Tub Surround and Shower

• When redoing your bathroom, the area inside the tub, if a shower is present, requires surfacing with a material to protect the walls. Some people purchase the tub surround and shower as one unit, available from any home improvement store, to protect the walls. These units are measured and custom configured for the space. While this unit can be installed by anyone with experience, the novice should not attempt this project without professional help.
  
  

Solitary Shower Units

• Install a solitary standalone shower unit if you don’t want to surface the area inside the shower with ceramic tile or a solid waterproof surface. Like the tub surround and shower unit, these standalone showers install in one piece and protect the walls. It’s a matter of cutting the holes to accept the plumbing and lining up the drain with the floor drain and securing the unit to the wall. Most of these showers come with their own shower pan as well.
  
  

Laying Tile

• Lay tile around the shower area to protect the shower walls and build according to code, but don’t forget to add the cement board on the wall first. Remove any sheetrock so the area is down to wall studs. Secure the cement board to the studs with screws. Seal the cracks with the appropriate mastic and allow it to dry. Apply thinset mortar to the walls and add the tiles with spacers set between them. Start at the bottom and work up, though the thinset should hold the tiles in place on the wall. Wait 16 to 24 hours before grouting for the thinset mortar to dry. After the grout is dry, again another 24 hours, add a grout sealer to keep water from seeping into the grout.
  
  

Sheetrock and Paint

• Sheetrock and paint can go on the walls in the rest of the bathroom, just not around the tub or shower area. Applying sheetrock to the shower will cause the sheetrock to fail completely and disintegrate in about a week or two, even with a painted surface. When painting sheetrock walls elsewhere in the bathroom, use a semigloss or enamel paint to help shed water on the walls. But under no circumstances should you apply sheetrock to the interior of a shower.