Unless are buying a self-contained shower cubicle, such as our leak-free models, you will need to pay attention the walls of your shower. They need to be waterproof to avoid problems caused by water damage. It sounds obvious but not everyone realises this. We have seen many instances of customers showering with cubicle walls covered with painted plaster or even wallpaper. These wall coverings are splash proof at best. They will fail if exposed to continuous use in a shower and this proved to be the case.
Tiles For Cubicle Walls
The most common method of lining the walls of a shower cubicle has been to tile the area using ceramic bathroom tiles. You would think that this would be the ideal solution but there are several problems with tiles. These are caused by the grout used to fill the gap between each tile.
When grout is applied it is spread over the surface of the tiles and forced into the gaps. A grout spreader is used to apply it which has a flexible blade. It s then smoothed over and sponged to remove excess. Unless care is taken, this process can lead to small gaps and pin-holes in the grout. Obviously if these holes penetrate the full depth of the joint water can get behind the tile and start to cause problems. But even shallow holes can lead to retained moisture which will lead to mould growth. Mosaic tiles are especially prone as there is a lot of grout compared to the total tile surface area.
The problems with grout are well know. It has led to large numbers of customers looking around to see if there is anything better on the market. And there is.