Shower cubicle re-tiling

The shower cubicle in the main bathroom at home needs repair.

It is lined with marble tiles. After a period of several years without re-grouting the tile joints or re-sealing with silicone the juncture with the shower bowl, water has leaked through the tiles and silicone joints and damaged the walls behind and surrounding areas.

I am going to re-do the whole shower repairing the walls so that they are sound and firm.

Other than a ready-made shower cubicle, is there a better solution than just re-tiling?

Is there a way to avoid the same problem (leaks through the joints) by laying a watertight film prior to the tiles or something of that sort?

The house has wooden beams and one has to allow for some movements, seasonal and others.

Are marble tiles a good solution or should I go for different ones?

Thanks,

Antonip

Reply to
asalcedo
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Using a thin backing board (aqua panel etc) to tile onto might be your best bet. seal well at the bottom (i.e. seal tray to the wall, then leave a gap under the panel and fill/seal that, then tile with a gap and fill/seal that, with a final fillet of seal visible on the outside).

For a belt and braces type solution, you could look for a tray with a tiling up-stand on it (i.e. a small ledge designed to go behind the tiles and channel water into the tray).

So only use grout on flat areas of tiles, and not any of the corners, or joins to other things like trays etc.

Treating the grout with lithofin grout protector will also help. (pricey, but a small bottle goes a long way)

I have found that the travatine style ones are somewhat porous, and so really need to be on a waterproof backing (e.g. a cementious board, or at least something fully screeded with waterproof adheasive). IME it can also be difficult to get silicone to bond well to the tiles since water can get behind it through the tile.

Reply to
John Rumm

What about a shower tanking kit?

Philip

Reply to
philipuk

I was mixing a small amount of grout the other day and was surprised how hydrophobic it was. Unless you added the water drip by drip it was impossible to get a smooth consistency. In theory it should be relatively waterproof once set

Reply to
stuart noble

Virgin still messing about. Previous message was NOT sent ok? (server timeout), but actually it was.

Reply to
stuart noble

Probably why they normally suggest adding the powder to the water rather than the other way round...

Reply to
John Rumm

To be fair I have never tried one, so can't really comment...

Reply to
John Rumm

On Friday 06 December 2013 12:25 stuart noble wrote in uk.d-i-y:

I did not have that problem with Mapei grout - but I was adding a water plus flexuriser mix. Just dumped the measured amount of liquid into a measured amount of powder and stirred with a wooden spoon.

Reply to
Tim Watts

I don't really regard it as a problem. You can get it to a paste eventually and the fact that it has no affinity for water should be an advantage

Reply to
stuart noble

Forget tiling, fit Wetwall

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As an alternative to tiles, Wetwall can create a beautiful bathroom or shower enclosure that will last for years

Specifically designed for wet areas, Wetwall panels are completely waterproof. Unlike tiles, Wetwall does not require grouting and is very low maintenance once installed. Wetwall can be fitted over existing surfaces, including tiles and can transform your bathroom or shower enclosure instantly.

Reply to
yendor

yendor grunted in news:Fmoou.8651$ snipped-for-privacy@fx06.am:

Yes - what I did; using

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Looks fantastic, completely leakproof and is much easier to keep clean and maintain than tiles. I fitted mine direct to the timber studs surrounding the cubicle (ie after ripping out all the old tiles and knackered plasterboard).

John Rumm has already mentioned using a shower tray with an upstand... I'd second that suggestion; I went with a Coram one

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which has the added advantage of being much easier to fit than conventional stone-resin trays; it's much lighter (easily manhandled into position by one person), readily adjustable for level/height but without sacrificing any of the 'solid' feel of a standard tray,

Reply to
Lobster

Many thanks for an interesting suggestion.

I am looking carefully into it.

I would go for an Italian marble finish, but I have two concerns

  1. Will it not look artificial? Is it not the case that actual tiles will always look better?

  1. Still need for silicone sealant:

I agree that grouting is avoided but there will still be a need for sealant in all the corner and capping profiles, including at the bottom of the panels where they meet the tray.

Will this not be areas of weakness as much as they are for a conventional tile solution?

If so, and since the grouting is not usually what leaks most, there is not much to gain.

I am going to contact the manufacturer, but if you have experience with the product, your response will be very helpful.

Thanks,

Antonio

Reply to
asalcedo

I've just ripped out a bath and covered the floor and walls with cheap vinyl. There's no sign of leaks. I can look at the floor from underneath. I managed to work out how to stick a 4x2 metre piece of vinyl on the wall using ADOS F2.

Reply to
Matty F

Very 1980s! :-) Actually a very practical solution, the cushion floor type vinyl is quite a good insulator if condensation is a problem

Reply to
stuart noble

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