shower walls with no grout

last year

We are going to be remodeling our 40 yr old master bathroom.
Getting rid of the one piece plastic shower/tub. Going with a large separate shower stall with a seat. What arevthe best shower walls to use?
Getting up in age & need easy to clean.

Featured Answer

dani_m08

last year

last modified: last year

^ Oh - that's not true!!!! There are many options since you had your one piece surround installed 40 years ago! There have been improvements in design and function. There is a range of prices - depending upon how much you want to spend.

I own part of a development company that does some LIHTC properties (apartments and duplexes). LIHTC = low income housing tax credit program. We've done quite a few developments that are 55+ age requirement.

Our properties are nice - LIHTC is much different than Section 8 housing. A certain percentage of units are rented at a reduced rate (it varies on each project). There are also many units that are rented at market rate. After 15 years, the requirement for the reduced rate units is no longer applicable - so, they can all be leased at market rate if we want - or we can do improvements and keep some of them at reduced rent.

The properties have to be nice in order to compete against other non-LIHTC developments (none of our projects are located in low income areas of town) - or we wouldn't be able to lease the market rate units (which the majority of units are). We've looked at all different ways to construct the bathrooms - so, I know some info re: this area.

Nancy in Mich (an active user on Houzz/GardenWeb) has a shower with solid walls in her bathroom - and it's not one of those cheap all white or beige surrounds - and it's not cultured marble or solid stone slabs. I'll see if I can find her.

EDIT - Here is Nancy's bathroom remodel reveal link:

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5437746/bathroom-reveal-ada-shower-with-custom-vanity-in-small-bathroom

She needed an ADA bathroom. She may have bought her shower base from another manufacturer - she needed a zero entry for her husband I believe. She also has a nice ADA vanity (she has more photos posted of the bathroom in the link I added above).

The product she used is called "Transolid." She has made many posts over the past 5-6 years (or however long it's been installed) about her bathroom - and she loves it!

Nancy's shower:

Here is a Transolid one listed on Amazon - they have quite a few different varieties of surrounds (plus, are sold from several retailers - HD/Lowes/Build.com/etc.):

I like this one because it has a nice long horizontal niche (which has become popular over the last few years):

Here is another brand - has good reviews - Ove Decor (the walls are made to look like tile) - the photo is from a customer review:

It's also available through Amazon - I assume that it's offered by other retailers also).

This next one is less expensive than the one Nancy installed - has quite a few good reviews - NexTile on HD:

It also has a long horizontal niche - here is a customer's close up photo of the niche:

this is another style where you can add your own back to the niche:

American Standard makes a surround also:

This is just a quick look - I don't know what your budget is - I could provide you with more recs if I had a $$ range.

Corian does showers - there have been MANY people who have posted about how much they LOVE their Corian showers! Corian surrounds are not cheap - there are other manufacturers who offer the same solid surface material as Corian - they might be less expensive.

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Comments (10)

PRO
Minardi
last year
last modified: last year
If you don't want grout, then you will have caulk at the corners. And your choices are cheap plastic like you have, expensive plastic like Corian, expensive cultured marble like Onyx, or really expensive actual slab stone.
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Jean
Original Author
last year
Thank you Dani_m08.
That’s what I’m looking for!
Will research the product & discuss with our contractor.
just_janni
last year
And I hesitate to post things here because there are so many naysayers, but..... we've experimented with a custom printed vinyl wrap on a substrate over kerdi board. If I get tired of the pattern, I'll be able to change it. If it's a giant epic failure, I'll go to large format tile / sintered material in one of the new colorful options. We'll see how this holds up once we move in, but at least it's not boring. ;-)
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PRO
Minardi
last year
Sorry, but Nancy has Onyx, which is just cultured marble with a marketing department. And all the rest you listed fall into the category of cheap plastic, with an not so cheap price. That's what "resin" is. It's plastic.
Jean
Original Author
last year
So what is your number one pick for shower walls? I don’t want plastic.
PRO
McDonald Enterprises
last year
If you don't want plastic, that leaves natural stone slabs only. "Quartz" is just plastic with some sand in it. All of everything has a plastic component. Like Corian. Or is pure plastic. Like acrylic panels.
Jean
Original Author
last year
Is Soapstone a good option for shower walls? I’m told it is all natural, not plastic. True or false?
PRO
Joseph Corlett, LLC
last year
Corian and other solid surfaces remain the premium groutless shower walls. Price, performance, repairability, maintainence; they can't be beat.
PRO
Monique
last year
Nothing wrong with good quality plastic. Soapstone? If you want to be in a dark expensive cave, with a lot of plastic epoxy seams between the multiple slabs needed, sure. And plastic silicone at the corners.

You are not getting a modern bathroom without some form of plastic being in it. Not unless you know a tiler who does old fashioned mud work, like your basic 50’s bath. And then you will have grout, with some form of plastic additive to it.