Hi Guys
I'm a plumber in North Yorkshire looking at my first wet-room. I've been doing some homework on here - thanks guys, just amazing by the way - but I think i may have read too much. I'm confused by the wide array of materials available and I wondered if anyone would be kind enough to help me write a shopping list filled with their favourites.

Tell me I'm being lazy, tell me to figure it out for myself, or just give me a leg up and I'd be really grateful.

The existing bathroom is tiles over plasterboard and studwork one side, brick and plaster the other, suspended wood floor in good condition. My customer is elderly and looking to live independently at home for as long as possible, which is why a wetroom is the way to go.

I'm expecting to find the walls damaged once existing tiles are removed to some extent but nothing too serious as the house is 30 years old and in good condition.

I'd like a recipe for a bombproof wet room, idiot proof would also be good. Your recommended suppliers (national) would also be good.

Elements
Tile backer boards & fixings
UFH & leveling compound
Sealing system/tanking system
Former tray and waste (looking at 750-800 x min 1200, center waste to one end)
Tile adhesive
Non-slip tiles

thank you for reading this and thanks in advance for anyone kind enough to reply with their favorite solution.

Nigel

First thing first, you want to get the substrate right to start so I would remove the plasterboard and replace with a cement board like No More Ply or Hardiebacker (there is no difference in these 2 products apart from the installation methods) have a look in your local area and see which one you get the best price on. As for the tiling products (Tanking, adhesive, grout, primers, silicones) I dont think you can beat Mapei, they are not the cheapest out there but IMO they are the best. Is there a tile Giant near you? If so, pop in and have a word with the guys in there and they should sort you out While you are in therer they should be able to take you through their tiler range. Most UFH makes are very similar so I would have a look in your local stores and see what kind of prices you can get.

I will let some1 with more experience with installing the shower trays than me guide you on that one but I hope this is some kind of help

Nige - I think you are being lazy, figure it out for yourself - but if you need a leg up try contacting WETDECS in his forum sponsored link and he can do you a package with some great prices.

Lets know how you get on and enjoy your time on the Tilers Forum.

P.S. If you require any specific/general information you can PM me.

Once you get the step by step method set in place for the job, it's not really rocket science

Sit down, draw up a start to finish system from the info you have found on this forum and make sure you stick to every step stringently

The existing floor construction and thickness of the new preformed wet room shower tray are the first things to take into consideration once all existing tiles, etc are stripped out Then just get the new build up right

If you've got any specific questions or quandaries don't hesitate to ask - no-one bites on this forum

Can't disagree with what's been said above.

I've now got 2 wetrooms under my belt, albeit that they are both on ground floors with concrete floors.

Essentially you will need to take the room back to basics. If you are doing the tiling as well then you'll need to make sure the walls are level at an early stage. By level I mean 3mm within 2m. So far as the solid walls are concerned, I'm still learning how to do this but find that rapid set is very good for this. Find the high point and either chop it out to assist or use this as a level to take the rest of the wall out to. It is easier said than done I will garand you. I'm just learning myself.

If the plasterboard is tiled I would consider actually removing it along with the tiles, and replacing with a cement backer board. Some of my customers are horrified when I actually end up taking their house to pieces but it is actually much quicker and cheaper to replace (even if you're just replacing with plasterboard) than to spend the time removing the tiles then repairing the surface. Hardibacker is not actually designed to retain water in the same way that Wedi board is. Yes it will not break down in water but it will not stop water from going through it. Aquapanel is similar but probably better in some respects. Wedi board is water proof in this way.

The arguement for removing plasterboard is strengthened IMO when you consider that you can replace it with a suitable tile board. If you use Wediboard you won't have to tank it, save for taping the corners of the room.

Whist you're replacing the plasterboard you can look at the timbers behind to see how best to straighten out the structure behind. In my case for concaved joists I just lapped them with a straight vertical joist. Convex ones can be planed down on their high points. You don't need to get them straight on the top face, just make it concave and do as above

For the former, or shower tray, I would suggest you speak to Tony (Wetdecs). His number is on his website. He's got a couple of products that are suitable for wooden floors. However, correct preparation of the floor structure is KEY. Tony can advise you further about this, or you can read up on it here. If you're not experienced with wetrooms I would suggest you use a preformed shower tray as supplied by him. These come with their own traps/gullies.

UFH is not something I have dealt with. So I wouldn't like to comment other than, will the customer really get the benefit of this on a wooden floor upstairs, or is the heat likely to dissapate downwards? Tony has views on this.

Plumbing, you should know what you're doing here . The formers come with a trap/gully and waste connection. Obviously routing the waste properly along the joists if possible is important.

Tanking. There are two main types of tanking on the market. The paint on type and the membrane. The paint on type is cheaper by the sq M. The membrane is considered to be superior as it can't flake off. Given the choice I would go for the latter. However cost is sometimes an issue. I bought a Weber kit for £40 inc vat from my local CTD (we don't have tile giant). That will do 8 sqM apparently.

Essentially you will need to aim to fully waterproof the floor and walls. As you can imagine, fixing down sanitary ware etc will be challenging. I have just done this and had to drill through the tiles and the matting. I intend to compensate for this by running a waterproofing bead of silicone around the toilet. Some may actually try and adhere the pan to the floor. However I think it is safety critical to fix sanitary ware properly.

Welcome Nige, when you've digested Hugo's "book" above, completed the job, come back with some pictures of the finished Job.

Cheers Dylante, much appreciated. I've heard mates talking about hardiebacker before positively, so I'll have a nosey.
Ta
Nige

Yeah we love before:after shots!

Cheers Cornish, I really appreciate your time with this mate. It's sinking in now. I''l speak to Wetdecks as suggested. And thanks to everyone for making me welcome.
I'll be sure to post some pics and maybe vids as I go along.

On the plumbing side we always spec. wall hung sanitaryware for wetrooms so no holes in the floor tanking and it makes it easier to clean the floor.

good point redlee, fortunately this has accidentally taken care of itself with some really nice built in units from luxury nook. Worth remembering though in future.
Nige