Planning for a new wet room advice

[Tumbleweed]

Hi,

I am new to the forum but wondering if someone could please answer a few questions I have relating to a new wet room I am going to get installed.

The location of the new wet room is an old Victorian house at first floor height (on a suspended wooden floor). I am hoping to specify everything to be as waterproof as possible (do it right first time so it lasts for a very long time!).

- What tanking system should I specify (to last the longest?)

- Is there a tanking system better suited to suspended wooden floors / old properties where there might be movement?

- Should I specify a wet room shower tray – is there a brand etc that is best? I am not sure how the levels in the wet room will work with it being an existing suspended wooden floor.

- Associated with the above – what shower drain do you recommend – is there one that can be totally accessed and serviced from above?

Thank you very much for any advice.

T

 

[Time's Ran Out]

@Waluigi should be able to help!

 

[Qwerty]

Welcome to the forum

Am I correct in assuming that you are conducting the work yourself?

 

[Waluigi]

I’d go for an Impey Aquadec. You’d struggle to find a better system. Use their own tanking membrane.

 

[One Day]

Without being all negative, might I suggest that whoever is installing your wetroom should be the one to answer your questions?

We've seen too many times on here that a person comes along and asks all the right questions, gets all the right answers and then some muppet installs something either completely different and/or completely wrong.

Installing a wetroom is not as easy as picking a brand. There are many many cheap, budget brands which will last a lifetime IF they are correctly installed. Conversely there are many very expensive brands which will ruin your home in weeks or months if installed by an idiot.

Ask away - but be sure to pick a good, tried and tested installer (with insurance)!

 

[Tumbleweed]

Thank you all for your responses. Yes I will be getting an installer to carry out the work - I just wanted some unbiased opinions (not based on what they have available or ease of installation etc). Thanks again.

 

[Waluigi]

Part of me agrees with what you are doing and part of me also sympathises with customers trying to find a good tradesman. It’s a minefield out there!

 

[Flintstone]

I'm sure there's someone on here near surrey who can help you out with this job

 

[Waluigi]

*Tumbleweed*

 

[jasper]

Exactly what @impish says. My take would be to ask for recommendations from a respected installer. Ask them what system they like to use then maybe research that system to make sure you are comfortable with it.

I've done many - always used to use the Impey Aquadec and their tilesafe membrane then had the fear of god put in me with the issues around the use of silicone. Silicone and the membrane they supply do not mix! Whilst you use the supplied sealent around the edges of the membrane before the tiles go on, after the tiling you need to silicone into the corners of the tiles. You wouldn't normally grout these internal corners, only silicone, and as such, if the tiler doesn't manage to get 100% adhesive coverage then the silicone technically can come in contact with the membrane - literally turns it to chewing gum over a very short period.

In the environment you are describing ( timber/timber) my absolute favourite is the Kudos system - Aqua4ma. The wetroom tray is bonded to the wall panels with a sealant. You can literally 'tank' the entire room with it. They are panels of material which bond together ( liquid weld) not a membrane or paint system. You can even screw into the material then unwind the screw and it self heals, so if you have shower fittings, soap dishes etc, to fit you don't need to worry about penetration. Tile straight on to it - life time g'tee but expensive.

I am currently doing a wetroom using the schlüter system - so far found it great to apply. Only using it as the subfloor is a concrete slab and I can't use the Kudos.

With all these systems it really, really helps if you've done them before, so find someone experienced. I have seen/heard of so many people having wetrooms done, only to find a problem with it down the line - and water is very unkind, usually only presenting itself when the repair bill is significant.

With regards drains - most are servicable from above. My advice is to insist the pipework is tested prior to covering it up. If there is access from the ceiling below then you can always check after commisioning as well. Make sure the flow rate of the drain can keep up with the flow rate of the shower. Really, really important. There are significant variations on how much water different drains can cope with. Also, a 50mm water trap, which stops foul smells coming back up into the room, is required for new builds. You can get away with shallower ones on retrofits however with a joisted floor there would be no reason to skimp. With a shallower trap you can also find the water evapourates in the trap ( if not used for a period ) leading to smells. Simple fix - fill it with water however the 50mm is going to last longer before evapourating. There are waterless traps out there with fantastic flow rates however I cannot get my head around relying on a spring to create a seal.

I always oversize the flow rate and use 2inch drain pipework where possible. Kudos do their own drains which work with their system, as do Impey. Schlüter do decent drains with a welded membrane. I'm currently doing a frameless linear drain from Schlüter and the quality is great.

You haven't mentioned underfloor heating. My take is - if you can, put it in. A simply electric wire system is not expensive if you are spending on a wetroom. Grout isn't waterproof so to me it makes sense to have a heating element for any potential damp issues. Not expensive to run. Again, someone who has installed the entire system before, will hopefully know what the maximium wattage is that can be paired with the install.

 

[Waluigi]

Tilesafe membrane is taken out of the equation now as it’s been replaced with a far better system- Impey Waterguard. It’s actually very good. I used to hate the old Tilesafe membrane, absolute disaster that stuff especially in weather extremes. Either it doesn’t stick or it sticks to everything that goes anywhere near it!

 

[jasper]

Tilesafe membrane is taken out of the equation now as it’s been replaced with a far better system- Impey Waterguard. It’s actually very good. I used to hate the old Tilesafe membrane, absolute disaster that stuff especially in weather extremes. Either it doesn’t stick or it sticks to everything that goes anywhere near it!

Hi @Waluigi - I looked at Impey approx 6 months ago and indeed at the Waterguard ( i'd forgotten about the name/product change ) I believe it is still an RIW product with the same issues around silicone. Pretty sure I spoke to RIW technical about it, but I may be completely wrong. I'm convinced I also spoke to to a main wetroom supplier who uses the same membrane and they said the same. Just goes to highlight the importance of research and for that reason I always speak to the relevant company technical departments and ask as many people for advice as possible.
You're right, that tilesafe membrane was the worst!

 

[Qwerty]

As a regular user of waterguard I am not aware of any issue with silicone in contact with it. I will do a little test later with acetoxy and neutral cure silicone and post a seperate thread.

 

[hmtiling]

A little off topic but I spilled some stain stop on riw screed safe and it pretty much melted it.

 

[Qwerty]

As a regular user of waterguard I am not aware of any issue with silicone in contact with it. I will do a little test later with acetoxy and neutral cure silicone and post a seperate thread.

Here it is!