Shower surround kits/Again..

[Charles Pisano]

I've all but completly torn out my old tub/shower and have found a (shower only) model from Sterling ( at lowes) that I like. It has a center drain but my bath has a left hand drain.

Is it very hard to relocate a drain? Also, I have a window in the upper middle of the shower wall. Is it very hard to modify these kits. You have to cut them to get the shower head etc through, so I imagine there is a way to modify them without damage to the entire wall piece..?

A problem I can see would be most of these kits push out from the where they connect. That is , they connect at the top flush with the studs but push out from the wall below there to make them more flush with surrounding dry wall or tile..

So, if I cut for the middle of the wall window, I will have to fill in below that area and some how glue the thing around the window.. ?

TIA CP

[Joe]

Windows in and around showers and tubs are always a bad design. Few ever go more than a dozen years without structural problems like rot and mold cropping up. Your best recourse is to get a comprehensive design and plan and not attempt a hack job on a piece of plumbing you found in a box store. Besides a professional architect (probably your best and eventually cheapest choice) there are design programs available at bath specialty stores to get everything coordinated. You need a lot more help than you can find in a newsgroup, but that shouldn't discourage you from doing the project. God luck.

Joe

[Charles Pisano]

Thanks

I agree that it's not a god design. I plan on selling this house soon, so I'm going as inexpensively as possible. I finally called the manufacuturerer (sterling) and they said they have window kits. So I guess I'll give that a shot.

I've got the demolition almost done. There was some blown in insulation up against that same CBS (exterior-windowed) wall that has furring strips. Do I need to replace this insulation? It doesn't seem like the amount that's there is accomplishing much. And I'm in wam climate..

[Joe]

If you opt for replacing the insulation, go with something that's water proof, like extruded polystyrene foam board. HTH

Joe