# Why Don't Showers Have Shutoff Valves? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 30, 2017, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-showers-have-shutoff-valves/800226 "2017-10-30T13:47:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2017, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-showers-have-shutoff-valves/800226/21 "2017-10-31T16:20:41Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I wonder if it’s different in Chicago, which is why I’ve seen them in my dwellings. [Here’s the relevant code for us that I could find](https://chicagocode.org/18-29-606.2/): > > Doesn’t mention anything about baths or showers, but it does have “except one- and two-family or multiple family residential occupancies,” but I can’t quite make sense of what that means. I think what that means is that residential buildings don’t need to have individuals shut-offs for each fixture , and hotels, etc can have a shut off for each guest room rather than for each fixture but that all other buildings (stores, factories, office buildings,warehouses, schools etc) must have a shut off for each fixture. Although that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, either - I can’t see why an office building would need a shut off for each toilet rather than one for each restroom. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2017, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-showers-have-shutoff-valves/800226/22 "2017-10-31T16:59:53Z")
An office building has a greater need for a bathroom to remain in service if one fixture breaks, because it serves a large number of people. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-showers-have-shutoff-valves/800226.md?page=1)