I'm wondering about specifying that a leveling system is to be used to prevent/minimize lippage. I am talking to tile guys now about installing large format tile on my walls (40 x 13) and I keep asking if they will use a leveling system and they ignore my question. I'm taking that to be a red flag.

Not a big fan of epoxy in residential applications. Not worth the extra money. Going with the newer generation modified grouts, such as Laticrete's Permacolor will do almost as good a job for about 1/4 the price.

As for the unmodified thinset, look at Mapei's kerabond or Laticrete's 317.

1) Yes.

2) I recommend you use a cement board like 1/2" Durock or Wonderboard before using a fiber-cement board like Hardie. A lot of DIYers have trouble with Hardie due to its seemingly insatiable thirst for water.

3) Yes, with Kerdi you need a 2" minimum overlap. The edges of the sheets are marked for reference.

4) Yes, for warranty purposes Schluter specifies an unmodified thinset. I recommend staying away from Custom's Masterblend, sold at HD. If you HAD to use it, sure you could. I've used it. But there are better ones out there.

Laticrete makes 272 and 317. Both are fine products. 272 has a little more cement in it than 317, and 272 has a finer grain of sand. But both are fine.

Mapei makes Kerabond. Also a fine product.

Bostik makes Ditra-Set.

There are others out there. The thing is you get what you pay for, so void $5 bags of unmodified and expect to pay $10-$12 instead.

5) Epoxy grout, you can go that route.

6) Yes, you can caulk the changes of plane. You can find color-matched caulks so the grout and caulk are the same color, or at least close.

The floor tray, yes, you can use Shluter's Kerdi Tray, a pre-formed foam tray. If you can find one to fit your shower and drain location (if remodel) then they are indeed handy. If need be, you can buy one that's too large for your shower and cut it down, but any cutting should be symmetrical for best results.

The tray is set to the floor with thinset, then you install the Kerdi Drain. When the Kerdi Drain is set, then you install Kerdi membrane over the tray. Then you tile.

There are installation videos to walk you through the steps on Schluter's website.

There are some tips and techniques for Kerdi on this thread. Not all will be applicable for your installation, but it might help you think through a few things ahead of time.

Thank you! This gives me a good step by step to make sure my contractor is doing it right. No DIY for me!

I also have a question about one of the bathrooms. I plan to install a 48 x 36 shower on the main floor with custom glass. The 48" length of the shower is against a 91" wall. I am changing out the vanity that will also be sharing that wall, which means sizing is flexible. My concern is the gap between the shower curb (the 36" side curb) and the vanity. I do not want a gap between the glass and the vanity or the curb and vanity.

Is it better to have a pony/ short wall on the 36" side so it butts right up against the vanity? The glass would then sit on the top of the pony wall.

What I am trying to figure out is how much space is needed for the shower so that I can figure out the size of the vanity. The part I don't know or understand is if the pony wall goes on the tray or next to it.

Meaning, should I allocate 48" for the shower or would it be 48" + 4" wall?

Bump

bump, why? You have two of the best already offering their viewpoints and that is probably why no one else has spoken up!

You are correct, I did receive some great answers to my original question but perhaps I was hoping someone who has constructed a shower would respond to my last question(s) about the size of the shower and wall.

Your pony wall would be built like any wall, just shorter. It will be structural. The shower pan would fit within the parameters of the walls that create your shower. I am not sure what you mean my space next to the shower, but if I had a vanity that was close but not touching the pony wall it would be hard to clean. I would opt for a vanity that went to the pony wall and then the glass mounted on top of the pony wall when all is ready for that stage. That glass is heavy and needs the strength of a good wall. Be sure there is blocking in the walls where any mounted glass will be, you want blocking to mount the hinges and brackets to. I have seen some cleaver storage space (pullouts) integrated into pony walls. Now, as I say all of this, I am only a DIYer, so I defer to Mongo, Stonetech, and Bill V. on shower construction!

Shower construction isn't always done the same way in all areas so preparing a "list" of proper constuction could vary depending on your location. In my area, you'd be hard pressed to find an installer who uses wonder board and Kerdi as most everyone uses paper/lath/cement and hot mopping and that's what most people want.

"Is it better to have a pony/ short wall on the 36" side so it butts right up against the vanity? The glass would then sit on the top of the pony wall. "

Yes, a pony wall may make things easier. If the shower glass sat on top of the vanity, if you ever had to replace the vanity or the vanity top you'd have to take the shower out of commission for a bit while the work was done.

With that written, you can set the shower glass on top of the vanity. Just detail everything properly. You'll have to bring the vanity into the waterproofing plan, topical membranes will be your friend.

If using a store bought vanity cabinet the design and structure of the cabinet may make the pony wall the more appropriate choice.

One of those "it depends" answers.

Thanks for explaining enduring. Some GCs have told me to butt the vanity next to the shower curb. I didn't like the gap that would exist between the glass and the vanity ....it would be a cleaning nightmare!

I thought if I had a pony wall and butt the vanity up against it there would be no gap. I was wondering if the preformed 48" pan could be made smaller so that the total width would be 48" ( with a wall) as opposed to 48" plus a 4" wall. I have never constructed a shower so am clueless.

My goal is to have (1) bigger than a 36" shower and not have to shrink the vanity too much.

With a pony wall the vanity might not come in actual contact with the wall, but the gap would be covered by the counter and a strip of wood in the front, just like kitchen cabinets. I would not butt up a vanity to a glass wall, you'd see the vanity side through the glass and see cobwebs growing, lol.

You could have some other storage in your room, to make up for small spaces, here is a link.

Here is a link that might be useful: Any clever bathroom storage ideas?

I will add that if you wanted you could use a Kohler cast iron shower pan, in a 36"48" size. Then you don't tile the floor or work with a slope, it is all done in the casting of the cast iron. They have a "Kathryn" and a "Purest" both 36x48 and both cast iron, in many colors.

What she is asking is, with the shower and the shower pan and pony wall, does the pony wall sit inside the shower pan, taking up some of her 48", or does the 4" wall space get taken away from her vanity space and the 48" shower pan then sits within the "L" formed by the back wall and the pony wall?

Is that what you were asking, Abbabug? Where does the 4" wall space come from?

I am confident in answering that the 48" shower pan remains all shower, and the pony wall comes out of the space that was left for your vanity. So you will need a smaller vanity than before you added the pony wall. You can always buy a smaller shower pan. There are companies who will even make custom ones, so anything is possible. You can do a 46" pan and split the difference, though it may cost more. I looked into the ones below because I am doing a roll-in shower. These are not ones you tile, but you use them with tiled walls.

I am a total amateur here, though, so someone who has building cred, please back me up or tell me I am wrong. I believe you could do a 3" - 3.5" wall if you use metal wall studs. Anybody?

Here is a link that might be useful: Custom shower pans

Thank you for re-phrasing my question so clearly Nancy in Mich :). I'm obviously not very good at explaining myself.

The 4" is what I think the width of the pony wall will be.

I get calls from potential customers telling me how to fix their problem every once in a while. They immediately go on double secret probation.

You can have "when" and "where", we'll negotiate "what", but I keep "why" and "how" or we're not right for each other.

Trebruchet, not trying to figure out all the "why" or "how " but the (1) how much of a gap that I have problem cleaning can I live with and (2) can I live with a smaller vanity in a bathroom lacking storage as it is.

I have nothing better to do than to obsess over that :) and many other things as well.

Trebuchet are you suggesting that customers should not ask "how" you intend to do something? Surely you've read enough posts here to understand that many contractors cannot be trusted to do the right thing? Does it make those of us who ask toxic?

Attabug-- It's a matter of which is more important to you-- the full 48" shower, or the longer vanity, and yes, the foam pan CAN be cut back to 42" very easily. Also, if you get an installer who knows what they're doing, they can forgo the foam pan, and mud it, and then you can make it ANY size or shape you wish with no trouble. I've been doing these showers for years and I've yet to ever use a foam pan.

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