Shower Stall Shower Pans.
Shower Pans For Shower Stalls
And The Materials and Information
To Install Them.
INSTALLING A SIMPLE SHOWER SEAT
Author: MERLE HENKENIUS
Article Text:
A shower seat is one of those ``luxuries'' that quickly becomes essential once it's installed. It provides a safe place to sit and soak up steam during a hot shower and to towel off afterward, especially for the elderly and physically challenged. It also serves as a comfortable footrest for women when shaving their legs and as a handy shelf for shampoo, washcloths and that ever-elusive bar of soap.
A new product called Better Bench allows you to easily install a corner seat without having to tear open the wall, break up tile or build a wooden frame. That's because Better Bench is the frame - a triangular aluminum pan you fasten directly to the existing wall. The 3-inch deep pan is then filled with mortar and covered with ceramic tile.
Better Bench holds up to 400 lbs., and can be installed over tile, granite, marble and solid-surface materials such as Avonite or Corian. It's also very affordable: The 17x17x24-inch model shown here costs just $38; a larger 21x21x30-inch model goes for $43. (You'll find the bench at tile stores.) Best of all, installation takes only about five hours. But because the mortar has to cure and the mastic and grout must dry, you'll have to wait three days before the shower seat is ready for use.
ATTACHING THE BENCH
The Better Bench kit includes the six hollow-wall screw anchors that fasten it to the walls, so installation requires little more than a drill and 3/8-inch-diameter carbide-tip masonry bit, masking tape, a screw driver, mortar, grout, tile and some mastic. Your first step should be to determine how high above the shower floor you want to place the bench. A height of between 16 and 20 in. is comfortable for most adults. We installed ours at a height of 19 inches.
Begin the installation by placing a strip of masking tape on the wall at each of the six screw-hole locations. The tape makes marking the screw holes easier and helps keep the drill bit from spinning off the mark. Hold the metal pan in position at the proper height and outline the screw holes with a felt-tip marker. Remove the pan and bore thorough the wall at each mark with the drill and carbide-tip bit. Then remove the tape strips and insert the anchors into the holes. Before pressing the anchors all the way, place a dab of silicone caulk around each anchor head to seal out water.
Next, put the bench back in place and insert the screws through the holes, tightening each one until the bench is pulled snug against the wall. The anchors spread open as the screws are tightened inside them, providing secure attachment where there aren't wall studs. (If you hit a stud while boring the anchor holes, replace the anchor with a 2 1/2-in. wood screw.) Then apply a thin bead of silicone caulk along the top edge of the bench.
APPLYING THE MORTAR
Once the triangular frame is fastened in place, make it rock-solid by filling it with mortar. (Use premixed masonry mortar, available from a lumber yard or home center. It costs about $4 for an 80-lb. sack.) Dump half the mortar into a wheel barrow, add a little water and mix it thoroughly with a hoe. The mix should be on the dry side, so add just enough water to moisten the powder. Scoop the mortar into a bucket, carry it to the shower stall and dump it into the pan. Use a trowel to pack th e mortar tightly into all three corners, and work the top surface smooth.
Then take a small amount of slightly wetter mortar and trowel it onto the front edge of the bench. Let the mortar cure for at least 24 hours.
TILING TIPS
We covered the top of the bench with 4x4-inch cobalt-blue tiles to match the shower walls, and trimmed the front edge with 3x3-inch pewter-gray tiles. Other options for finishing the top: virtually any size tile or a slab of marble, granite or solid-surface material. You can also use 2x2-inch tiles positioned diagonally to rim the front edge.
Attach the tile to the bench with either thin-set mortar or premixed latex mastic. Thin-set is more durable, but mastic is less messy and easier to apply. We opted for the mastic. Before spreading a speck of mastic or thin-set, however, cut and dry assemble the tiles first to avoid mistakes.
Place a full tile in the center of the bench, allowing it to overhang the front edge by about a quarter inch. Continue to dry-lay tiles, working out in both directions and back to the corner. You'll need a tile cutter to trim the tiles that abut the walls. If you plan to undertake other tiling projects, the $85 cost of the tile cutter probably is worthwhile. If not, rent; the usual daily fee is less than $10.
After you have dry-assembled all the tiles, remove them and spread mastic over the entire tip and front edges of the bench using a trowel with 1/8-inch notches. Lay the top tiles first, then place the edge tiles. Firmly press down on each tile to set it into the mastic, then allow it to cure overnight.
SEALING YOUR WORK
The next phase consists of sealing the joints between the tiles with grout, which comes in ready-to-use premixed form or as a powder that must be mixed with a liquid-latex additive. Either type will work.
Use a rubber float - a trowel-like tool with a flat, rubber pad - to force the grout into every joint. Let the grout set for about 20 minutes, then wipe off the excess with a damp sponge. Once it has dried and is hard to the touch, buff the tile surfaces with a soft, dry cloth. Allow the grout to cure for at least 24 hours. The final step of the project is to run a thin bead of silicone caulk around the perimeter of the bench to seal out water; give the caulk six to eight hours to set.
Your newly equipped shower now offers greater safety, comfort and convenience.
Memo:
(c) 1997, Times Mirror Magazines. Reprinted from Today's Homeowner. Dist. by The Los Angeles Times Syndicate
Copyright 1997 Greensboro News & Record
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