How To Build A Shower Pan With Concrete

A shower base is the shallow area of the bathtub built up with mortar and concrete. It sits directly underneath the bathtub and provides a convenient installation space for plumbing supplies, pipes and even your external drainage line.

Building your own shower pan is an inexpensive way to save both time and money compared to having a contractor install it for you. Most DIYers can complete this project in just one day—starting from scratch and ending with a waterproof, strong and durable shower base.

A shower pan is a waterproofing material that is placed under the waterproof membrane to prevent water from seeping through and causing leaks. When installed properly and with attention to detail, shower pans can be a cost-effective way to add value to your home.

This bathroom remodeling project is a part of our DIY house flip series. To see all of the projects in this series, click HERE.

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The shower pan is probably one of the most important components in a bathroom remodel. A properly built concrete shower pan in your bathroom will prevent costly water damage to your house by channeling the water down to the drain and into the sewer system.

The shower pan is probably one of the most important components in a bathroom remodel. A properly built concrete shower pan in your bathroom will prevent costly water damage to your house by channeling the water down to the drain and into the sewer system. It is important to build a solid foundation for your new shower pan because it will prevent any leaks from occurring during construction. If you do not build this foundation properly, it could lead to mold growth, mildew odor and expensive repairs for you later on down the road!

This section will cover how to build a strong foundation for your new bathroom or kitchen tile job using pre-cast concrete slabs as well as poured concrete forms using rebar reinforcement materials (rebar).

Today I want to share with you how we built a concrete shower pan for our DIY bathroom remodel.

Although you can easily build your shower pan with a concrete form, it’s a little more difficult to get the job done well. If you’re building an accessible shower pan or one with multiple sloping walls, the process gets even trickier. But if you follow these steps and make sure to use quality materials, your finished concrete shower pan will be solid and waterproof—and it’ll look great.

How to Build a Shower Pan With Concrete

To build a concrete shower pan, you need to start by measuring the area where you want your concrete shower to be. Use a tape measure or chalk line and make sure that the measurements are exact.

Next, frame out the area with cement backer board. Place cement backer board on the floor and sides all the way up to where you want your tile wall to be. It is best to do this before placing any concrete down as it will make leveling easier later on in this process if done correctly at this stage of building your shower pan with concrete mix.

1) Measure the area where you want your concrete shower pan, frame it out and place cement backer board on the floor and sides all the way up to where you want your tile wall to be. You can also leave space between the bottom of your cement backer board and where your tile meets the floor if you don’t have enough height for your tile and would like to use a piece of bullnose tile as a transition. I explain this more in detail below under step 2).

Measure the area where you want your concrete shower pan, frame it out and place cement backer board on the floor and sides all the way up to where you want your tile wall to be. You can also leave space between the bottom of your cement backer board and where your tile meets the floor if you don’t have enough height for your tile and would like to use a piece of bullnose tile as a transition. I explain this more in detail below under step 2).

To measure for framing, I always start by measuring from corner-to-corner across my entire area. Then use a level tool (or just lay down some heavy objects so they don’t move around while you’re working) to make sure that each corner is level with their corresponding adjacent walls or floors (this will help prevent any cracks or uneven edges between those different materials). After making sure everything is level, use a straightedge tool (a carpenter’s square works great!) along with your tape measure to mark off the length and widths of each side at every point where they intersect with another surface like concrete or drywall; this will give us our boundary lines for framing out with boards later on in our project.

2) After framing out your area and placing cement backer board on your floor and walls, use mesh tape and thinset mortar to apply a layer over all seams where cement backer board meets cement backer board and where it meets drywall (or any unfinished surface). This will provide an additional layer of water protection before you build the actual concrete shower base.

If you’re using a ready-made shower pan, place it in your space and use a level to make sure it’s even across its surface.
After framing out your area and placing cement backer board on your floor and walls, use mesh tape and thinset mortar to apply a layer over all seams where cement backer board meets cement backer board and where it meets drywall (or any unfinished surface). This will provide an additional layer of water protection before you build the actual concrete shower base.
Lay out the tiles and grout them together, making sure that they’re straight by measuring off both ends with a tape measurer or other long object while tapping along each side with a hammer if needed until they’re flush with one another (if there’s space between them when drywall isn’t present yet).