I have a niche in my bath and it's on an exterior wall. If there are studs in the wall, you should be able to have a niche, yes? Do you have something else?

I've had niches in my last two showers that were on exterior walls. I think people frown upon it due to insulation issues but I've never seen any difference. First shower was in NC and this one in CA. Different climates and no difference. If you want a niche you should be able to have one.

Can you ask the tile lady why an exterior wall is the problem? Surely there are some innovations in thin insulation products that would make it possible for you for you to get what you want. Perhaps it could just be recessed partially into the wall, and slightly project into the alcove so you could fit the stuff you want on a shelf.

-Babka

"Surely there are some innovations in thin insulation products that would make it possible for you for you to get what you want."

You'd think so. And is the tile lady the one selling the tile or installing it? Is it some sort of code thing? My BD always tells me I have to use only LED or fluorescent bulbs. I say, yeah, I know. And then I use whatever bulb I want that the stores still sell. I realize she's just covering her a$$ and I'm getting what I want.

our contractor insulated the wall around the niche and not the niche. But I'm in Hawaii so no fear of the shampoo freezing. The outside sheathing and siding should give you enough protection for a small niche?

I'm in Florida, which was why I was surprised that the tile person said I couldn't have a niche. But I can tell that I will not be able to have a 4" shelf. My window sill is exactly 4" - extrapolating from that it's obvious there isn't a whole lot of space between the wall and the exterior.

On second thought I wonder if it's a code thing. The codes are very strict here.

I think you should do what you want. We had medicine cabinets built into an outside wall and never had a problem. Having said that, there are a lot of nice shower shelves that can be attached to the wall or built into a corner using tile or stone.

Here is a link that might be useful: Shower shelves

Thanks, kudzu. Those are some very nice shelves.

In retrospect, I wonder if she though my house is made of concrete block, as most Florida houses are. That obviously would present a problem when planning a shower niche!

Jerzee, I am in the Orlando area and both our shower niches are on outside walls. They were the contractor's idea - we hadn't even thought about it. They are 3-1/2" deep and have 4-1/2" deep sills on them.

Donna

My niche is my first and on an interior wall. I would have happily settled for one of the shelves in the link above.