Bathroom Remodel Questions - How do you know

by Heidi
(Chandler, AZ, USA)

How do you know if your tub is in between the walls or a part of the walls? Mine, I think, is a standard tub that was installed in 1985 when the house was built; the 'walls' of the tub are on top of it, so I think it's between the walls...

Also, is it better to tile over the plastic shower walls or just remove them, and if I remove them, I believe the wall is no longer there, so do I drywall and then place the tile over the drywall? I mean, as long as the tile is sealed, it should be good right? I'm afraid of mold :)

Lastly, I'm basically gutting and redoing and turning my shower/tub into just a shower..you had mentioned the floor of the shower...I want it to be tiled, not the plastic bottom...so, for the floor, same question as the walls...our floor is cement underneath, so just tile on that? or put a shower floor down (and what kind) and tile over that?
Thanks!
Heidi

Heidi -
Thank you for submitting a question to our Bathroom Remodel How-To page...

You have some really good questions.... We will approach each one separately...

If your bathroom walls are overlapping the edges of the bathtub, then you are right... the tub could have been installed, and then the drywall and shower wall board installed... giving the impression that the bathtub is a part of the walls.

In our opinion, you should remove the plastic wall board before you tile the shower area.... yes, you might be dealing with a complete gut of your bathroom shower area, but if you are going to do it, then you should do it right...

As far as the bottom of your shower.... even if you want the tower floor tiled, you should still place a shower pan on the bottom of the shower. This will seal the shower area from leakages.

Wen you are finished, we would love for you to share some of your ,a href="http://www.diy-bathroom-remodel.com/bathroom-remodel-photos.html">bathroom remodel photos with us.

Good Luck on your Bathroom Remodel!