12 Stylish Screens for Hot Tubs, Pools and Outdoor Showers

When working on a pool project, make sure you’re up to date on swimming pool safety, and check local codes for fencing and other requirements.

1. Fencing Plus Foliage

A screen that includes both fencing and hedge plants balances a solid barrier and one with soft, inviting foliage. Here, potted bamboo — a quick-growing plant that grows well in a container — forms a hedge around an in-deck spa tub in a Portland, Oregon, backyard. The project, by Howells Architecture + Design, provides just enough screening to make the yard feel private while maintaining surrounding views.

Bamboo tip: Grow clumping bamboo, instead of running bamboo, in containers or confined spaces to prevent it from spreading. A root-barrier liner can keep bamboo from spreading if you’re planting in the ground.

2. Ball Chains

Think of these as the chic, grown-up version of plastic doorway bead curtains. Stainless steel ball chains can be used to make a semitransparent curtain that almost looks like suspended droplets of water — a fitting effect for an outdoor shower.

Creating more the illusion of a screen than a significant barrier in in London rooftop garden, architectural designer Nick Leith-Smith created the screen here using stainless steel ball chains hung from a metal frame around an outdoor shower. Deck lighting emphasizes the shimmer of the chains.

For an extra-lush look, plant a leafy evergreen hedge around a pool or hot tub, as shown in this backyard by Falling Waters Landscape. The type of shrub you choose, how closely you plant the shrubs and how you maintain them can all affect how much privacy is afforded.

For a super-private effect of wall-to-wall green, consider plants like arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis, USDA zones 2 to 8; find your zone), which has a naturally dense growth pattern, or cherry laurel (Prunus laurocerasus, zones 6 to 10), which has large, glossy leaves and can be pruned into a tall, dense hedge.

For a lighter screen that allows light to pass through, try ‘Silver Sheen’ kōhūhū (Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Silver Sheen’, zones 8 to 11), which has small, sparsely arranged leaves on delicate branches. Consider setting hedges back from the pool and choosing ones with less leaf drop to avoid foliage cleanup in the water.

A wood slat screen elegantly cordons off a private soaking tub from the larger terrace in this home in Japan. The sliding panels, which include privacy-boosting frosted glass from the center down, sit on a track that allows the tub to be closed off for maximum privacy or opened to the garden for the best views.

The blue-gray shutters that conceal this outdoor shower are made of louvered PVC. They perfectly match the style and color of the window shutters used on the rest of this South Carolina home, by Our Town Plans. The shutters can cleverly hide a bather, and they pull the window shutter motif from the house down to garden level.

For this backyard by Apex Landscapes & Pools in Melbourne, Australia, a bamboo hedge and a bluestone-tile wall provide privacy from neighbors. Views of the pool remain unobstructed within the backyard, thanks to a clear glass safety fence.

Glass panels anchored by metal clamps — often sold as a safety fence — offer safety or wind barriers for pools and hot tubs without sacrificing views.

7. Potted Plants

Tall containers filled with lush foliage plants can provide an attractive screen for soaking tubs and outdoor showers tucked into narrow side yards. For more privacy, combine potted plants with a fence or screen to completely block views through the leaves.

For another side yard screening idea, take a look at this design by Real Estate Judge for a midcentury modern home in Palm Springs, California. Inexpensive corrugated metal connecting the space between the home and perimeter fence creates privacy and gives the outdoor bathing area, complete with cherry-red bathtub and wall-mounted shower, an industrial vibe.

Hot tubs, soaking pools and outdoor showers may need screening on just one side, and a simple wooden screen can do the trick. In this design by James Dixon Architect, a carefully positioned wooden screen conceals the outdoor shower from the driveway and entryway, while leaving the opposite side open so bathers can enjoy views of the yard.

Adding an accent wall to the yard is another great way to provide privacy for a hot tub or an outdoor shower. Choose a material that complements others used in the home and landscape — wood, stone or tile — for an integrated look. Here, a charcoal-colored wall provides a dark backdrop for the soaking tub and picks up the material used for pathways.

11. Tall Grasses

In cases where a transparent screening effect is desired, consider using airy plants, such as tall ornamental grasses.

For this pool near Toronto, designed by Betz Pools Limited, a row of ‘Karl Foerster’ feather reed grass (Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’, zones 4 to 9) visually separates the pool from the greater landscape while allowing breezes to move freely between both spaces.

Take advantage of existing privacy features — tall walls, fences, hedges or outbuildings — on your property and position your outdoor shower or hot tub where you can use the built-in screening to your advantage.

This outdoor shower and stone-lined cold-water tub sit behind a home and restaurant in Portland, Oregon. The tub and shower areas are tucked into the back corner of the property, taking advantage of the privacy provided by the concrete property walls, which shield the area from neighbors’ views. Boston ivy (Parthenocissus tricuspidata, zones 4 to 8) and fragrant star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides, Zone 8) help transform the corner into a leafy spa.