According to the American Institute of Architects there is a growing trend in many homes to go the way of the tub to shower conversion ideas. Converting bathtub into shower seems to be the popular choice for 60% of homeowners surveyed in 2013 by Home Design Trends Survey; a significant rise from the 49% preference for converting bathtub to shower in 2012. Based on the national average, the cost to replace bathtub to a walk in shower is about $2,782 and will take around 26 man hours if done professionally. For a DIY project, it will cost $975 to replace tub with shower in about 40 hours. Let us dig into some details.
Scope of Work
The entire process of how to convert tub to walk in shower basically begins with cutting off the water supply and removing all the affected parts of the tub area including the walls. There may also be a need to reposition the drain including other parts of the plumbing depending on the design of the shower panel that you will install.
Tub to shower conversions will require the installation of the flooring once the drain and the plumbing has been completely finished. The drain hole will be cut before the installation of the cement boards from the floor to the ceiling. Make sure to accurately measure the cement boards and make provisions for the water outlets.
There are tub to shower conversion kits that can be used that include the drain, floor, and the curb and membrane. Once the tub to shower conversion kit is in place you can begin to tile and grout the entire shower area and install any additional features you want. The process of turning a bathtub into a shower ends with the installation of the shower doors and testing of the new shower.
All About the Size
The effort to replace the bathtub with walk in shower relies heavily on approved building codes in your area. In general, the floor should not be smaller than 900 square inches and 1,296 inches wide. This means that many bathtub bays would need modification. So part of the effort to replace the tub with walk in shower can include the addition of short wall sections.
To convert bathtub to shower the finished height of the ceiling should be no less than 80 inches. The distance of the shower wall from the side of the toilet should also be taken into consideration. From the center of the toilet to the wall the distance should be at least 18 inches. The distance from the front of the bowl to the shower wall should be around 30 inches.
In replacing a tub with a shower you should also provide ample clearance for the swing of the shower door. Any obstructions within the path of the shower door must be cleared. In case you have problems with clearance when you replace tub with shower enclosure, then you can try shower curtains or sliding glass doors instead.
Costing Details
The cost of converting tub to walk in shower will depend mainly on the supplies that you would need. On the average, if you will use glass shower doors you would have to pay about $600; be sure that you have the right size. The tile and grout for the floor and walls when replacing tub with walk in shower is around $700.
Convert tub to shower kit that includes the curb and membrane, drain, and floor will be about $475. Those with fiberglass or acrylic sidings with hinged doors are in the neighborhood of $200 up to $2,000 depending on the size. The cost to replace tub with walk-in shower that has a one-piece curbless enclosure is around $2,000 to $4,000.
If you feel that the cost to replace tub with walk in shower is already at the peak of your budget, you can make it a DIY project. If you hire a professional in replacing tub with walk in shower would set you back about $1,500 to $4,500 depending on how complex the work will be. You also need to add in the fee of the plumber, which is about $2,782, to the cost to replace bathtub with shower.
These are the cost details that should go into your computation on how to convert tub to walk in shower. For more information and professional service for converting rub with walk in shower you can contact plumbingirvine.biz.