Help Me - Please Help Me Find This Shower Base

Greetings, I desperately need to replace the (at least 10 years) old shower base in my basement (see photo with measurements at:

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Due to serious and very strict space constraints, it *must* be a neo-angle 36"x36" model. So far, this requirement is not posing a problem since there are many manufacturers who have those in their product line.

However, the *drain location* proved to be a HUGE problem: After spending a lot of time in local hardware stores (including Home Depot and ACE Hardware), I discovered to my horror that they are not able to sell me such a 36" unit with a drain location identical to the one I have (8" from each side). :-(

I then started searching and researching the Internet. I found quite a few manufacturers that produce 36" neo-angle units, but it seems that the common drain location nowadays is about 12", not 8". :-(

A list of the manufacturers/brands I found so far is listed at the bottom of this page:

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I am having hard time to believe (wishful thinking?) that I am stuck in this project, unable to find a replacement unit. After all, whoever installed this did not order a custom-made shower base. This shower base seems to have been standard 10-15 years ago.

While visiting those stores, I was given suggestions such as power-hammering the concrete floor to change the location of the drain or installing a "standard" 36" shower base on a raised platform (thus allowing to fit an elbowed pipe to the existing drain location) - but these solutions are highly undesirable.

Is there anyone out there who have seen such a "weird" unit? Know where I can purchase one? Know someone who can help find one?

If so, I would forever be grateful for eternity.

Thank you very much! Lynn

P.S. I am actually looking for an entire shower kit (plastic walls, glass sides and door, etc.) but I believe this is not a big issue.

Reply to
Linux Lover
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Me thinks your actually going to tile the shower to get what you want.

Reply to
SQLit

Sounds like an American Standard 3838.NEOTS

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You are welcome....see you in eternity.

Reply to
Travis Jordan

[snip]

google for "custom shower base." You'll find lots of places that can make one for you.

Here's two:

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Hmmmm - you've even looked at Jetta. They can't custom one up?

The other alternative is (ugh) build one out of tile. It's not too difficult, and lots of contractors can do it for you.

- Bryan

Reply to
bl

Yes, they do. Look for example at the Americh Neo Angle Model number A3636NEO

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.Unfortunately its drain center is 12", not 8" from the walls.

BTW, what is ADA? American Dental Association? :-)

Lynn

Reply to
Linux Lover

Thanks, Bryan. It seems that you carefully read my posting and I truly appreciate it. You are right about Jetta making custom ones, but I haven't contacted them yet.

Contacting manufacturers is my next step, after getting from the wonderful folks in this newsgroup as much information as I can gather. The main problem I see with custom made ones is that they might cost me an arm and leg.

I really didn't plan on making this a huge project. I thought I could simply plug in a direct replacment and that's it. Instead, it is becoming an entire construction project - what a nightmare...

You are the third person offering to build one of tile, which make me think "hmmm... so many people recommending tile, there must be merit to it". The only problem I have with tiling is cleaning it. While plastic/vinyl is cheap, it is one smooth plane with no grouts that are so tedious to clean. Can you (or other posters) comment on this?

Thanks, Lynn

Reply to
Linux Lover

Americans with Disabilities Act. Federal law which dictates minimum requirements to make facilities available for disabled persons. Governs such things as ramps, door widths, toilet types, curbs. Required for all public facilities, optional for private, but "highly" recommended by some.

Sounds like you are going to need a custom base or really consider the tile method. Suggest you get an estimate from a couple of good tilemen and compare to the cost of the custom base. Cleaning considerations are about a push since most "textured" bases will have more nooks and crannies than grouted tile. You could just tile a base and use fiberglass surrounds for the walls.

Reply to
Grandpa Koca

Lynn,

I built a shower this summer, with Swanstone parts. I was lucky, I could use a standard 32x60 base with the drain in the middle. Even that base was ~$600, with the 3 walls the Swanstone parts totalled $1800. A custom one might be more, but it's _EASY_. Easy to install, easy to clean, won't leak, looks good. And an amatuer can do a professional-looking job in a few hours.

I'm not a fan of tile. You can do almost any shape with it, sure. But it's a fair amount of work. If it's your first time tiling, it will often look like it. You have to grout. And seal grout. And clean grout. There are many more opportunities for leaks. You have to make the floor slope. For me, that adds up to calling a contractor, and at that point you've spent as much as a custom shower base. A good tile guy can do beautiful things with tile, given time and a sufficient budget.

Good plastic isn't cheap. I priced doing my shower in Corian, just for info. $3500 ... That was just for a base and 3 walls, and me doing the labor!

A lot depends on what you consider an arm and a leg, and what kind of house you're putting the shower in.

- Bryan

Reply to
bl

Wow! And I was naively thinking that I can get away with not much more than the *complete* shower kits (standard, centered drain, includes walls, glass end everything) costing here at Home Depot about $218...

Thanks for reinforcing my opinion about tiling. Tiling is out of a question for me then.

The kind of house I am in right now is a 20-year old cheaply built town house in New England. Everything is wood/drywall based and very poor workmanship and quality of materials. Not worth investing in Corian... I am trying to get away with the least expensive but also least labor intensive option.

I amazed that I can't find a plug-in replacement. The shower base you saw in the photo doesn't look to me custom made. I wish I knew which company manufactured it - I could than contact them and get a definitive "yes" or "no".

Imagine investing lots of money and labor in fitting in something expensive, only to find 2 months later that a direct plug-in replacement could have been found somewhere...

Lynn

Reply to
Linux Lover

and

Got it. I was doing a master bathroom gut and rebuild on a townhome that was for sale for $250k - a Home Depot fiberglass or gelcoat unit wasn't going to cut it. It had to look reasonably upscale. A basement shower in what you describe is a different animal.

If the company is even still in business! If you pull the old one, there may be a company name molded in the bottom. But there may not, and then you're committed.

Aren't home repairs fun? Good luck in your search. You might try asking questions at a large bathroom/plumbing supply store, preferably one where the contractors go - your local equivalent of

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- these guys are great.

You might ask your neighbors who have similar townhomes - maybe one of them has already figured this out?

- Bryan

Reply to
bl

Not for nothing, but even if this shower is on a concrete slab, it's only about

4-6" thick. Moving the drain center from 8" x 8" to 12" x 12" is less than 5" of chopping the slab with hammer and chisel. From there, one could purchase 99% of the readily available kits along with a sack of redi-mix.
Reply to
HA HA Budys Here

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