How to Choose a Shampoo Bowl
The shampoo area is where clients decide whether your salon feels professional or improvised — and it's the one piece of salon equipment that genuinely needs planning before you order.
How to choose a shampoo bowl or backwash unit
- Complete unit vs. components. A backwash unit ships as a matched bowl, chair, and shroud designed to work together. Buying a bowl and chair separately gives you more control over finish and comfort but requires you to confirm heights line up.
- Bowl material. Ceramic is the durable standard and resists staining from color and product. Resin and acrylic bowls come in more finishes and weigh less, which matters for wall-mount installs.
- Tilt mechanism. A tilting bowl lets you position the neck rest to the client rather than asking the client to contort. It's the single biggest comfort difference between a cheap unit and a professional one, and the mechanism needs to be rated for constant daily use.
- Vacuum breaker and fixtures. Most jurisdictions require a vacuum breaker on salon sinks. Our units ship with standard fixtures, but confirm what your local plumbing code requires before install.
Rough-in before you order
You'll need hot and cold supply lines, a drain at the right height, and often a licensed plumber for the connection. Wall-mount units need blocking in the wall to carry the load. Send us your floor plan and we'll confirm rough-in measurements and clearances before you buy — far cheaper than moving a drain after the fact.
Common questions
Can I install a shampoo bowl myself? The unit assembly is straightforward, but the water and drain connection should be done by a licensed plumber to meet code and protect your warranty.
Do bowls stain from color? Ceramic resists staining well. Rinse immediately after color services and avoid abrasive cleaners, which dull the glaze and make future staining worse.
Can I buy a chair without the bowl? Yes — shampoo chairs and cabinets are sold separately, so you can match an existing bowl or build a custom station.
Are replacement parts available? Drains, sprayers, faucet kits, and bowl hardware are stocked in our parts collection.
Complete the floor
Pair your shampoo area with matching styling chairs, dryer chairs, and service trolleys — bundled at package pricing in one freight shipment.
See build-out packages →