nickhnw
New Member
Greetings,
I am in the middle of a project to replace an old fiberglass shower with a bathtub in a typical alcove installation. The new rough plumbing has been signed off by the building inspector and the tub is in place. As per the instructions from the Kohler bathtub I attached 1/4" furring strips to the studs and then covered the walls with plastic sheeting, overhanging the tub flange. With the furring strips in place the Hardie backer board will overhang the tub flange as it should. I attached 1/2" backer board to the rear wall of the alcove but I am balking at the side walls. This is because the drywall in the rest of the bathroom is 1/2" and if I put 1/2" backer board over the 1/4" furring strips on the side walls it will be 1/4inch higher than the drywall it butts upon against. The bullnose for this tile is flat so I can't hide the gap that way. Using a 1/4" caulk seam to hide it would probably look tacky because it would be along the very visible edge of the bullnose. So, my thought is to use 1/4" backer board on the side walls, which will make the finished height 1/2" to match up with the drywall. The FAQ section of the James Hardie website states that it is fine to use their 1/4" product on a shower wall. I guess what I'm looking for is some confirmation from those with real world experience that this will be ok.
Regards,
Nick
I am in the middle of a project to replace an old fiberglass shower with a bathtub in a typical alcove installation. The new rough plumbing has been signed off by the building inspector and the tub is in place. As per the instructions from the Kohler bathtub I attached 1/4" furring strips to the studs and then covered the walls with plastic sheeting, overhanging the tub flange. With the furring strips in place the Hardie backer board will overhang the tub flange as it should. I attached 1/2" backer board to the rear wall of the alcove but I am balking at the side walls. This is because the drywall in the rest of the bathroom is 1/2" and if I put 1/2" backer board over the 1/4" furring strips on the side walls it will be 1/4inch higher than the drywall it butts upon against. The bullnose for this tile is flat so I can't hide the gap that way. Using a 1/4" caulk seam to hide it would probably look tacky because it would be along the very visible edge of the bullnose. So, my thought is to use 1/4" backer board on the side walls, which will make the finished height 1/2" to match up with the drywall. The FAQ section of the James Hardie website states that it is fine to use their 1/4" product on a shower wall. I guess what I'm looking for is some confirmation from those with real world experience that this will be ok.
Regards,
Nick