Bathroom-Shower Remodeling  Boca Raton

Many people who live in Boca Raton have come from other places in the country to retire. In Boca Raton there is a large majority of the people in the area that are retired, because of the beautiful weather that we have.

When senior citizens get older sometimes having a bathtub is not the best idea. Senior citizens have to get around the best way they can, but things can happen a slip in the fall the bathtub. The best idea is to have a plan before they are unable to get around so well. A lot of people who are seniors and they want to keep the house that they live in usually decide to make it accessible and easier to do daily functions.

Removing the Bathtub and Installing a Shower

The first thing that comes in mind is removing the bathtub and installing a shower. And the shower you can install a chair to set while taking a shower. Also you can install grab bars to maintain your balance. When the homeowner does the conversion it helps a lot to maintain their independence. A local plumbing contractor would be more than glad to give you an estimate on converting the bathtub to the shower.

The old bathtub needs to be removed and the shower drain must be installed. When removing the old bathtub about 10 inches of tile around the tub needs to be removed. The drain in the bathtub must be unscrewed and removed to remove the tub. If the bathtub is made of cast-iron the tub can be removed breaking with a sledgehammer.

The project of removing the tub and installing a shower is about a two day project with a plumber. The tile contractor usually takes another 2 to 3 days to finish the job. When the job is completed, the senior citizen will be able to not worry so much about falling in the top.

Now let’s get back to finishing the project. After removing the old bathtub the area must be cleaned of all the broken tiles and dirt. A curb needs to be constructed with pressure-treated wood so that rotting does not occur. The shower curb is about 4 inches high.

The neoprene shower pan material will be folded in all four corners and overlapped with the curb. Neoprene is a rubberized pan that goes under the shower tiles to protect the water from penetrating into the wall. Then new wonder board, which is the board that tile is placed on when it is installed. Before installing the pan, the shower drain needs to be installed.

The average shower drain is 2 inch but a bathtub drain is inch and a half. The contractor will have to install 2 inch piping so that a trap for the shower can be installed in the floor usually in the center of the shower. After the shower drain is installed the neoprene pan can be installed. It is very important to keep in mind that the shower and should be tested to make sure there are no leaks.

Bathroom-Shower Remodeling -Testing the Shower Pan

The method of testing the shower pan is with a 2 inch test ball to be inserted in the drain for a period of 24 hours before the tile can be installed. A project of this nature needs to be inspected by the Boca Raton plumbing department of the city. The inspector will require the contractor who is overseeing the project to get a permit from Boca Raton city. This is for the protection of our homeowner.

After the shower can have been installed then we raise the bathtub valve to the height for the shower to be usable. When selecting a shower valve that is simple to repair and durable, a plumbing contractor’s favorite choice of valve would be Moen.

For the senior citizens the Moen pos-temp valve would work much easier than to handles. The movement of the valve is much better because of little restriction. Senior citizens with arthritis in her hands would find this to be much easier to handle.

In the process if homeowner would like the plumbing contractor to install a handheld shower, so that the homeowner sits in a chair in the shower it’s much easier to wash with. When the tile contractor installs the tiles on the wall it is important to tell that you would like to have several grab bars around the shower area to support getting in and out of the shower safely.

Hardenburgh plumbing  561-968-0000.