any alternatives to tiles?

[benpost]

around the bath and shower i was planning on 20 x 25 white tiles, plain or bumpy. just before i buy em though i wondered is there any reasonably priced alternatives which might be easier to fit as well? i know theres some sort of plastic sheeting you can use but not sure how widely available is it?

[Andy Cap]

I saw them use something similar to this on 60 minute makeover. I expect there are other. They just stuck it over the old tiles. Goodness knows if it will last but if it was well fixed I guess it would be OK.

Crosbyworktops - Shower panels

C

[Dieseldes]

We have just fitted a shower cubicle, I looked at tiles, soon realised the time taken to tile and in a shower the grouting never stays white! we went for B&Q Cavalier Shower Wall Tile Panel White EAN: 5031978185005 at £36 per panel

to the state of the walls after removing the old tiles, we put 9mm ext ply up and glued it to that, made the job nice simple and quick Its easy to cut with a blade so we bought another sheet to finish up to the ceiling and cut it to suit. It took two of us a day to remove an old cast iron bath (they make a hell of a noise in a confined space when being hit with a 25lb hammer!!) remove all old pipes, build a frame to cover the pipes and plumb in feeds and drains, including trips to B&Q for the bits we hade forgotten about.......

There are other types that cost upwards of £300 a sheet !!

Des

[meow2222]

upvc sheets - the surfgace deteriorates over time, making them impossible to keep clean. I dont know if sheet glass is workable, strongly coloured

NT

[Kevin]

if its anything like the stuff they make mobile home showers out of that looks really horrible after a few months , I would stick to tiles

[Cicero]

========================================= B&Q do a version of this stuff:

Cic.

[The Medway Handyman]

I've used that & found it a right bugger to get the sheet fed into the corner channel. Did you have any trouble with that?

[Dieseldes]

one side went in. other side was certainly a bugger!! not helped by the walls not being exactly flat.... one side frame work for pipes covered by

9mm ply , the other wall 9mm ply straight onto wall, It went in at top and bottom but was not a good fit in the middle!! but that's what silicon is for......... Next time (not in my lifetime!!!) I think the best way would be to put one side in the corner piece with Silicon, and slide that into place first.. but I suppose that's the learning curve.

Des

[John Rumm]

Not sure about reasonably priced, by you could investigate Corian.

[stuart noble]

Vinyl flooring? Was quite trendy in the seventies, and less prone to condensation.

[Kevin]

not sure it will work as a wall covering though :-)

[Anna Kettle]

Have just bought 'blue splash' sheeting from ipsl

It looks good propped up in my hall but I've not fitted it yet. Before I bought it I inspected at the B&Q alternative which is much cheaper and looks it too imo

I got them to send me samples which is something I would recommend you do cos the real thing looks quite different to the web page pictures, much more muted

Anna

-- Anna Kettle Lime plaster repair and conservation Freehand modelling in lime: overmantels, pargeting etc Tel:    (+44)  01359 230642 Mob:   (+44)  07976 649862 Please look at my website for examples of my work at:

 

[stuart noble]

Works very well from a practical point of view. Aesthetically maybe not

[benpost]

went to b and q and asked about the panelling but they said they didnt do any!

i'll check that ipsl site, but nicer to see it in reality.

do you think this sort of thing will become more popular in time? i've never tiled before but it seems like a lot of messy work, compared with sticking a panel to a wall.

[Steve Firth]

Kerlite.

But "reasonably priced" isn't a phrase that comes to mind.

There's also this:

[Cicero]

========================================= This is one of their offerings:

also do another type whose reference I can't currently find.

As far as becoming more popular is concerned, I think a more durable product will be required as the present range seems to be rather flimsy. One obvious advantage is easy maintenance as there are no grout lines to collect dirt and scum. I've recently installed one type (the other type from B&Q) and so far it looks and feels good but it's too soon to offer a final opinion.

Cic.

[benpost]

thanks for the suggestions, seems like it will be a while before panelling takes off.. tiling it is then. i've changed my mind from white tiles to beige as i dont want it to look cold.

i'd quite like matching floor and wall tiles, i had a look down homebase and thought the nova tiles might be ok, quite cheap, but on inspection they are marbly/shiny and too smooth for my liking.

got fed up with homebase as the price guide for tiles didnt match up to the brochure. i'll take a trip down focus later and see what they got.

any ideas? the area around the bath will be tiled full height, plus the area behind the sink and wc - this will be boxed in and tiled on to hide the pipes and make a shelf.

id like the tiles on this boxed wall to meet with the same floor tiles.

[JTM]

I bought something similar for a shower from UK Bathroom Warehouse in Burnley a few years ago - about 20UKP a sheet (about 2.4m x 20cm x 4mm) Easy, quick and works well. fits together like t+g cladding.

Since then I've done a few showers and bathrooms with similar stuff from M. Bricolage from France. More choice of colour / finish and in panels 2.4m x

375mm x 4mm Around 39Euros for three panels

John