Tanking Question

[Aspesim]

Hi Guys
When I install my shower cubical and tray; do I need to tank the flooring and walls?
The walls are battened with 12mm Hardie Backer Board and the floor is 18mm ply overlaid with 6mm Hardie Backer Board.

Thanks as always
Aspesim

 

[swanman]

Hardi backer board dosent have to be tanked

its already water resistant

just put some scrim tape over the joints

 

[White Room]

How much use will the shower get.....

 

[Aspesim]

Hi Whitebeam
The shower is a large rain shower and will be used minimum of once a day up to 4 times a day depending on when the kids are home.

 

[bugs183]

Hi Asp,Looks like it's going to get some stick, so plan it thoroughly.
Don't board the wall and put the tray up against it, it never works, so many people are doing this, you always get a weak spot and a wide gap between the wall and the tray.
The crucial part of any shower installation is how the walls meet the tray. Any movement here and you'll have trouble. So the tray goes in before the walls have the backer board fitted.
Ideally you would want to fit the tray up as close to timber studwork as possible, bearing in mind the room needed for the shower screen.
Then put noggins in between the stud and firmly up against the top of the tray. Fill any gaps with instastick or similar gap filler. These noggins will now support fully the bottom of the backer board. This is the part most duff plumbers and builders neglect, this is why things leak.
Now fit the backer board. Make sure you have a really nice fit to the shower tray, any small gaps again can be filled with instastick etc.
Personally i prefer 'Marmox' board. It's much easier to install and actually is 'waterproof', so you can fit it and only have to cover the joints in waterproof tape. Hardi backer is water resistant and really would need tanking, no matter what anyone says. Obviously is miles better than plaster board!
Overlap waterproof tape onto the tray the thickness of the tile and bond to the wall an shower as recommended. Tape all joints.
Always use a good quality cement based adhesive and a cement based grout such as Mapei or Bal, don't even think of any readymix adhesive and grouts, it's really not worth it in a busy shower like this.

 

[Aspesim]

Hi Thanks for the info,
Not sure if my pipework will reach over a couple more cm's

I thought about butting it up against the hardie board installing the tray and then tile so they lip over the tray.
However I will try and do it the way you suggested and see what I can do.

Thanks again for the info.
Simon.

 

[BARRONBATHROOMS]

Interesting view bugs! I have always boarded first then fitted tray then tanked. Surely if the tray is fitted right the should be no movement?

 

[bugs183]

Maybe you do yours differently to all the other guys, and in an ideal world it would be great if it was the case,but I've never seen a tray thats been fitted into place properly if the boards are lower than the height of the shower tray, or if anyones had to hack into the boards to make the shower tray fit.
Most trays are wider at the bottom than the top so there is in my experience always a gap that 'the tiler will get over'. Once that gap is there it just leads to trouble, yes you can tank over it, but the tile is bottom of the tile really should fit down onto the top of the tray. Not to mention the fact that most stud work isn't square.

 

[BARRONBATHROOMS]

Do you not do your own building work bugs! In my experience if I do all my own plumbing, building and tiling work if it is not right it is my fault. Build things square and plumb, install everything right and there will be no problem. Does anyone else fit the boards down to the tray? Not saying it wrong but surely could cause problems with the cubicle?

 

[bugs183]

It's a good point, if you do it all then you've only yourself to blame.
No i just tile Baron, i'm bloomin useless at plumbing, and i'd rather pass the work to a mate who can!
If the tray is buried into the wall it can be a problem, but just getting the tiles at least to fit onto the tray is so much safer in my mind than just trusting the tanking alone.