| Build a shower pan properly and it should last for | | | | are the perfect spot for mold to begin to multiply. |
| decades. Get it wrong and you soon find out. Building | | | | What you could have then is a complete shower |
| a shower pan often is left to pros, but even pros | | | | base full of mold. That's why the slope matters. |
| sometimes get in a mess. Here are the main steps to | | | | The Critical Layer |
| installing a shower pan the right way. | | | | What covers that first mud base is the central part |
| Drain Mystery Revealed | | | | of the base. That is a sheet of vinyl called a shower |
| A tile shower drain contains more than meets the | | | | membrane or shower liner. This vinyl sheet slopes up |
| eye, at least more than you can see from the top of | | | | the sides of the base and keeps all the water that |
| a finished shower. That's because the drain actually | | | | makes it into the base within the base. But there's |
| contains drain holes on two layers. One layer you see | | | | more. Since it is sloped, all the water moves right to |
| in the floor. The mystery layer though is really buried | | | | that hidden level of drain holes and away it goes |
| down in the shower base itself. The lower drain | | | | down the drain where it should be. |
| catches the water that happens to seep down into | | | | Mud Layer Two |
| the floor. | | | | Over the important liner goes another mud layer to |
| That happens because shower floors just naturally | | | | serve as the final base for the tile itself. This mud |
| leak. Grout does not stop water and neither does | | | | base is built, like the first layer, of a mix called deck |
| some tile. Dealing with that water is core to proper | | | | mud. It consists of a proper mix of just three |
| functioning of a tile shower. | | | | ingredients. You can get it ready mixed or mix it |
| From The Ground Up | | | | yourself. |
| After the drain is set, the foundation for the tile | | | | The Easy Part |
| must be solid so no movement happens. | | | | A tile shower floor without all that base work is sure |
| That demands reinforced sub-floor, whether it is | | | | to fail. With all the layers done properly up to now, |
| wood or cement. Specs for movement exist so you | | | | the last part consists of just laying the tile just as if it |
| can measure your floor and know whether it is rigid | | | | were any other floor. Of course, there's matching the |
| enough to at least meet what the codes call for. | | | | tile to the drain, but after all that's gone before, |
| Mud Layer One | | | | that's a minor detail. |
| As you build up from the sub-floor, each layer serves | | | | Build a shower pan properly and it should last for |
| a purpose. The bottom or first mortar layer exists | | | | decades. Get one step wrong and you likely get |
| not just to build a solid foundation, but to build a | | | | water damage and major messes. Even if a pro does |
| slope to get the water moving toward the drain. | | | | your project, it's best to know how a shower pan |
| Often this layer is not sloped and here's what | | | | goes together so you can check that every step |
| happens. A flat first layer means more water pools | | | | gets done and done right. |
| within the shower base. Pools of water in the floor | | | | |