Reinforcement - To cut costs many factories use a composite material, combining ABS on the inside with acrylic PMMA sheets on the outside.

Check its Colour - An easy test to tell a good quality acrylic from a bad one is by its colour and flame-retardation. Cheap materials mixed in the acrylic can cause the colour to have too bright a white finish and catch fire more easily. In addition, this low quality, high brightness acrylic is likely to clash in your bathroom.

Price - Some factories use acrylic that costs just £777 per tonne, some others use acrylic at £971-£1,035 per tonne. In fact, the acrylic Di Vapor uses costs £1618 per tonne. This higher quality acrylic will last longer and also fade less over time.

Fibreglass and Reinforcement - Be careful of cheap fibreglass that uses a high degree of resin. This discolours easily devaluing and weakening the steam enclosure. All of our bases and most panels are acrylic with 3-4 layers of fibreglass to reinforce the more vulnerable areas (e.g., base, under seat, bathtub). To cut costs a manufacturer may use just 1 or 2 layers of fibreglass reinforcement.

Are they aluminium? - Check that the profile that holds the glass is not simply plastic with a metal coating. The profiles coating may come off and is definitely not as strong.

What is the profiles thickness? - To save costs some manufacturers have a 0.5mm thick aluminium profile and whilst being weaker is also more prone to dents. Di Vapor use 1.2mm-1.6mm aluminium profiles.

Aluminium Quality - Some companies use recycled aluminium and perhaps a composite of other metals. This effects the aluminium's hardness and likelihood of being dented.

Structural Frame Support - The strength and durability of the support frame is essential as it forms the foundation of your shower or bathtub. Typically, a metal frame that doesn't rust (like stainless steel) will offer the optimum support as opposed to a wooden structure.

Thickness - Typically, it is suggested that a tempered safety glass of 5-6mm would provide optimum safety, below which the risk of breakage increase. As standard, Di Vapor uses 5-6mm thick tempered safety glass on all steam showers.

Edge Protection - The risk of tempered glass breakage heightens if knocked at its edge. Therefore, the glass edge should be protected within the aluminium profile.

Break Test - One safety standard states that a 120mm square piece of tempered glass should break into 45 individual pieces. Di Vapor's tempered glass surpasses this and will break into 60 small pieces with no sharp edges. The smaller the pieces the safer.

Pipe Clips - To minimise the risk of water leakage, stainless steel clips provide stronger and longer lasting protection to water leakage over the plastic clips used by some manufacturers.

Valves - The flow, temperature control and water pressure within the shower will be valve controlled. To ensure the longer life of those valves check they are made from ceramic as opposed to plastic.

Water Testing - Water leakage can be costly and a hassle. Make sure your shower has been fully water tested before shipping and fully checked for functionality of its steam, plumbing, water tightness and electrics.

Thermostatic Temperature Valve - As a safety consideration and to reduce the risk of scalding a thermostatic valve will offer a non-fluctuating water temperature. Every modern shower should be equipped with this safety valve that will eliminate those huge fluctuations in water temperature while allowing you to select your desired temperature. Some thermostatic valves also provide a temperature restrictor for the safety of younger users.

Corrosion Testing - The last thing you want is to receive your shiny new steam shower and then find that after a couple of months the chrome plating starts to deteriorate and peel off. Look for a company who will test the anti-corrosion level and protective layer of the materials used with salt spray equipment.

Door Rollers - Door rollers or runners often go unnoticed when they are functioning perfectly. However, if misaligned or damaged they can become a headache. Although, seemingly a simple part - quality should be evident in the detail. For example, Di Vapor door runners are tested to pass over 100,000 consecutive uses.

Operational Testing - The best way to check that both electrics (e.g., lighting, radio, jets) are fully operational and water does not leak is to assemble and fully test a product before it leaves the factory. Why not check whether each individual product has been fully water tested with an electrical supply.

Residual Current Device - This is a device that will shut-off the steam shower as soon as a malfunction or overheating is detected. When using a 3KW steam generator or 220V product this is essential.

Electrical Components - A steam shower often contains a complex electrical box that controls steam production, radio, CD, telephone, massage jets and many other functions. Some manufacturers do not test the electric box used within their products, while others may do for just 1-2 hours. In contrast, each function within the Di Vapor electrical control box is run for 72 consecutive hours to ensure the reliability and durability of each electrical component used.