New guy, first shower build, FloFX, overcoming challenges.
STATUS: Finalizing curb plan.
NOTE: New posts on top now to avoid scrolling down.
7/19
Okay, the plan is to:
Ensure walls are plumb and corners square
Cut all materials to size and fit them
Mix All-Set thin set morter
Affix HB board to underlayment with All Set and screws
Affix curb to HB board underneath using All Set
Affix HB board to top of curb with All Set
Lay pre-cut Kerdi membrane on top of entire curb ensuring membrane is mortered over entire curb all the way to underlayment on both sides of the curb using All Set; ensure all air bubbles are pressed out using spackling knife and Kerdi band to cover seams in membrane.
Let dry overnight
SO plumbing walls and having some success, butdidnt anticipate HB board hitting the HB board I put under the curb:
...Resulting in:
So i need to cut the HB board under the curb
7/18
Heh, looked down at the date and realized I had lost a whole month! :D
Okay, here is the update:
This pic shows the leveling crete under the vinyl on the left. It made sense to me to put a piece of Bardiebacker board under my Schluter curb to raise the curb and reduce the gap between the vinyl and the curb.
Additionally, i have cut Hardiebacker board to lay on top of the curb:
This will be covered by Kerdi membrane and then topped with the manmade stone threshold
HISTORICAL POSTS:
7/16
After bad cuts by the rented table saw on Schlueter curbs, i went and bought a very inexpensive table saw to recut (straighten) my damaged curbs. They are now only 2 9/16" tall:
With the dry pack being 1 3/4" thick at the ouside edge, the curb would be very low (under an inch after tiling). My solution is to add hardiebacker board below and above the curb material:
COMMENTS AND ADVICE WELCOME!
New guy here. First time floating a shower pan. Bought FloFX flange and now have minor technical problems: hole in floor is 4" diameter. The waste pipe is 3/4 inch below plane of the floor, has slight angle (not perpendicular). Underlayment is hardiebacker board over 3/4" plywood and has been mortered to plywood. Considering buying 3-part Oatey flange installing lower part and using FloFX adaptor to gain support strength, adjust for waste pipe cantor, and compensate for waste pipe height.
Alternatively, I can use my dremel tool to cut the waste pipe down and add a coupler and a bit more pipe. Once installed, i can cut to the level of the floor for direct flange connection:
So, I decided to go forward with extending the pipe, but i didnt like the flange out of alignment with the hole beneath, so after looking at the adapter flange that came with the FloFX (awesome) kit, i determined it could be used as support for the flange by simply passing the waste pipe through the adapter into the flange above:
The adapter will be pulled slightly to counter a slight bit of cantor in the waste pipe and i will drill a couple of holes in it to afix it to the hardiebacker board/plywood below:
Note, the drawing I did doesnt show the thin set and waterproofing material between the deck mud (orange) and the Hydroban (green).
The pipe (purple) goes through the adapter into the flange to the stop. The closeup of the drawing shows this, but it is not completely accurate with respect to the depth of the stop from the plane of the top of the flange:
I found that a dremel tool with either a steady hand or a piece of wood taped to the side can quickly and neatly cut the pipe from the inside of the pipe:
Once I cut down far enough, I glued in a coupler and extended the PVC waste pipe:
I then placed the adapter over the pipe and positioned the flange:
The addition of the adapter in the normal position brings the flange height to 7/8"
Next step is to cut the waste pipe flush with the top of the adapter and fit the flange:
Next, i will be putting down tar paper over the HardieBacker board to reduce water absorbtion out of the deck mud into the HB board. Alternatively, I could sponge down the HB with water to saturate the HB but, with the risk of leaking water, and the living room below, I dont want to use the sponge method
Note, i figured it would be wise to ensure the tar paper was pressed all the way into the corners:
Next i have to put in the shower curb. I have these two Schlueter foam curbs, but i dont know how they should be joined together since my shower is longer across the opening.
So, im considering either using the Schlueter curb or stacked 2x4s etc. Once installed, i have Kerdi Band, Kerdi fix, and Hydro Ban to seal the curb with the deck. Any suggestions?
Here are some concept drawings for my approach:
Perhaps the Kerdi board isnt needed underneath of the curb, but i was thinking about the bond between the HB board and the Schlueter curb. How else should ot be constructed? The curb has to be 48" in length. One hole will be drilled in it for the glass door. A video of the installation can be seen here: https://youtu.be/7Udslr_4rNw
I am considering constructing a curb with 2x4s clad with Kerdi board instead, since it will need to support a screw for the door. The screw will anchor the glass panel that is stationary.
7/14
Picked up the supplies including All Set and Laticrete thin set:
Rented a table saw to make a clean cut on my Schlueter curb, but brand new Dewalt table saw was not set up correctly and gate moved during cut, which resulted in angled cut. Returned to HD and demonstrated to manager; I received a refund and half off new curb. Bought threshold material and here is the new plan:
Note the addition of a piece of Hardiebacker board under my curb; this provides needed height and will be screwed/cemented to the floor before the curb is put in place (Comments or cautions welcome)
Closeup:
Note: there will not be a gap between the vinyl flooring and the tile on the curb. (1/2 inch measurement to lower left of curb is height of Hardiebacker board)
Suffered setback trying to cut curb on a rental saw. Blade tilted during cut.
Wrecked two curbs since i didnt notice until second curb was already cut on one side. Here is the second curb:
The plan will be to use my circular saw to even ot the cut if I can. I have 1/4 inch to play with for minimum 2" drop at step-in location.
