The No Mud DIY Tile Shower -- A Better Way
If it wasn't for the shower pan, a diy tile shower would be easy. But even professional tile setters argue about the best way to build a shower pan. The traditional way to build a pan is mortar construction. Here's why it's tricky and here's another way.
It's like this. Tile floors aren't waterproof. Water goes right through the grout in the floor and even through the tile itself. That's a perfect set-up for a moldy, leaky mess. What makes the shower work is a waterproof liner that's built into the masonry base of the shower.
Getting that liner installed is tricky to say the least. Get it wrong and it's going to cost you. And it's easy to get wrong too. Even if you get it right, the masonry floor still can stay wet all the time. That's how you end up with a floor that's just full of mold. There's another way.
The other way is what many tile setters use now instead of masonry.
The better way is a shower kit from Schluter-Kerdi. This kit lets you install a ceramic shower yourself without using any mortar at all. The base is a formed foam material already sloped and ready to install. You just put down the base and then cover it with special material and you're ready to install tile. No building up mortar. No sealing membranes. It's a lot easier and faster than the old way.
Installing a shower pan the traditional way is a real struggle. It's hard to get a straight story on the best way to get it done. Even the tile setters argue about how to build one. A better way for a diy tile shower is the Schluter-Kerdi shower kit. No mortar to install makes it faster, easier and a less risky deal.
It's like this. Tile floors aren't waterproof. Water goes right through the grout in the floor and even through the tile itself. That's a perfect set-up for a moldy, leaky mess. What makes the shower work is a waterproof liner that's built into the masonry base of the shower.
Getting that liner installed is tricky to say the least. Get it wrong and it's going to cost you. And it's easy to get wrong too. Even if you get it right, the masonry floor still can stay wet all the time. That's how you end up with a floor that's just full of mold. There's another way.
The other way is what many tile setters use now instead of masonry.
The better way is a shower kit from Schluter-Kerdi. This kit lets you install a ceramic shower yourself without using any mortar at all. The base is a formed foam material already sloped and ready to install. You just put down the base and then cover it with special material and you're ready to install tile. No building up mortar. No sealing membranes. It's a lot easier and faster than the old way.
Installing a shower pan the traditional way is a real struggle. It's hard to get a straight story on the best way to get it done. Even the tile setters argue about how to build one. A better way for a diy tile shower is the Schluter-Kerdi shower kit. No mortar to install makes it faster, easier and a less risky deal.