Wet room and bathroom project underway (progress pics)

[Participant]

Hi all

Pretty much last on our list of home improvements is to update (completely rip out and refit) the ensuite and family bathroom.

They were both bodged and are a bit nasty, basically, with tiling straight onto chipboard, cracks in tile and grout, tiles falling off, crappy showers, mouldy grout and silicone, leaks between wall and bath and under shower tray, etc. etc.

The ensuite conversion to a wet room is about to enter the 3rd and final week and I thought people would be interested to see how things were going.

Ensuite, before:



Ensuite design:



Ensuite stud work going up:



Ensuite as it stands now:



Immediately after this will be the bathroom, which currently looks like this:



Design, which has changed a lot in terms of style but not layout, is as follows:

 

[rexehuk]

Very cool, shall follow this.

Only thing I notice though (unless I've mixed up end of room) - picture with tiles, where is your tanking? I can't see any seals on joints and definitely not using something like schluter kerdi, so what's keeping it watertight?

Also, are you having a shaving point in there? I thought this wasn't allowed in UK building regulations as it's a wet room.

 

[Amp34]

Agreed, looks like it's being tiled straight on to cementboard?

 

[Participant]

Left side as you walk in:

Very cool, shall follow this.

Only thing I notice though (unless I've mixed up end of room) - picture with tiles, where is your tanking? I can't see any seals on joints and definitely not using something like schluter kerdi, so what's keeping it watertight?

Also, are you having a shaving point in there? I thought this wasn't allowed in UK building regulations as it's a wet room.

The system they're using is RIW Tilesafe. They put down some kind of rubber / bitumen membrane on the floor, then taped the corners and edges, then used a combination of various primers and compounds to tank the room.

The only shaving socket is inside the mirror cabinet. Not sure why they put one in the image.

Agreed, looks like it's being tiled straight on to cementboard?

Cement board that's been tanked.

 

[the_r_sole]

Looks good, what shower tray system did you use in there?

 

[Participant]

Looks good, what shower tray system did you use in there?

Novellini duo deck, which basically appears to be a sloped tile backer board.

 

[chroniclard]

Looks great. Toilet flush is a bit small though.

 

[Buffman]

Wow looks good. Is there a significant increase in cost going for wet room/wet area versus a standard tray shower?

Will be good to see when finished.

 

[jpaul]

In the en-suite, how do you plan to limit dispersion of water from shower towards the base of the toilet, a partial screen .?

...am interested to see photos as it progresses.

 

[Participant]

Looks great. Toilet flush is a bit small though.

Do you mean the volume of the flush compartment? We've got an identical wall hung toilet with Roca flush unit in the cloakroom and the large flush delivers a rather large amount of water. Shifts everything perfectly well.

Wow looks good. Is there a significant increase in cost going for wet room/wet area versus a standard tray shower?

Will be good to see when finished.

Unsure about that; I'd imagine that the extra labour and materials from time spent laying matt and tanking etc. would add up to £1k-£2k, but it's hard to compare to the (non-wet room) bathroom quote, because there are lots of differences like price of shower and furniture, and the replacement of the cast iron soil stack. The fitter spent about 2 days just preparing the wet room - tanking, sealing, laying matt, installing shower floor, priming walls and floor, sealing waste, etc.

In the bathroom we're having an AquaLisa digital bath filler and shower, as well as a more expensive furniture unit, so the saving from it not being a wet room is eliminated by having more expensive stuff.

In the en-suite, how do you plan to limit dispersion of water from shower towards the base of the toilet, a partial screen .?

...am interested to see photos as it progresses.

There's a small screen; you can just about make it out in the design image I posted.

 

[chroniclard]

Meant the button looks to be about 8 foot wide.

 

[the_r_sole]

Novellini duo deck, which basically appears to be a sloped tile backer board.

ahh, I have used that one a couple of times without issue, looking at a couple of alternatives at the moment...

Wow looks good. Is there a significant increase in cost going for wet room/wet area versus a standard tray shower?

Will be good to see when finished.

There is a big cost increase in it - the tray itself is more expensive, the plumbing/drain for it is more expensive, more tiling etc but it's a really nice way to do it if you can find the cash

 

[Participant]

Tiling was finished today. Tomorrow is grouting and fitting of towel heater, taps, shower, and shower screen, as well as some funky coloured silicone to match the two shades of grout being used.

There's been a minor glitch in that the basin arrived with a hole cut for a tap, whereas we have recessed taps so we don't need a hole. This is delaying final completion by a couple of days as a new one is being shipped over from Italy, so no major drama.

I'm really pleased with the finish as well as the look and feel. Can't wait to start using it now!

 

[Hades]

That's going to look great. When you've finished it I highly, highly, highly, highly recommend one of these to dry the walls after showering:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kärcher-WV50-Window-Vac-Cleaning/dp/B004E9QSO0/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1489624143&sr=8-2&keywords=water+vacuum+shower

 

[Amp34]

Are you using porcelain/ceramic tiles or natural stone?

 

[Participant]

That's going to look great. When you've finished it I highly, highly, highly, highly recommend one of these to dry the walls after showering:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kärcher-WV50-Window-Vac-Cleaning/dp/B004E9QSO0/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1489624143&sr=8-2&keywords=water+vacuum+shower

Never considered such a device for my bathrooms, but I'll look into that, thanks.

Are you using porcelain/ceramic tiles or natural stone?

Stone effect porcelain.

Grouting and sealing has been completed. Not allowed to use it over the weekend .

 

[fezster]

Looks really good. The look a wet room gives (without a shower tray) is so much better.

One thing I'd do differently next time is to have the shower taps accessible without having to stand under the shower (or reach under). You always turn the shower on first to allow it to warm up and inevitably your hand or arm ends up getting wet with cold water.

 

[Participant]

Looks really good. The look a wet room gives (without a shower tray) is so much better.

One thing I'd do differently next time is to have the shower taps accessible without having to stand under the shower (or reach under). You always turn the shower on first to allow it to warm up and inevitably your hand or arm ends up getting wet with cold water.

Not if it's diverted to the hand stick. We had the same discussion though and while I won't bore you with the details, there weren't many alternative options.

 

[Amp34]

Looks really good. The look a wet room gives (without a shower tray) is so much better.

One thing I'd do differently next time is to have the shower taps accessible without having to stand under the shower (or reach under). You always turn the shower on first to allow it to warm up and inevitably your hand or arm ends up getting wet with cold water.

Agreed. Unfortunately they aren't as practical as having a barrier between them and the rest of the floor. My other half hates them.

Yours looks really nice Participant.

 

[Hedge]

What kinda money does a project like this cost?