Curbless Shower and Bathroom Floor

[Haze]

Hi to all. First off I would like to thank all of you (Tile Experts) for taking time to answer all of the questions and helping all of us (Not Tile Experts) to do a better job on our tile projects. I have really enjoied reading lots of posts and you also really helped a friend do a great job on his shower and bath (Grnhorn), after he had to take out the pan twice. Now it is my turn with the tile saw. My wife and I have been on the 5-year plan to build a house and are rapidly approaching the deadline. We finally have the windows in, got the heat in just before turkey day, and now need to tackle the bath and shower so we can enjoy the place. My project is a tiled bathroom floor and curb-less shower. After reading all of the threads I could find on curb-less showers, checking out the liberry, and John's Kerdi book, I have come up with a preliminary plan but still have a few questions I would like to get your opinions on before we start ordering all the stuff we will need.

But first:

I. The Layout: Hopefully I was able to attach the plan of the shower and bath for you to see. My photos were too big and I will have to work on them to get them down smaller.

II. Background Info

1. The entire floor area in the bathroom and shower area has been dropped 3 inches to accommodate radiant floor heat.

2. Tile in the shower area will drain to the center and be slightly lower than the bathroom floor, which will be level (no curb)

III. The Plan:

1. Place plastic down on the floor.

2. Place PEX heat tubing on bathroom floor and then cover with the "Tile Your Worlds" famous Mud Recipe, incorporating a pre-slope in the shower area to the drain, which is in the approximate center of the shower area. The bathroom area will be flat.

3. Place Kerdi membrane on the shower floor and walls and either Kerdi or brush on waterproofing on the bathroom floor.

3. Cut and place tile

IV. Questions:

1. Should I place a speed bump at the entrance to the shower? The drain will be in the center of the shower area, about 2 to 3 feet from the entrance, and the entire floor in the shower will slope to the drain. The shower head facing the entrance is 5 to 8 feet from the entrance.

2. Should Kerdi be placed over the entire bathroom floor, or could/should I use waterproffing or Ditra in the bathroom area. What about just extending the Kerdi out into the bathroom area a foot or two?

3. Do I need an expansion joint in the floor tile? The shower will be 2"x2" tile, and the bathroom will be 12" x 12" tile. The floor total size, including the shower is approx 8 feet by 14 feet. The break in the two tile sizes will extend from the end of the angled wall enclosing the shower to the opposite wall.

Thank you all very much for having this web-site.

Dave in Whitefish

[bbcamp]

Is this bathroom on a slab or woodframe consructuction?

1) I would, and your local building code may mandate something. Most want 2 inches between the top of curb and the top of drain.

2) Without a curb, I'd Kerdi the whole bathroom, and waterproof the wall to floor joints. You could switch to Ditra outside the shower, but I don't see the advantage.

3) You need to leave an expansion joint around the perimeter, but you won't need one in the field.

[John Bridge]

Hi Dave,

You won't need the speed hump. You must realize that no matter how far the shower head is from the shower entrance you'll still get a little water out on the bath floor. Covering the whole thing with Kerdi takes little time and money. Do it.

[Haze]

Thanks BB and John for your quick reply. I will order the Kerdi today and my wife and I just ordered the tile. She likes the color of some 2x2 tiles for the shower floor. I like the looks of a 3x3 tile on the floor better. Are there any disadvantages (or advantages, to be fair) to 2x2s other than just more grout joints? Also, by expansion joints, could they just be caulked joints around the edges of the tile? Would I place them in the shower also? I will be tiling the floor last. The floor is wood frame.

Thanks again for your help.

Dave

[bbcamp]

You will caulk the joints between the floor and the walls, inside and outside of the shower. These caulked joints will be sufficient for expansion.

2x2 or 3x3 tiles in the shower will allow you to follow the complex contours of the shower without having excessive lippage (tiles that stick up with respect to their neighbors).