more than one hand-held spray unit or fixed shower head.

The other operable parts of outdoor rinsing showers, such as handles or levers, must be between 15 and 48 inches above the ground and be operable using one hand without tightly grasping, pinching, or twisting the wrist, and with no more than 5 pounds of force. If self-closing devices are used, they should remain open and allow water to flow for at least 10 seconds.

Figure 24— Technical requirements for outdoor rinsing showers.