Wet Room Installation Solutions
A wet room is a totally waterproof bathroom complete with a "walk-in" shower area, usually level with the surrounding floor. Tile Fix Direct offers a choice of waterproof tanking, shower tray bases, shower screens and drains, required for the construction of your dream Wet Room. As a specialist tile and wet room distributor, established for over 50 years, our products, service and design solutions will give you full confidence in the designing and installation of your wet room.
Features & Benefits
| Feature | Benefits |
|---|---|
| Level access to the shower area |
|
| Fully water tight |
|
| Slip resistant floor surface |
|
| No traditional white shower tray required |
|
| Flexible layout and design |
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| Fully tiled or panelled |
|
Preparation & Planning
A competent and experienced DIY person is capable of completing a wet room if careful planning and attention to detail is taken.
Careful planning is essential in any new wet room installation. See the checklist below to ensure your chosen room will be suitable for wet room installation.
Surface areas must be stable (not flexible), wet rooms can be fitted over timber or screeded floors
Locate the water and power points prior to the waterproofing process (once tanking is complete the surface area should not be punctured)
Find out the correct waterproofing technique for your wet room walls and floors; see Waterproofing Systems below
Measure the proposed wet room. It must be a minimum of 800x800mm
Decide the size of the shower area within the bathroom and whether or not you want level entry access
Check there is sufficient fall from the drain to where the water needs to flow, and that there are no steel joists in the way
Research the best underfloor heating system for your chosen wet room plan; see Underfloor Heating below
Check the room has good ventilation
The installation process can take several days to complete so you must account for the room to be out of use during this time
Use the manufacturers detailed instructions and follow them precisely throughout the wet room installation process
Waterproofing Systems
Waterproofing Wet Room Walls
Remember you only need to waterproof those walls that will get wet!
Plasterboard walls or plywood walls are not suitable for tiling in wet areas and should be removed and replaced with Marmox tile backer boards (excluding 6mm). See fixing instructions below.
Plaster walls are not suitable for tiling in wet areas. The plaster should either be removed and Marmox boards installed, or Marmox boards should be mechanically fixed through the plaster surface into the studwork or brick/block surface behind. See fixing instructions below.
Fixing Instructions
Fixing to studwork partition walls - secure 10mm or 12.5mm thick Marmox tile backer boards. Each board should be fixed with fifteen 1.5" SUPA PRO screws and SUPA PRO tile backer board washers. All board edges should be supported. Each board should be butted together with DOW silicone sealant and the joints taped with Marmox self adhesive reinforcing tape roll, topped with a thin coat of PROFIX flexible fast set adhesive. The boards should be fitted closely around any extruding pipe work, shower fittings or gaps and filled with DOW silicone sealant. If the gaps are larger than 1.5mm, use BAL WP1 waterproofing Kit instead. (Marmox tile backer board max tile weight: 62kg/m2)
Fixing to brick or blockwork walls - secure 10mm or 12.5mm thick Marmox tile backer boards using one of the two methods below;
If the walls are flat and true, the boards can be fixed using PROFIX flexible fast set adhesive. After the boards have been fixed in position, drill nine 10mm holes through the board and hammer in the Marmox 60mm spankers.
Fix the boards using the dry lining method. Each board should be fixed with fifteen 1.5" SUPA PRO screws and SUPA PRO tile backer board washers. All board edges should be supported. Each board should be butted together with DOW silicone sealant and the joints taped with Marmox self adhesive waterproofing tape roll, topped with a thin coat of PROFIX flexible fast set adhesive. The boards should be fitted closely around any extruding pipe work, shower fittings or gaps and filled with DOW silicone sealant. If the gaps are larger than 1.5mm, use BAL WP1 waterproofing Kit instead. (Marmox tile backer board max tile weight: 62kg/m2)
Fixing to plaster walls - secure 10mm or 12.5mm thick Marmox tile backer boards using a ready mixed wall tile adhesive, suitable for use on plaster. After the boards have been fixed in position, drill nine 10mm holes through the board and hammer in the Marmox 60mm spankers. Fix the boards using the dry lining method. Each board should be fixed with fifteen 1.5" SUPA PRO screws and SUPA PRO tile backer board washers. Each board should be butted together with DOW silicone sealant and the joints taped with Marmox self adhesive reinforcing tape roll, topped with a thin coat of PROFIX flexible fast set adhesive. The boards should be fitted closely around any extruding pipe work, shower fittings or gaps and filled with DOW silicone sealant. If the gaps are larger than 1.5mm, use BAL WP1 waterproofing Kit instead. (Marmox tile backer board max tile weight: 62kg/m2)
Waterproofing Wet Room Floors
It is likely the floor of the proposed wet room will be either screeded (concrete) or a timber based sub floor; both will need waterproofing. Note: if you have a timber floor you need to ensure that the floor is well fixed and rigid. Screw down loose floorboards, taking into consideration water pipes below.
There are two methods of waterproofing the floor:
GMat (decoupling and waterproofing membrane) - finished floor height will be 17mm above the sub floor (with 9mm of tile).
Marmox tile backer and insulation board - finished floor height will be 23mm (9mm of tile).
It is necessary to consider the finished floor height when planning the a wet room, for example if the door to the proposed wet room enters inwards the base of the door may need to be trimmed, or the door changed to open outwards.
GMat works as a thin (4mm) waterproofing membrane and decoupling system (movement in the floor will not be transferred through the tiles). The GMat matting is fixed to the floor using PROFIX flexible fast set adhesive. An Ardex WPJ waterproofing jointing kit is used to waterproof the joints between the matting and shower tray, and as an 'L' shaped skirting round the perimeter of the wet room, waterproofing the joints between the floor and wall.
Marmox Tile Backer and Insulation Boards are fully waterproof and have the added advantage as acting as an insulation layer under an underfloor heating system, significantly improving the efficiency of heat output. The boards should be fixed to the wet room sub floor with PROFIX flexible fast set adhesive (if fixing to a wooden floor, should also be fixed with fifteen 1" SUPA PRO screws and SUPA PRO tile backer board washers). Marmox boards should be butted together with DOW silicone sealant in all the joints. Marmox self adhesive waterproofing tape roll should then be fixed over the joints between the Marmox boards and the shower tray and between the wall and floor surfaces. Internal and external corners should be waterproofed with Marmox waterproofing corners and fixed with PROFIX flexible fast set adhesive.
Shower Trays
The Marmox showerlay wet room shower tray is cost effective, light and easy to handle, preformed tray. It is formed with a fully waterproof closed cell polystyrene core with a cement scrim to back and front for strength. The wet room shower tray can be lain directly onto the existing wooden or concrete floors, however if the desired shower area is to be level access, the shower tray must be cut into the floor, reinforced and fully supported beneath.
The Marmox showerlay can easily be cut to fit the shower area or to produce an irregular or circular shower base. The showerlay is compatible with Dallmer shower drains, which at 87mm deep are easily accommodated under most floors. It is recommended to encase the drain using polyurethane foam to provide additional support.
The Marmox Showerlay is sufficiently robust to be surfaced with mosaic tiles (min. 50mm) and is ready to receive a tiled finish of the customer's choice.
Drainage
The Dallmer shower drain with removable trap is compatible with the Marmox showerlay. It is available in both a vertical outlet and a horizontal outlet design. The horizontal drain has a slim profile, at just 83mm depth below the shower tray, to maximise space usage and accommodate buildings with a reduced floor depth level. The Dallmer drain has an exceptional discharge rate of 0.5 litres per second. Each drain is supplied with a 137mm stainless steel drain plate and DN50 connector with adaptor.
Underfloor Heating
A wet room would not be complete without an underfloor heating system. The luxury of walking on warm tiles has to be experienced, and it also helps to keep the floor dry. There are several solutions available. Tile Fix Direct offers two electrical underfloor heating matting systems: Magnum enerMat and DeviMat.
Magnum enerMat is a 150W per square metre underfloor heating system with fully waterproofed Teflon cable and protective woven wire braid. Lifetime guarantee included.
DeviMat comes in either 100W per square metre or 150W per square metre, self-adhesive matting system. The 100W DeviMat can be fixed directly to a wooden floor, however the 150W system firstly requires the fitting of Marmox insulation boards when fitting to a wooden floor. Both the DeviMat 100W and 150W ranges can be fixed directly onto concrete, sand or cement screeds. Lifetime guarantee included.
Application of an Underfloor Heating system (easy as A, B, C...)
Fasten the matting to the floor with double sided adhesive tape (not necessary with the Devi self adhesive system)
Over screed the matting with a self-smoothing leveling compound such as the Ardex Arditex NA System or a polymer modified tile adhesive such as Profix flex fast set grey to a minimum height of 3mm above the underfloor heating matting
Fix the tiles as normal
Key Details
Matting systems comes in different sizes, which can be combined to fit all room sizes
The matting should not be fixed under kitchen units, baths, showers or pedestal toilets and sinks
Do not heat the floor until a week after fixing the tiles, and then set to a low heat and take a full week to bring the floor up to operating temperature
