I'm starting a bathroom remodel and I want to raise my shower floor to be level with the main bathroom floor, creating a 'curbless' shower. This is to ensure wheelchair accessibility in the future. I've read that I can just pour concrete to achieve the desired height, but I have some questions. Firstly, what type of concrete should I use? And do I need to put in any rebar supports if the concrete will be thicker? My current shower floor is part of the concrete slab of my house, and since we're in Florida, I'm working directly on a concrete slab foundation with no basement or wooden sub-floor. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks!
4 Answers
Doing a recessed shower pan seems a bit unusual, but it’s doable! Just keep in mind that you need to think about waterproofing, drainage slope, and how to extend plumbing. Typically, people use 'deck mud' which is simple cement and mortar, and you don’t need to worry about rebar or heavy aggregates. You could also look into pre-formed shower pans like the ones from Kerdi that are already sloped.
To get your shower to the right level, you'll need to jackhammer the existing slab down to the dirt. After that, you can pour more concrete to build out the floor for your tile and drain. It’s a bit of a detailed process, so just make sure you know about the angles for drainage!
I’m not sure about your exact questions, but you might want to consider how to keep the water in the shower area. Changing to a wet room style can get tricky without a central drain. A tiny bump of about 1 cm could help prevent water from spilling into the bathroom. Just a thought!
Using a pre-sloped pan can help contain the water, plus don’t forget to waterproof the whole floor! It definitely makes a difference.
That’s a good point! For my large shower, I plan to have a glass door with a sweep at the bottom to keep the water contained.
If you have a half-inch drop currently, you might want to look into pre-sloped shower pans. They’re designed to make sure water flows properly and can work really well for a curbless setup!
Thanks for clarifying! Since your whole house is on a slab, that 3-inch dip can definitely be filled in with concrete up to the right level for your new pan. Just make sure you tie it in with the existing slab using some epoxied rebar and maybe a bit of wire mesh to prevent cracking.