Waterproofing and bath installation

I am at the stage of my bathroom reno where the plumbing has been done and am ready to waterproof. After talking with various different tradesmen I am thoroughly at a loss as to whether I should install the bath, then waterproof OR waterproof prior to installing the bath.

The plumber tells me one thing, builder tells me the opposite (the tiler says it doesn't matter - either before or after!!) So what is the general consensus? At what stage should the waterproofing takes place?

I was intending to have a timber frame for the bath. What is the best type of timber to use for the frame?

Lastly, the bath is to be fixed in one corner of the room, recessed into the wall as per normal practice. Is it necessary to line the section of the wall below the lip of the bath. I realise that this area will not be visible once the bath is enclosed, but from a waterproofing point of view, is it ok to leave the wall cavity exposed in this area?

[EDIT] Just thought of another question: Is it recommended to install flashing in the internal corners (both floor and walls) before nailing on the villaboard sheets?

If it was my house i would water proof before because if the joint selant between the tiles and the bath fails in the futre the water can go down behind the bath. I would also waterproof the whole bathroom floor and all the areas where there is water ie, shower floor to ceiling, bath, behind basin.

James Hardie has a great tech phone service give them a call in regard to flashings for villa board.

As Gazza said, if it were my house, I'd villaboard to the floor and waterproof the lot (floor and walls to about 300mm, plus walls arround the bath to about 1m above the bath, the shower recess to full height, behind the basin, the tap recesses, etc) BEFORE the bath went in. I'd also make sure that there was a bond breaker placed in all the corners under the waterproofing membrane. The WP membrane would normally act as flashing in the corners.
Rather than a timber frame, I'd mount the bath on a stub wall made from Hebel blocks (placed after the waterproofing). I'd also provide a vent into the space under the bath.

Ian

I am working at the moment on a commercial building project.

there are around 10 showers in the staff change rooms ( sorry no baths) and they have water proofed before the scread for the tiles have gone in.
I would have thought that the WP would have been done on top of the screed as my mate the tiler usally does, had a conversation with site forman re this and he told me it makes no difference if you WP before or after the screed is layed. but i note they put in puddle flanges before the WP and siliconed around the PF and WP over the top of it.

my mate the tiler (domestic jobs) WP's around the shower the sides of the bath and the floor but pays extra attention to all corners and makes sure there are no sharp edges in the corners or at wall/floor junctions before he puts in the WP membrane.
he fills any holes at these junctions with silicone so there isnt anything to make a hole in the WP membrane. he also builds all bath surrounds in hebel block on a dry bed of mortar around the bath that has already been fitted.

Hope that makes sense

Cheers Ian :)

I am very new to DIY and I am just wondering how does waterproofing prevents water from seeping into my neighbour below ( I stay in a 12 storey apartment).

Initially I thought that to prevent water from seeping down, the contractor need to seal all cracks/holes/gaps, with cement. But now I realise that its more than that.

Waterproofing in multi storey resdental is a pain in the butt. You have to seal all wet areas with a waterproofing system which forms like a swiming pool. It is very common that it is not done correctly or it the membrane gets damaged in costruction.

when my bathroom reno was done the bath was chased into a slot onto the wall. The ouside was supported on a frame made from hebel. The room was then sheeted with the sheets overhanging the section of the tub that was chased into the wall then all corners where waterproofed.

Thanks for the feedback guys.

Well, unfortunately, I had the plumber and the carpenter at my house doing some work last week and between them they decided to install the bath without actually asking me first. I came home to find the bath sitting on a mortar bed and a nice timber frame supporting the bath with villaboard nailed to it. Was not happy. Rather than pull it all back out, I am going to take a chance and waterproof the bathroom with the bath in place. After speaking to two waterproofers, they assure me that it is not a drama.



Here are two pictures of the bath now installed.



http://home.exetel.com.au/hybrids/bath%202.jpg



http://home.exetel.com.au/hybrids/bath%201.jpg



I know this should have been done from the start but, I was thinking that I would like to create a ledge around the bath perimiter, mainly so the shower screen had somewhere to mount at the rear of the bath. The idea being that the shower screen would end up being mounted similar to the picture below.

Could I just use some hebel blocks to form a 100mm perimeter around the bath? Can you tile straight onto hebel?

http://home.exetel.com.au/hybrids/CUT%20SCREEN.jpg

[QUOTE=Hybrid]I was thinking that I would like to create a ledge around the bath perimiter, mainly so the shower screen had somewhere to mount at the rear of the bath. The idea being that the shower screen would end up being mounted similar to the picture below.

Could I just use some hebel blocks to form a 100mm perimeter around the bath? Can you tile straight onto hebel? [QUOTE]
the tiler who did my bath room tilled dierctly onto the Hebel blocks.
the other alternative is to tile what you have and have the shower screen extend all the way to the floor. Then silicone the gap between the bath and the screen.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ian

The tiler who did my bath room tilled dierctly onto the Hebel blocks.
The other alternative is to tile what you have and have the shower screen extend all the way to the floor. Then silicone the gap between the bath and the screen.

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I think I understand what you mean when you say "tile what you have and have the shower screen extend to the floor".

I don't know what you mean when you say "silicone the gap between the bath and the screen".

If I was to tile the bath as it is, and install a screen which goes all the way to the floor, then there would be nothing to silicone as the shower screen would not be touching the side of the bath.

Have I misunderstood????

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hybrid

I don't know what you mean when you say "silicone the gap between the bath and the screen".
If I was to tile the bath as it is, and install a screen which goes all the way to the floor, then there would be nothing to silicone as the shower screen would not be touching the side of the bath.

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I'm thinking that the shower screen will be hard against the tiles at the end of the bath (or the bath itself) the silicone is to stop water getting into the gap.

ian