We are re-routing existing shower to include a standard shower fixture plus an overhead rain shower head. Since we have demo-ed the entire shower - walls, floors, and plumbing to move the existing shower head to an opposite wall, I am assuming that a diverter valve is the best way to go. How exactly do they work? Will we be able to run both the shower head and rain head at the same time without sacrificing water pressure? And will they need to have separate handles for turning them on and off? We won't have a ton of wall space to install fixtures. Current set up is separate valves for hot and cold. We haven't purchased new fixtures yet, so open to good suggestions. Thanks!

If you pipe both the heads off the same mixing valve you will not have good pressure if both are used at the same time. You are using the term diverter, is this a shower or a tub/shower combo? If you want great pressure from both they each need their own mixer and their own separate taps into the supply pipes running up to this area of the home. Even with all the correct piping there could still be issues if the main runs are less than 1/2", do you know what they are?

It's just a shower - no tub. Running 1/2 inch. It's in the basement and has really great water pressure now. We just don't want to lose any pressure in running two heads at once. No diverter? What should I be looking for?