How to Install a Walk-in Shower in a Bathroom Cheaply
- 1). Place the shower pan in the showering alcove and slide it up against the wall framing. Insert shims where the shower base is not level -- after checking each side of the pan with a carpenter's level -- and insert shims into all gaps between the wall framing and the shower pan. Screw the shims to the wall frames and floor as needed with wood screws and a screwdriver.
- 2). Mark the location of the drain opening with a pencil on the floor of the shower and cut out the opening with a jig saw if no drain hole is already installed.
- 3). Install the drain in the shower pan drain opening. Put the top of the drain through the hole and screw the bottom lock nut onto the threaded portion of the drain, from below the shower pan. Tighten it with a pair of plumber's pliers. Put the shower pan back into the showering alcove.
- 4). Mount the shower to the wall framing with wood screws and a screwdriver. Cut and install drywall to the wall framing with drywall screws and a screwdriver. The drywall overlaps the water dam, which is the part of the shower screwed to the wall framing, with a small gap of about 1/8 inch between the bottom edge of the drywall and the side ledge of the shower pan below the water dam. Prime and paint the drywall with drywall primer and interior paint, using a roller for faster application. Let it dry for 12 hours or more as indicated on your paint can instructions.
- 5). Dry fit the shower panels to the walls. Cut out an opening for your faucet fixture in the panel that fits on this wall, with a hole saw. Apply beads of construction-grade adhesive to the backside of the shower wall panels. Stick the panels in place on the walls, pull them away quickly and then press them back on the walls firmly to create a bond.