Shower Floor Options And The Right Shower Pan
Just looking at a floor of a shower it would seem that the floor is much like the rest of the bathroom. Such is not really the case at all especially in tile showers. The shower floor options depend for one thing on whether you are set on a tile floor in the shower. Following are some of the options for shower bases with and without ceramic tile.
Shower Floor Options -- Shower Pans For Tile
Bases for ceramic tile must be of a certain type. Just think about it... Tile that goes over a surface that moves much, either from changing weather or vibration or just movement from the weight of the person in the shower, will be stressed. The base if it moves will likely move the tile layer over the base. If and when that happens what results is at the least cracking of mortar joints and at worst a complete come-apart of the tile from the base. That makes a mess of broken tiles and other pieces. It makes a leaky shower too more that likely as well.
The floor of a shower that must hold tile therefore must be mounted over a solid base that gives little. The base itself must also be stiff with little movement of the base as weight is put on the floor.
One choice for tile bases is a prefab shower pan made especially for tile. Those are available in types that might best be described as foam bases. Tile-Redi is one of the leading brands. Installing the pan of this type is as simple as setting the pan in place over a properly braced sub-surface. The pan surface is water-tight and ready for tile. A special drain goes with the base and the drain and pan are a complete system. These pans come in many sizes but not all sizes. Getting the size you need can likely be done but not for cheap and you get to wait.
Another tile ready shower pan option comes from Kerdi and with this liner what you get is not a waterproof base but a base that is stiff and gets a waterproof liner put over the top. In addition the Kerdi-Schluter shower can be put together in custom sizes with some mortar work required but not too much.
Now in contrast to the ready to tiles bases you have the typical mortar or concrete shower base. This is most common.
This takes some skill and knowledge to put in...
Key to traditional pan construction is the vinyl shower pan liner. That one layer really is what holds the water in the base. It gets sandwiched between two sloped layers of mortar and the three layers then form the base for the tile to be set on. Get the liner membrane in place properly and this shower type holds water well and is cheaper to get done than what the other options will be.
Getting the layers in the right way takes some serious effort and there are tricks.
Acrylic Shower Pan
How about tile walls and ceiling and an acrylic shower pan or fiberglass? That option eliminates much of the fuss of putting in a shower and still gets you part of a tile shower. That makes for an attractive option.
Warning...
You cannot for sure install ceramic tile over a fiberglass or acrylic shower pan not designed for tile. Failure is certain and the clean-up will be a disaster.
Acrylic pans will work great, though the feel often lacks the solid feel of a tile shower, just forget about putting tile over these pans.
The shower floor options are several but if you are set on standing on tile the pan must be made for tile and it most cases what is the best value is the typical mortar or concrete construction with the vinyl shower pan liner built in. That sort of base works and goes in at a minimum of cost but not a minimum of knowledge and effort.