Nosefish Shower




The web pages which follow provide step-by-step instructions for building a zero-impact camp shower like this one. It took me about 4 hours to build it once I had collected the materials.

After I built it I realized that it will need to be tied down to the playa before it can really be used. One rope from each corner going down to a piece of rebar pounded into the playa. Cover the rebar with a section of "fun-noodle" (those pool tubes you can buy cheaply at "Toys Aren't Us") and cover the top with a tennis ball. You'll might also want to attach some sarongs to the sides for privacy. We plan to use hose clamps and binder clips to hold the sarongs.

Here is a list of tools you'll need:
  • Electric drill/screwdriver
  • Jigsaw
  • Router or a file or a sanding block
  • 3/4" drill bit
  • 5/32" drill bit (or to suit your screw-eyes)
  • Tape measure
  • Carpenter's square, or something that works like one (such as a sheet of paper or a vinyl album cover)
  • A glue gun (for use with a tube of construction adhesive)
  • A screwdriver to use as a leverage tool.




Here is a list of materials you'll need. There are pictures of most of these parts in the pages which follow. Review all the pages before going to buy parts.
  • Some sand or "Tread Tex", and some paint, for making a slip-resistant surface for the bottom of your shower. You'll need a paint brush too.
  • 6 three-way PVC corners. Each has 2 3/4" slip fittings and 1 1/2" threaded fitting.
  • 6 3/4" PVC tee fittings.
  • 6 1" straight PVC slip fittings.
  • 6 1/2" threaded to 1/2" PVC slip fittings.
  • 6 1/2" slip to 1" slip PVC adaptors.
  • 1 small can of PVC adhesive.
  • 1 length of 1/2" PVC (you really only need about 1 foot of it)
  • 4 lengths of 1" PVC
  • 2 lengths of 3/4" PVC
  • 1 2" long piece of 1/2" water pipe threaded on each end. There is about 1/2" of unthreaded section in the middle.
  • 1 brass 90 degree bend for 1/2" pipe (both ends threaded)
  • About 1 foot of 1/2" outside diameter vinyl host.
  • A piece of 1/2" thick plywood about 3 feet square. Mine was 30" by 36". If you have really heavy people who want to use the shower, make it 3/4" plywood.
  • Enough scrap plywood to make eight pieces approx 4" by 10".
  • A 2x4 (you'll only need about six feet of it)
  • Enough 3/4" shelf material to go around the permiter of the plywood. It should be about 5" to 6" wide. I used 1x12 and cut it lengthwise down the middle.
  • One tube of construction adhesive.
  • One tube of silicon caulking.
  • A box of 1" drywall screws.
  • 4 or more 1" long screw-eyes.
  • 4 bungie balls.
  • A solar shower bag.
  • About 100 feet of rope -- enough to hang the shower bag and secure the shower to the ground.
  • 4 lengths of 5/8" rebar
  • One "fun-noodle"
  • Four tennis balls with a 1/2" hole drilled in each.
  • Some duct tape.