Cheapest way of making a shower unit? Urgent!

Bucket, hammer and nails....

On 06 Dec 2005, Jonathan wrote

Buy a shower tray; build two stud walls out from the existing walls; tile the whole of the inside with cheap white tiles; make sure it's sealed where the tray and the walls meet; use a shower rail and curtain instead of a hinged door.

It won't cost zero pounds, but it'll be less than the £400, I'd have thought.

Have a gander at...

They have some good deals.

Chris.

Err, two walls in a corner plus two more walls, where does the door go?

MBQ

What sort of bath is it? Can you (temporarily) repair it with something like a car body repair kit?

MBQ

On 06 Dec 2005, wrote

Ummm......ummmmm.....one of them's invisible?

If its fibreglass, the same repair technique and materials will work as used on fibreglass cars, canoes, etc. You'd need resin, fibreglass, and something to reinforce across the crack, eg stainless mesh.

NT

Yes, it was fibreglass, but it was a fairly grim yellow colour before and scratched anyway.

I'm fairly sure my DIY will be horrendous, so I'm going to pick up a load of those "pack of 44 tiles from the 99p store for 99p" tiles and go for suggestion #1, but without sealing myself in ;)

Thanks for the plumbworld suggestion, but even the cheapest:

Well, I could stand in the bucket, but aren't the hammer and nails going to leave me with rough skin?

That is the standard backstreet garage bodge technique whereby all car bodies after a period of time, regardless of their original construction, tend to gravitate towards a metal fibreglass sandwich possessing dubious unknown qualities.

Metal is usually best repaired by metal

Fibreglass is usually best repaired by fibreglass - the stainless mesh isn't needed at all, proper preparation and applying the fibreglass over a suitably large area is sufficient.

If you're _that_ stuck, I've had a gaffer tape repaired cast iron bath last for over 3 months.

I just repaired my shower a few weeks back.

I bought a few boxes of the B&Q white tiles and a box of black. tub of adhesive, some grout and sealent, new plasterboard and some other bits came to around £50. Probably could have done it cheaper though (B&Q seams expensive for some bits) but I was happy for a one stop shop at the shed and it was cheap enough for me and it looks great.

Hammer & nails to make holes in the bottom of the bucket. Fill bucket with water of desired temp, stand underneath. One shower!

Dunno about prices, but lino makes a good tile alternative for the walls. Douglas de Lacey.

Yebbut gaffer tape's not a bodge, it's well known for being a PERMANENT repair innit...

I have often wondered if Lino could be used on the walls instead of tiles.

Does it not sag?

I have used the tile-boards though with good results.

If so, and the shower is in the corner, then you should be looking at the following rough costs (not the biggest or flashiest, but cheapest for a good job) which are what it cost me:-

- Stone 760mm square shower tray = £30 - £40 - 760mm enclosure with pivot door = £70 (I have a spare one if interested) - Bits and bobs like shower trap, 3m of waste pipe and assorted waste fittings = £10 - £15 - Silicon sealant = £2 - £5

Rest depends on a couple of things:

1. Can you tile? If you can, then cheapo bumpy white wall tiles at £5 per sq.m from B&Q for the walls. If you cannot tile, then cost of tiler will make tile-board more economic. I think they cost me £36 each and look the business if you fit them correctly. You will need two of them and lots of silicon where they join in the corner, plus Gripfil to stick them to the walls.

If you already have the shower on the wall, great. If not, then depending on what heating system you have in your house, you will need to spend from £50 upwards for the shower.

In any event, I cannot see it costing you £400. Nearer to half that and the results are good.

HTH Rob

Build a studding partition wall of mdf to make an enclosed space (if you're losing the bath you can make it as big as you like or can afford). Figure out a simple hinged door of glowdex or something - you don't need sliding doors unless you're short of space. A railed shower curtain may be quite enough. You need a shower tray, of course, and your choice of shower unit (direct-fed or instantaneous). Wiring and plumbing can be neatly lost in the void of the mdg partition.

Don't tile it - stick cushion-floor on it, in a continuous run all round - no joins if they can be avoided. If it overlaps the tray, and is sealed on all edges, it should be waterproof. If you have to drill through for fittings, a spot of sealant makes good.

I did this (for the bath-based shower) in my bathroom 20 years ago, and it's still as good as new. The cushionfloor covering is in a tile pattern, and people often touch the wall before they'll believe it isn't tiled.

Had to take part of it down a couple of years ago to instal a replacement shower - there wasn't the slightest trace of damp anywhere other than under a deteriorating drain coupling. Bathroom seems warmer too - cushionfloor isn't cold like tiles.

John