If your bathroom is cramped, you want to turn your bathtub into a shower, or you simply prefer the look of an open shower space, building a knee wall may be the perfect solution. Knee walls are a simple design that add height to your bathroom walls without getting in the way of any fixtures or making your bathroom feel small. They’re relatively easy to build too—all it takes is some 2x4s, plywood, and elbow grease. Read on for step-by-step instructions for how to create this unique addition in your bathroom:
Identify your plumbing.
It’s important to know your plumbing. To do that, you’ll need to locate all of the water lines leading into and out of the shower and bathtub. Start by finding the water supply lines for both the tub and shower. This can be done by turning off the main water valve (usually located behind a wall) then disassembling all of your faucets (like sinks, toilets, etc.) until you reach a point where there is no more pressure in them—turning on any faucet after this will show you exactly where each line leaves your home.
Once you’ve identified each line’s path outside of your home, find its terminus point under or inside either one of these pieces of equipment. Now that you know where they come together inside their respective fixtures, it should be easy enough to find which direction they go and follow their paths back into other rooms until they meet with another fixture or appliance with signs pointing toward them being connected to either “hot” or “cold.”
Mark the knee wall area.
Using a pencil, mark the area that you would like to use for your knee wall. Make sure it is a square or rectangular shape. This will ensure that your shower door and shower head can fit on top of it. Also make sure it will be wide enough so that you can comfortably stand in front of it while showering. If you have more than one person living in your house then this may also be helpful if they get up early while you are still sleeping because they won’t need as much room inside their own bathroom as well as yours.
Once you’ve marked off an area for your knee wall then take some measurements so that all materials purchased from local hardware stores will fit into place properly without having any gaps between them when installed together onto both sides of where our showerhead should go later down the line after these steps are completed first before moving onto another stage – installing ours”
Cut 2x4s for the knee wall, and fit them into place.
Now that you have the materials, it’s time to cut and fit the 2x4s. Measure out the space between your shower stall walls. Use your level to make sure both ends of each board are level with each other, then plumb each board by using a plumb bob or a spirit level secured at one end of the board. Once all four boards are in place, use a speed square to check for straightness along their length—if you find any crooked spots, remove those pieces and replace them with new ones until all four boards are perfectly aligned vertically and horizontally.
Install plywood backing for the knee wall.
The next step is to install the plywood backing for your knee wall.
Use 1/2″ plywood and a jigsaw to cut out the pieces. Use a hammer to secure the back of each piece of plywood as you go. Use your drill to make pilot holes before using screws or nails to secure the backs of each board in place, and make sure that they’re straight by using a level as you work.
Secure a 2×6 to act as a ledger against the door so that you can nail in the galvanized steel pipe to secure the shower door, then cut pipe and fit it into place.
Nail in the galvanized steel pipe to secure the shower door, then cut pipe and fit it into place.
Using a 2×6 board to act as a ledger against the door so that you can nail in the galvanized steel pipe, secure your curtain rod and hang up your new shower curtain.
Frame out the niche.
The first step in building a knee wall is to frame out the niche. If you’re using 2x4s, measure and cut each 2×4 to fit snugly against the wall at an angle (the angle should be as steep as possible without creating a wedge-shaped niche). Secure these pieces together with galvanized steel pipe or other hardware, such as screws or nails.
If you’re using 2x6s instead of 2x4s, you’ll need to use one piece of lumber as a ledger on which to secure your door later on. The ledger should be sized so that it’s larger than all other boards used in framing out the niche; this ensures that it will not slip out from under itself during installation.
Run 1/2″ CPVC hot and cold water lines from under bathtub.
Run 1/2″ CPVC hot and cold water lines from under bathtub. Use 1/2″ CPVC hot and cold water lines to run the lines through.
Install 1×4 slats on the face of the knee wall with 1 1/2 inch brad nails.
Next, you should install 1×4 slats on the face of the knee wall with 1 1/2 inch brad nails. These will be your actual shower base, so you want to make sure that they’re as sturdy as possible.
- Use a nail gun and drill to secure each board into place. It’s important that this is done with care because if it’s not done right, it could come down later or fall apart in use.* Use a level so that each board is square and flat against one another.* Use a stud finder if necessary; many studs are located 16″ apart from center-to-center but there are some variations depending on what kind of building code was used during construction.* Find an appropriate tool for nailing: hammer (for pre-drilled holes), screwdriver (for predrilled drywall) or handsaw (if no other options available).
You’ll get a shower renovation for thousands of dollars less than if you bought a pre-made shower stall.
If you’re looking for a way to upgrade your shower without taking out a second mortgage, building your own knee wall is the best option. That’s because it’s far cheaper than buying an already-built wall that’s made specifically for showers, which can cost thousands of dollars.
You can build your own shower stall by purchasing materials at the hardware store and using simple tools like a drill, hammer and measuring tape. The process will take only a few hours and won’t require any professional help or complicated instructions. You’ll end up with something that looks great in your bathroom while saving thousands of dollars on installation costs.
Conclusion
Yowza! You made it! And we’d like to congratulate you for making it this far. We know that the steps involved in building a knee wall for your shower are quite extensive, and we hope that by giving you a step-by-step guide with photos, we’ve kept the process as simple and easy to understand as possible. If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to reach out – we’re here to help.
