Cement Board

[jerrym4]

Before building the tub checkout the forums at www.johnbridge.com. There have been several discussion about how to build such a tub.

Also, this is probably the best site out there dealing with tile jobs of any kind.

 

[dmccarty]

bebster,

Be careful, tile, grout and cement board are *** NOT *** water
proof. I'm almost finished completely redoing one of our bath
tile surrounds because it was not done right when the house as
built. Lots of water damage in the wall. Not hard to fix just time
consuming deconstructing the walls down to the studs, pulling
out wet insulation, replacing rotten studs, and then rebuilding.

One more bath to go. Surrounds built with cement board and
hopefully plastic or buidling paper work just fine for showers
but I think a tub built like this would be problematic....

Later,
Dan McCart

 

[JDgreen227]

I have to repair a 35 year old tiled tub surround, the waterproof membrane sounds like a good idea to add if I have to rip it out to bare studs. Is it anything like the rubber ice/water shield that comes in rolls and is used on dripedges for new roofs and reroofing? I am wondering what thickness it would add to the surround.

You are right, grout is NOT waterproof, which is the reason for my little project.

 

[MikePA]

<font color="blue"> Is it anything like the rubber ice/water shield that comes in rolls and is used on dripedges for new roofs and reroofing? </font>
I'm not sure. I've never used it, I've just seen it used on This Old House where it was used to line a shower tray.

I imagine, any good tile place would know about it.

 

[MarkV]

Mike,
The back splash looks great!! As to the question of sealing the tile and grout lines, it depends. (Don't you just love a straight answer) Most ceramic tile does not require sealing and some do not react well to sealers. Natural stone, like tumbled marble, normally do get sealers. Grout joints in a kitchen area I would seal to help prevent stains. Home Depot will have sealers, usually some form of silicon, and I would look for one with a small applicator for doing just the grout lines. If you can't find a good applicator a small brush will work just fine.

MarkV

 

[BXMMCC]

About 10 years ago when I did my kitchen, silicon grout was specifically verboten for food preparation areas. I don't know whether this is a concern anymore.

 

[bebster]

Thanks, guys, for the tips. I now realize why most tubs are fiberglass or plastic. I'm looking to put this one on the 2nd floor, and I will surely think twice about the whole approach. But I can't seem to find a deeper tub (like 24"-30" deep) and full size (like 60"x36" of actually water area), hence the custom tile approach. I think I better keep looking for a stock unit.

 

[MikePA]

<font color="blue"> I'm looking to put this one on the 2nd floor, </font>
In addition to making it waterproof, also keep in mind how much all that water will weigh! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

 

[bebster]

Mike, thanks for the reminder -- I'll do some more math on the weight and support needed below. I've been thinking about the weight, and am going to position the tub over a bearing wall below to carry the weight, and increase the TJI joists to 12" O.C. under the tub as extra support.

But if it leaks, that's a lot of wood to get wet, so that's my major concern, and the area where I have the least experience.