Shower build

[jlfreund]

I'm planning a big remodel and will get a chance to build a new MBR bath from the studs up.  Building a shower strikes me as a project that is very similar to building an arcade cabinet, in that it's a craft where there is no limit to the creativity and effort you can invest, or the reward you can achieve.

In the arcade cabinet domain, this forum provides complete coverage of any idea or question imaginable.  But as you might expect, there is not a great deal of support out there for an unskilled homeowner who wants to make a big project out of their shower, as this is a task usually done by professionals.  Most search results point to  sites like ask.com or eHow.com that spam Google with useless, generic articles written by sweat shops of writers paid $10 per article.  I found one site with a handful of documented projects, but the explanations are very thin http://www.ontariotile.com.  There's a link there to a project forum, but it only has finished photos, with hardly any steps.  http://www.backyardforums.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/forum_summary

I'm curious if any arcade veterans have worked on this, and if there are any pointers to good resources?  A shower build is a great project.  There are some breath-taking designs out there, but it seems there is virtually no help for a novice willing to carefully plan out the steps to build a high end shower.  I would expect that someone investing about the same effort it takes to build a very nice cabinet could save at least $5K from hiring a designer, plumber, and tile expert. 

Jason

[drventure]

There's also no limit to the money you can spend (multi nozzle showers with rain heads, and led lighting, etc etc).

I'd check out some bath remodel books at lowes or Home depot for good ideas. You're not likely to find too much of that kind of stuff on the internet (although, holy hell, I just did a google image search for "Shower remodel" and there looks to be a ton of good photos floating around!)

[VanillaGorilla]

When incomes and livelihoods are involved, a lot of info remains 'trade-secrets'; Its old school self preservation. As old scool as the catholic church

[boykster]

John Bridge has a great site/forum about tile, but it includes a bunch of bathroom/shower type info

http://www.johnbridge.com/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?forumid=1

[jlfreund]

John Bridge has a great site/forum about tile, but it includes a bunch of bathroom/shower type info
http://www.johnbridge.com/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?forumid=1

That's a great link, thanks! 

[Zakk]

I built 9 showers/bathrooms before I officially quit the business.  
1st photo is a tear out and rebuild
2nd photo was a custom ensuite shower/tub
3rd photo was a custom steam shower with LED lighting and mr steam control system.  

Showers are tricky.  And expensive.  I don't know as if I would really put it into the DIY category, since it involves plumbing, waterproofing, tile, glass, etc etc.  I mean, the simplest ones are the kits that you sort of assemble, but for that route, just go with a company like 'bathfitters' that just encases your current tub in plastic (and hiding all the problems I might add).  I can answer some questions, but just note, that steam shower cost $10,000 in materials alone....

[eds1275]

I haven't done one from the ground up, I have done a bunch of replacing tubs and surrounds and stuff but that's not really the same as building from the ground up. I do however have a book called Black and Decker's "The Complete Photo Guide to Home Improvement". I picked it up for reference purposes and it has a great guide on making showers. The book was like $40 or so, and to be honest mostly I've just browsed through the pictures and gotten ideas. It's a little much when every second page suggests you make your house a "lifetime house" so that when you are old and confined to a wheelchair you can still reach the light switches etc etc etc.

[jlfreund]

I built 9 showers/bathrooms before I officially quit the business.  
1st photo is a tear out and rebuild
2nd photo was a custom ensuite shower/tub
3rd photo was a custom steam shower with LED lighting and mr steam control system.  

Showers are tricky.  And expensive.  I don't know as if I would really put it into the DIY category, since it involves plumbing, waterproofing, tile, glass, etc etc.  I mean, the simplest ones are the kits that you sort of assemble, but for that route, just go with a company like 'bathfitters' that just encases your current tub in plastic (and hiding all the problems I might add).  I can answer some questions, but just note, that steam shower cost $10,000 in materials alone....

Those are impressive -- thanks for posting.  I have a lot of respect for the project overall.  I think I could handle waterproofing the walls, but I won't try to do the plumbing myself.  It looks like fun, but it's not like you can slide out a keyboard tray to fix a leak after you're all finished

Jason

[Zakk]

Well, the best system out there for custom showers is the schluter kit.  It comes with waterproof membrane, proper drain fittings, and base and threshold forms (a fancy word for shaped styrofoam).  All the custom showers I did started with this kit.  It was pricey, but when you factor in the time spent forming the base (and proper drain slope) and the membrane...it was worth it.

Greenboard is also crap for a shower, don't use it.  I have used both concrete board, and a newer product that was a water and mildew resistant tilebacker board, which was much denser than drywall, but easier to cut than concrete board.  Either is a good choice though.  My method was to do the rough plumbing, then build the basic frame and sheathe that in your board.  Caulk the seams, then apply a modified thinset, and cover all of that with overlapping layers of the schluter membrane (the kit even has inside and outside corner pieces.  The tricky part was squeezing excess thinset from edges I was going to have to tile.  When this dried, I would use an ultralite thinset scratchcoat, and then use the ultralite to mount my tiles.  Once all that set for a day or two, I would grout, seal, then caulk all the meeting edges with silicone (wherever two surfaces came together like wall to floor, wall to wall, seat to wall, etc.  

Then when everything is done, call in a glass specialist to measure, manufacture and install custom glass walls and doors, this was something I always left to a pro...it's REALLY tricky work.  

I had a preference for travertine or any kind of natural stone, because edges can be made with a diamond file, and with tile, you are much more limited....

If everything goes right, you should have a leak free shower, but really try and make sure that after all that work, the plumbing for the shower can be accessed by a back wall, so that if there is trouble, you don't have to smash through all that.  As well, check your structure, if you are adding things like natural stone and thinset to a spot that used to just have a steel tub and plastic surround, you might find that doors downstairs stop closing correctly if there isn't enough support.  

There's a lot to it, and sometimes, honestly, it's just better to hire a pro... but I always admire someone who will at least give it a shot (even if you have to bite the bullet and hire a pro later!).  

[Zakk]

I will say that even though plumbers get a bad rap, I have a lot of respect for what they do...bad plumbing can do one heck of a lot of damage to a house!