Master Bath walk in Shower?

Eleanor Sayles
by Eleanor Sayles

I have a shower w/tub in my master bed room. I want to change it to a walk in shower. What is the most important thing I should watch out for when I demo. I am a disabled female veteran and I watch lots of Youtube! icon

Eleanor

USMC Ret

  4 answers
  • Cindy Cindy on Sep 13, 2018

    Good evening Eleanor. I'm Cindy. First, I would like to thank you for your service. Some of the things that might put a wrench in your plan is mold. If there is any mold inside walls, you should shut down the demo and find a company to remove it. Other things include HVAC duct work, wiring and plumbing. Good luck with this project. Wishing you well. From Cindy.

  • Laura Cooper Laura Cooper on Sep 13, 2018

    Eleanor, often a tub is installed during construction before walls are in. You can measure, but be prepared for the possibility of having to break the tub into pieces to remove it. Also, when shopping for a shower pan, they come in different heights. Do you need a low profile one? One that allows a wheelchair to roll in? Shower doors or curtain? These items will also affect your decision for the exterior floor. If you need a wheelchair accessible shower pan, then make sure water can't puddle outside the shower, etc.

  • Kelli L. Milligan Kelli L. Milligan on Sep 13, 2018

    The water pipes. Make sure you cut off the water.

  • Karen Brunck Karen Brunck on Sep 18, 2018

    Hi Eleanor. Thank you for your service💗 I just finished doing the same project. You'll unfortunately need to remove the existing walls to get the tub out. If you are using a prefabricated shower pan, the drain can stay where it is. If you are tiling the floor, it will need to be relocated to center. You'll need to undo the drain assembly to get the tub out without damaging the pipe. The plumbing also needs to be addressed by removing the tub spigot pipes and raising the valve. I hired a contractor and a plumber for the demo and relocation of the plumbing and the installation of new tile board. I coated the entire area with several coats of "red guard" (water sealant) before installing the tile myself.