How to make a podium for a shower cabin with your own hands?

When installing a shower cabin, untrained people have a lot of questions. One of the main ones is whether it is necessary to make a podium for a shower cabin, and if necessary, how to make it right.

In the overwhelming majority of bathrooms, the sewer drain is necessarily located above the floor level, which is why it is difficult to install a shower stall. The problem is that the sewer pipe must necessarily be located at a slope along its entire length, this is required so that the water flows calmly without lingering. It is in cases of improper installation of the sewer pipe that leaks occur at the joints and, what is most unpleasant, constant blockages. First of all, the device must be properly filled.

Just to create the slope of the sewer pipe, a podium is needed, but its height will differ depending on the bathroom, the location of the shower stall and the shower stall itself. Therefore, before proceeding with the creation of the podium, measurements should be taken in order to know exactly its future height and geometry.

When creating a podium, some subtleties should be taken into account, namely:

1. The distance between the surface of the created structure and the drain pipe should not exceed 6 centimeters.
2. We should not forget about the slope of the sewer pipe - its absence is fraught with serious problems.
3. In addition, the height of all structures must be taken into account so that the shower can be installed without problems.

In fact, absolutely any can act as materials for creating a podium, however, one should remember the requirements for the structure, namely: it must be strong, respectively, and the materials must be chosen strong and reliable.

In addition to the materials for the podium themselves, you will need some construction tools: a tape measure, a putty knife, a marker, a knife, and so on. Consumables such as crushed stone, sand, cement, tile glue, tiles, aluminum profile for corners will definitely come in handy.

Often these types of building materials are used to create a podium:

• wood;
• brick;
• concrete.

The main advantage of a podium made of wood is the speed of manufacture and low cost. It will not be difficult to build such a structure from wooden blocks and will not hit your pocket, but you should also remember about the shortcomings of such a structure.

After assembling the podium and installing a shower cabin on it, there is a large gap between the floor and the cabin pan, which needs to be closed with something. For these purposes, you can use plastic panels or tiles, fixing the material with glue or silicone.

Another possibility to make a reliable podium for a shower stall is to use a brick. It is a long-established material, durable and inexpensive, which is impervious to high humidity. It also has a longer lifespan than wood.

The brick is installed on a sand-cement mortar, while the geometry and level should be observed in order to avoid slopes and distortions. It is imperative to let the cement mixture harden, it usually takes 2 days, so you will have to wait a little with the installation of the cabin.

The finishing stage of creation is finishing. The brick podium is faced only with tiles or mosaics, which is precisely the main finishing material in the bathroom.

Concrete construction is the most reliable and durable, therefore it is used most often. Such qualities are achieved due to the monolithic structure, thanks to which it is possible to create a podium of any shape, including steps to it. Of the minuses, it is worth noting the relative complexity of creation and the time that will have to be spent, as well as the high cost compared to the previous options.

Before creating a concrete structure, place a shower tray on the site of the future podium and mark the area or, if this is not possible, transfer the dimensions of the pallet to the floor using a tape measure and a marker. After that, the formwork should be made, usually it is made from boards and bars, there are no special requirements for it, since it will not experience a heavy load. However, crevices and cracks should be avoided, and the area under the formwork must be thoroughly cleaned of dust and dirt for good adhesion. A reinforcing frame made of reinforcement must be installed in the formwork, and also take into account the necessary technological holes, if required.

After all the manipulations, the solution is poured into the prepared form. After pouring, the surface should be leveled to facilitate future tiling or pallet installation.

To gain strength, the podium should be left for a week, although the formwork can be removed already for 2 - 3 days. Over time, the podium is covered with waterproofing, a sewer system is installed, then the finished pedestal is tiled.

We can say that making a podium with your own hands will certainly save money, and also help to avoid risks when creating a structure, however, you should remember and take into account some notes:

• You need to take a responsible attitude to the strength of your structure. You can often observe how many owners of shower cabins and even bathtubs simply put these plumbing products on bricks or sets of wooden blocks. This is usually thought of as a temporary measure, but it is often delayed indefinitely. There is no need to talk about the reliability of such a design.

• Tcarefully check the quality of the joint of the drain hole with the sewer pipe, siphon for leaks, check the slope of the pipe. It is much better to do the check procedure several times at once than to disassemble everything back after all the finishing work and fix the problem.
• If tiles are used as finishing, and the shower stall implies the presence of an open outer corner, then you should not file the tiles at an angle of 45 degrees. It is much more correct in this situation to use a decorative aluminum corner or profile that is specially created for such purposes. It looks quite aesthetically pleasing, while preventing chipping, and will also be much more tactilely pleasant than a tiled joint.

In the next video, you will clearly see how to make a do-it-yourself brick shower tray.