How To Make A Shower Pan

How to make a shower pan is a hand-built wet-area base built from concrete. The purpose of an ended up wet-area tray is to create a stable wet-area flooring that rapidly clears waste wet-area water through its drain.

The finished surface area of numerous wet-areas is not perfectly water resistant. Some water will permeate the surface area of the wet-area and enter the core of the wet-area tray. Grouted tile surface areas are water resistant, however will, specifically gradually, permit some water to travel through. This leads us to the secondary task of the wet-area tray.

The secondary job of a wet-area pan is to re-direct any water that has penetrated the surface area of the wet-area flooring back into the drain. An effectively developed wet-area tray reroutes water back to the drain by way of an embedded waterproof membrane that is sloped towards and sealed to the drain. This system requires penetrated water back to and into the drain, through special weep holes developed into the side of wet-area drains.

How to make a shower pan constructed without a wet-area liner, or similar system of waterproofing, can permit water to pass easily through the wet-area tray into the floor and wall structures. The concrete used to develop wet-area trays is easily permeable to water and will easily permit water to go through it into surrounding structure structures without the installation of a wet-area liner.

Why Go Old-fashioned with a Wet-area Pan?
When constructing a wet-area, there are lots of ready-made wet-area tray systems available to utilize. However, it is tough to beat a conventional hand-made mortar wet-area tray.

Pre-made shower trays provide speed and ease of setup, however often do not have the rigidity, strength and versatility of a hand-poured concrete tray. Packaged systems get costly and complicated without using engaging advantages over hand made wet-area trays.

How Do You Develop a Mortar Wet-area Tray? Its Everything about the Layers ...
A hand developed wet-area tray is built in layers around a wet-area drain assembly.
Wet-area Tray Layers in Steps:
Frame wet-area walls, curb and include wall blocking to create wet-area base "box".
Set up wet-area drain assembly (if not already set up).
Cover wet-area base with contractors felt (tar paper).
Put initially mortar base layer (sloped from walls and suppress to drain base).
Install waterproof wet-area liner over very first mortar layer sealed and clamped to drain pipes.
Pour leading mortar over wet-area liner (sloped from walls and suppress to drain).
Tile surface the leading mortar layer.
Building a mortar wet-area tray is a fairly basic task of putting together these layers. It will take a bit of time and some work, however the reward will be a long enduring, long lasting wet-area base.
Prior to you start developing your brand-new wet-area, you ought to have a steady sub-floor and the proper wet-area drain in place. Once building and construction of the wet-area base is complete, you will require to end up the wet-area tray surface with tile or an ideal surface area.
Validate rigidness of the subfloor and appropriate drain base setup.
Prior to building a mortar wet-area tray, you ought to have a steady, flat, sufficiently-strong subfloor with a proper 2 ″ drain installed.
Frame the wet-area curb.
If you are planning on a wet-area curb, you have a number of options. You can construct a kind to pour mortar into or utilize materials to form the core of the curb and apply mortar on top of this core. You can likewise utilize a business curb guide from Trugard Direct revealed listed below:.

I utilized the core and mortar around technique using numerous stacked 2x4s to create the curb core.
To construct a curb using a 2 x 4 core, stack and secure several (I used 3) 2x4s sequentially to the subflooring. Screw the bottom 2 x 4 to the subfloor, and then screw the 2nd 2 x 4 to the attached initially 2 x 4 and repeat to wanted curb height.
To build a curb using forms for a concrete pour, assemble kinds using boards or similar and fill the kinds with concrete.
Cover wet-area tray plywood with a layer of asphalt felt (tar paper) or similar.
To begin the wet-area tray construction, add a layer of roof felt (tar paper) to the bottom of the wet-area tray.
The felt will function as a moisture barrier for the first layer of mud assisting the mortar to keep moisture while curing. It will also assist to separate the subfloor from the wet-area pan.
To set up the asphalt felt, cover the flat surface of the subfloor, cutting around the drain base. Add a couple of galvanized staples to protect the felt to the plywood.
Add blocking to create wet-area tray box.
Next, add wood blocking in between the wall framing to develop a "box" for the wet-area tray.
For the blocking product, use pieces of 2x6s, plywood or comparable product-- I used pieces of the 3/4 ″ plywood I used to develop my subfloor. The stopping must be at least as high as the wet-area curb.
Mount galvanized wire mesh to base of wet-area tray and over curb.
Include galvanized mesh or stucco wire to the bottom of the wet-area tray, The mesh will reinforce base floor mud layer of mortar and help hold the mortar to the wet-area curb.
Bend the mesh slightly to produce "waves" in mesh to help embed the mesh in the center of the floor mud. Carry the mesh around the curb framing and secure with galvanized staples.
Prepare floor mix.
Standard flooring mix mortar (floor mud or deck mud) is a 5 to 1 mixture of sand and Portland cement. To make strong, stable mud, add simply sufficient water to develop a thick clay-like mix that simply holds its shape when loaded.
A latex concrete admixture can be included for some or all of the water part of the mortar mix to include versatility and strength-- oftentimes, nevertheless, latex is overkill for common wet-area tray mortar.
That said, I did replace about half of the water requirement for my blend with latex admixture (I like overkill).
To make quality mud, first dry mix the active ingredients (even if from a premixed bagged product) thoroughly with a hoe to create sure appropriate sand/ cement contact.
When mixed, add water (or a water/latex blend). Use just enough water to develop a mix that will hold its shape when squeezed in your hand, but not launch excess water.
Dry blends develop strong, stable concrete with less shrinking and higher compression strength.
Build the wet-area tray very first layer with floor mix mortar.
Using the ready flooring mix mortar, develop the very first layer of the wet-area tray. Slope this base layer from the walls of the wet-area toward the wet-area drain at a drop of 1/4 to 3/8 ″ per foot.
To help you make the proper slope, very first identify and mark the wet-area walls with the proper starting height for the mortar. This beginning height is the mortar height at the wall Click Here For Shower Pans that will offer the correct slope toward the drain.
The quantity of added height needed at the wall can be computed by the including to total determined included height needed for the wanted slope. A lot of wet-area trays need a minimum of 1/4 to 3/8 ″ of drop per foot.
To figure the necessary height at the wet-area wall to get this slope, determine the range from the wall to the drain edge and multiply by the preferred slope (1/4 ″ to 3/8 ″ per foot).
Example:.
Distance from the drain to the wall: 2 feet.
Preferred slope: 1/4 ″ per foot.
Result: 2 feet x 1/4 ″ per foot = 1/2 ″ extra height at the wall.
In this example, the mortar level at the wet-area wall will be 1/2 ″ higher than the height of the mortar surface area a the drain edge.
Due to the fact that the distance from the wet-area walls to the drain differs for nearly every wet-area tray (the exception being a round wet-area tray with a focused drain), the amount of slope throughout the tray will differ.

To set the minimum proper slope for the entire tray, compute and mark the wall height for the wall location that is the furthest from the drain. The point is generally the corner that is the outermost from the drain.

Utilize a level to continue this line around the entire wet-area when you determine and mark this beginning wall height. This line will be beginning height of the mortar bed at the walls of the wet-area to offer the proper minimum slope for the whole tray and offer a level boarder for the entire tray.

Now with the wall mortar level marked on the wet-area walls, discard mortar mix into the wet-area box and develop the very first layer of the wet-area tray.
Include mud starting at the back of the wet-area tray. Utilize a straight edge or comparable to screed the mud from the wall mark to the edge of the drain base and continue adding mud till the entire tray is formed.

Next, use mud to build the very first mortar layer of the wet-area curb. Include mortar to all sides of the curb, using the curb installed stucco wire to help hold the mortar to the lumber curb core.

Add a thick sufficient layer of mortar to cover the stucco wire wrapped studs. When forming the mortar curb, you may discover the usage of a number of short straight boards (2x4s or comparable) or long magnesium floats helpful. Slope the leading surface area of the curb a little towards the wet-area tray to provide a drain path toward the wet-area tray.
Another choice to get an effectively pitched wet-area first layer mortar bed (" pre-tray") is to use a wet-area tray pitch package. These packages provide slope guides to assist produce the correct slope and density of the wet-area tray mortar layers. Trugard Direct creates a slope guide for both the first (pre) mortar bed, called the "Pre-Pitch Guide" and one for the 2nd (leading) mortar bed called "Quick-Pitch". They likewise have a curb set to help form the curb and use a combined kit plan which contains all three guides. I have actually utilized these kits in the past and they work extremely well and for numerous deserve the cost.
Set up wet-area liner over the treated mortar initially layer of the wet-area tray.

With the first layer of mortar developed and treated, next install the wet-area line on top of the mortar base layer and initial curb layer.

The wet-area liner develops a waterproof barrier which contains and reroutes any passed water into the wet-area drain. It is necessary to slope this initial base toward the wet-area drain to allow appropriate drainage of water on top of the wet-area liner into the drain. Wet-area lined installed directly on the subfloor or on a flat mortar base will hold stagnant water with will ultimately result in leakages, mold and failure of the wet-area tray.

An effectively set up and sloped wet-area liner will allow water that has actually permeated the wet-area floor to rapidly transfer to the drain and empty into the drain through small weep holes in the side of the drain.

To begin setting up the wet-area liner, lay a constant sheet of the liner over the treated wet-area base wrapping it over the top of the wet-area curb. Be sure to completely flatten the line along the surface area and corners of the tray and wet-area curb.

Prior to laying the wet-area liner on the wet-area tray, tidy the cured mortar surface of the tray to remove any possible abrasive debris that could harm the wet-area liner.
In addition to cleaning the wet-area tray base, some will include a layer of roofing felt (tar paper) over the mortar wet-area base to assist protect the liner from abrasion of the mortar base.

To identify the proper size of the wet-area liner prior to sufficing, lay the liner in the wet-area tray smoothing it into the corners and over the curb as described above. Strategy to bring the liner up the walls of the wet-area 8-- 12 ″ or greater and a minimum of somewhat higher than the wet-area curb.

The liner needs to be one continuous piece, covering the whole tray, up the walls and over the curb. The line will work as your waterproof barrier. Think about it as a swimming pool liner that will need to hold the whole volume of water contained with the tray approximately the wet-area curb. Do do not leave it too short when running it up the wet-area walls and don't cut or permeate the liner within this "swimming pool" location.

When you are satisfied with the position and lay of the liner, utilize a marker to mark the wanted cuts on the liner. Do not cut the wet-area line at the corners or as it passes over the curb. Rather, fold the liner at corners (comparable to covering a gift) and tuck them into the wall cavity at corners.

Utilize commercially available patch kits with the appropriate liner adhesive to cover the cuts if you should cut the liner at the curb or for intricate corners.

To accommodate the density of the shower liner against the lower walls of the wet-area, some will shave some product from the face of the lower portion of the wet-area studs. This action can help ensure the to be installed backer board will lay flat over the location were the wet-area liner passes up the wet-area walls.

With the liner significant, eliminate the liner from the wet-area and cut the liner using a scissors or similar. Put the liner back into the wet-area to validate the proper size and fit. Next, smooth the liner over the wet-area tray and into the corners. Fold the corners and tuck the fold toward the wall cavity or versus corner studs if present. Secure the top of the liner and top of the folds with roofing nails or outside grade screws only the extremely top edges of the wall portion of the liner. You may likewise use liner adhesive or silicone caulk used to the field of the wet-area tray for included stability.

It is essential that you do not penetrate the liner below the level of the wet-area curb as collected water can travel through fastener penetrations causing leakages.
Secure the liner to the to the wet-area curb using liner adhesive or silicone caulk applied to the wet-area side and top of the mortar curb. Do not utilize nails, staples or other permeating fasteners on the wet-area side or top of the curb if possible. The top of the wet-area curb should offer a constant, water resistant path back to the wet-area tray and wet-area drain. Holes made by fasteners along this course will jeopardize this barrier.

To complete the wet-area liner over the curb, trim the liner at the front leading edge or fold it over the leading edge to the front face of the curb if you might gain from waterproofing the front face of the curb (if you do not plan to install a wet-area door or glass for instance).

Set Up the Drain Clamp ** Important action **.
Once the wet-area liner is set up, cut the liner and clamp to the wet-area drain.
With the wet-area liner set up, the wet-area drain base will be under the wet-area liner. Smooth the liner over the drain base to determine its location. Once situated, cut small holes for the 4 wet-area drain bolts.
To locate the bolt heads, push down on the liner with your fingers. As soon as situated, create an extremely little slit simply above the bolts heads simply huge enough to enable the bolt heads to press through the liner.
Next, cut the drain hole in the liner. Find the drain hole by lowering on the liner. Feel the edges of the opening and using a sharp knife, thoroughly eliminated the liner to match the within drain hole.

As soon as the bolt heads and drain holes are cut, seal the underside of the liner to the drain base utilizing silicone sealant or liner adhesive. Do not utilize sealant on the topside of the liner as it might obstruct water drainage from the liner into the drain.
End up the drain setup by setting up the top drain assembly.
Set up the top of the drain (the drain collar clamp) by moving the collar over the bolts, twisting clockwise to lock the collar on to the bolts and lastly tightening up the bolts. The tightened up assembly will compress and seal the liner to the drain.
Use care when tightening up clamp bolts. Move bolt to bolt tightening up each bolt a little at a time.
With the drain clamp put together, insert the drain riser (drain throat) and adjust the riser height to represent preferred leading mortar layer thickness. The majority of drain risers are threaded to enable height changes by turning the riser.

Remember to think about tile density when adjusting drain riser height. The finished tile surface need to match the drain grate height in the surface wet-area flooring.
Install lower course of tile backer board.

To produce the proper layering of the wet-area walls over the wet-area liner, install the lower course of your tile backer board at this moment. In this way, the tile backer board of the wet-area will create a water path down the wall into the wet-area tray above the liner. Install the lower part of the tile backer board now likewise adds stability to the wet-area walls as they will be embedded in the top mortar layer of the wet-area tray.

When setting up the backer board to integrate the bottom edge in the wet-area tray, you only need to set up the lower pieces of the backer board as this time. Once the wet-area tray is finished, you can then install the staying backer board.
Set up the backer board over the wet-area liner with the bottom edge of the backer board gaped 1/2-- 1 ″ above the wet-area liner covered wet-area tray base. Scrap pieces of plywood or smooth backer board work well as spacers to place the backer board prior to protecting. Prevent using rough, cement board as a spacer on top of the liner that might harm the wet-area liner.

Spacing the lower edge of the backer board will assist avoid mechanical damage to the liner by the bottom edge of the backer board and aid prevent motion of water up the wet-area wall. Space the backer board above the wet-area curb as well.

With the backer board in place and effectively gaped above the liner and curb, attach the backer board using the appropriate backer board screws just at a level well above the wet-area liner and curb. Fasteners positioned in the lower part of the backer board will penetrate the underlying wet-area liner and lead to leakages. Keep in mind that the lower portion of the backer will be included into the leading mortar layer of the wet-area tray and be rather protected.

Include the leading layer of floor mix mortar.