Rescue Supply · Patient Hygiene & Bathing
Rolling shower and commode chairs built for facilities, not bathrooms at home: healthcare-grade PVC frames that cannot rust, non-porous surfaces that disinfect cleanly, and capacities that run from a standard 300 lbs to bariatric models rated at 900 lbs. This is the range hospitals, long-term care and rehab facilities order from IPU and MJM International — and the decisions that separate a chair that lasts a decade from one that fails in the wet room.
Consumer shower chairs are built for one person, one bathroom, occasional use. Facility chairs live a different life: rolled between rooms all day, disinfected between every resident, and loaded by whoever is on the census — including bariatric patients a home chair was never designed for. The buying decisions are different too, and they start with the frame material.
Start with the frame, because the wet room decides how long a chair lives. IPU and MJM build their institutional chairs from healthcare-grade PVC pipe and fittings, and PVC simply does not rust: there is no coating to chip, no weld to corrode, and no metal frame quietly weakening under daily water and disinfectant exposure. The MJM bariatric frames are reinforced at the stress points — the largest uses a pipe-within-a-pipe design — which is how a plastic-framed chair legitimately reaches the capacities listed below.
Infection control is the second decision, and it is built into the materials. The PVC frame is non-porous, so fluids and biofilm have nowhere to settle into the surface, and it wipes down with hospital-grade disinfectants between residents. Backrests on these chairs are breathable antimicrobial mesh that dries quickly and removes for sanitizing, and the seats are smooth, soft-seat designs without the crevices that make consumer chairs a cleaning problem. For shared shower rooms, that cleanability is the feature that gets used every single shift.
Match capacity and width to your census, not to the average resident. Standard institutional chairs are rated at 300 lbs with an internal seat width around 17–18 inches. Mid-size models step to 350–375 lbs and 22 inches between the arms. Oversize and bariatric models run 400–425 lbs and up — the IPU 700 is rated at 700 lbs with a 30-inch interior width, and the MJM Deluxe Bariatric reaches 900 lbs. Buying one bariatric chair before you need it is cheaper than improvising on the day a 450 lb resident arrives.
Decide the configuration around the work the chair has to do. A shower commode chair combines three jobs — transport, showering and toileting — so one chair replaces separate equipment and cuts the number of transfers staff perform. Check the seat clearance against your toilets: the IPU Original Line, for example, has a 17-inch seat clearance so it rolls directly over a standard institutional toilet, and its slide-out commode pail handles bedside use. Open-front seats give caregivers perineal access without repositioning the resident; drop arms and swing-away arms simplify lateral transfers; tilt-in-space models serve residents who cannot hold an upright posture. Then check the casters: 3-inch twin casters are standard across much of the range, with locking and total-lock options for transfers on wet floors.
Healthcare-grade PVC frames cannot rust, chip or corrode — the frame decision that decides service life in a shower room.
300 lbs standard, 350–425 lbs mid-size and oversize, and dedicated bariatric models rated to 700 and 900 lbs.
Open-front seats for hygiene access, drop or swing arms for lateral transfers, tilt-in-space for postural support.
Confirm seat clearance over your toilets, then caster size and locking for safe transfers on wet floors.
Eight active chairs spanning the facility range — the standard IPU and MJM workhorses, the mid-size and oversize step-ups, and the two dedicated bariatric models. The full indexed range lives in our Shower Chairs collection.
The industry-standard institutional chair: healthcare-grade PVC, 300 lb capacity, 17-inch seat clearance to roll over a standard toilet, and a 10-quart slide-out pail for bedside use.
$309.95
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MJM's standard ward chair: 18-inch internal width, 300 lb capacity, elongated open-front seat and 3-inch twin casters, with an antimicrobial mesh back that removes for sanitizing.
$224.95
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The step-up size: 22-inch mid-size frame rated at 375 lbs, open-front seat, removable quick-dry mesh back and reinforced stress points for daily facility use.
$207.95
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Bariatric support at 400 lbs with a 24-inch internal width on a reinforced healthcare-grade PVC frame — works as a shower chair, bedside commode or over-toilet frame for shared shower rooms.
$412.95
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Extra-wide MJM at 425 lbs: 26-inch internal width, deluxe elongated open-front seat, 10-quart slide-out pail and 4-inch twin casters, reinforced at all stress points.
$266.95
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Extreme-capacity IPU: 700 lb rating and a 30-inch interior seat width in extra-heavy-duty healthcare-grade PVC, with an open-front seat for hygiene access without repositioning.
$610.95
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The maximum-capacity chair in the range: 900 lb rating on a pipe-within-a-pipe reinforced PVC frame, extra-wide seat, high-tensile mesh back and six heavy-duty casters.
$861.95
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Midsize IPU Elite at 375 lbs with antimicrobial protection — the step between the standard 300 lb chairs and the oversize bariatric models, for units whose census runs larger.
$404.95
View productBrowse the full range: Shower Chairs.
This guide exists to organize a range that already performs: our Shower Chairs collection carries the full IPU and MJM International line-up — standard, mid-size, oversize and bariatric chairs, plus tilt-in-space and pediatric models — and individual IPU product pages are already indexed and ranking. If you know the capacity and seat width you need, go straight to the collection and filter from there; if you are speccing a shower room for the first time, the decisions above are the ones that matter. Facilities standardizing chairs across a unit can also price the full order through the institutional quote below.
Because the shower room destroys metal. Painted and plated frames chip, rust at welds and joints, and corrode under daily disinfectant exposure until the frame weakens. Healthcare-grade PVC cannot rust or corrode, has no coating to chip, and its non-porous surface disinfects cleanly — which is why IPU and MJM build their institutional lines in PVC and why PVC chairs routinely outlast metal chairs in facility service.
Buy for the heaviest resident the chair may serve, not the average. Standard institutional chairs are rated at 300 lbs; mid-size models at 350–375 lbs with wider seats; oversize models at 400–425 lbs; and dedicated bariatric chairs at 700 lbs (IPU 700) and 900 lbs (MJM Deluxe Bariatric). Seat width matters alongside the rating — internal widths run from about 17 inches on standard chairs to 30 inches on the IPU 700 — so check both numbers against your census.
Yes, if the seat clearance fits. The IPU Original Line, for example, is built with a 17-inch seat clearance specifically so it rolls directly over a standard institutional toilet, and its slide-out pail converts it for bedside commode use. Measure your toilet height and bowl projection, then match them against the clearance and internal width in each product's specifications before ordering.
The non-porous PVC frame and smooth seat surfaces wipe down with hospital-grade disinfectants, and the antimicrobial mesh backrests dry quickly and remove for sanitizing. There are no fabric cushions or coated-metal crevices to trap biofilm, which is what makes a full clean between residents a minutes-long task rather than a deep-clean project.
An open-front seat leaves the front of the seat open so caregivers can reach for perineal cleaning without standing the resident up or repositioning them on the chair. It is the standard choice for residents who need full hygiene assistance. Closed-front and flat-seat versions suit residents who bathe more independently and want a more conventional seat surface.
Yes. Facilities outfitting a shower room or standardizing chairs across units can request an institutional quote covering the chairs, accessories such as safety belts, footrests and lap bars, and freight in one order. Purchase orders are accepted on approved accounts.
Institutional Quotes
Send the capacities and quantities you need and our quotes team will price the full package — chairs, accessories and freight — on one institutional quote.
Product selection guidance is informational. Check current specifications, availability, manufacturer instructions and any applicable clinical, safety or regulatory requirements before purchasing.
