Advice needed! New condo with stunning stone shower...risky?

[Powhound]

Hello everyone!

I've put in an offer on a brand new condo project and the contractor has done some excellent work on the flooring, kitchen and bathroom. I didn't think about it much at first but now I'm having second thoughts on the bathroom shower.

The entire shower surround and one wall are all stone, sorry I'm not sure what kind/quality as I really don't know much about it. The contractor is well known and has done some great work from what I've been told. My main concerns:

- The surround is not 'smooth'. How do I clean this? Will all the little nooks and crannys collect soap scum/mildew creating a maintenance nightmare or worse ripping it all out?
- Not sure if it is sealed. Does it need to be? Water does not bead up on the surface when I tested.

Assuming everything was installed correctly and high quality materials were used will the bathroom last for a decent amount of time?

Attached a couple of pics for reference. I have very high quality versions if needed.

Any advice on this type of tub/shower system would be greatly appreciated!

[Brian@BC contracting]

Looks very nice. My advise would be to make sure you have a good cleaning lady...seriously! I will not be letting mine clean my newly built steamroom,as she would probably use the wrong cleaners on the travertine and etch it or something. Nice looking joint you have there. Welcome.

[cx]

Welcome, Powhound. Please put a first name in a permanent signature line for us to use.

I'd like to have a closer look at the wall/tub junctions there.

That sort of tub is not normally intended for use in a shower and I'd like to see how the drainage appears at the horizontal surfaces.

That won't, of course, tell us anything at all about the even more important waterproofing treatment at those junctions.

As for the maintenance of the shower surfaces, all I can say is I'm certainly glad I won't be your maid. It's prolly beautiful (from what I can see in your photos), but I can't imagine actually having that for a regular use shower even if I could afford a maid.

My opinion; worth price charged.

[gueuzeman]

Lovely! But a biohazard in the making. CX's call on the walls being able to drain into the tub. Also, are the stones "dry stack", that is no grout between them? The little ledges between the stones is a concern that you have rightly mentioned.

Used twice a day, you could get into the mushroom business in no time.

I heard of a shower like this installed in my area. The salesperson nearly refused to sell the stone to the customer, but in the end had no control over it's application.

Buy it. Use it. Love it. Be prepared to rip it out in 5 years or less.

sorry- gueuze

[Powhound]

Thanks for the quick replies everyone! So it sounds like my suspicions were true.

The stones are dry-stacked with no grout that I can see. I'm going to do some shopping around town today and get a rough idea on what it might cost to rip out the shower surround section and replace with something more practical once it starts sprouting mushrooms as gueuze mentioned lol.

Depending on the cost I might subtract that from my offer. Build in the repair cost ahead of time

[ceramictec]

it does look nice but I don't see it being functional.
even if its waterproofed good the dry stack with no grout isn't a good idea.