Shower Fit Out

[Chotu]

I’m doing a lot of things in parallel right now because materials are coming in slowly due to Covid and whatever else.

One of the projects I am working on at the same time as the others is the shower.

Here is what it looks like. There is nothing in there yet. You can see the shower pan at the bottom of the picture. That is glassed to the hull all around. That is complete.

Everything you see here is made from epoxy.

The brown at the top was an attempt to get things smoothed out before building the boat. It is epoxy and microballoons. The yellow is cured epoxy with peel ply pulled off. Ready for bonding. The bulkhead is marine ply. Coated in 5 layers of epoxy.

The end result should be a white shower like you’d see on a production boat. Notice that the upper portion of the bulkhead ends. To the left in the picture. In this area, I would like to put a opening door to use the area behind it as storage.

My plan for the door area was to use formica. I could even use that for the entire bulkhead.

If I do that, how do I tie in the formica with the painted hull at the point where the bulkhead ends and the hull begins? In that large radius cove joint?

I don’t see a way to do this without it looking ugly.

Trying for a very seamless look. Without trim and stuff like that.

Any ideas on how to best do this? Keep in mind I cannot use epoxy.

Thanks!

[CassidyNZ]

I would consider using a typical plastic shower liner as found in an ordinary domestic shower. Clearly it can’t be one-piece due the curve of the back wall but one piece glued to the back wall using a decent construction adhesive and following the curved contour, followed by a flat panel on the left bulkhead.

Sure there would be a joint in the corner and getting the exact shape on the flat panel would need a pattern to be accurate but a carefully applied heavy bead of white silicone would fill and waterproof the corner leaving an easily-cleaned (and strong) joint.

One would need to work smart with the adhesive because the shower liners I have installed in homes are thin and very flexible so the liner will accurately follow the shape of the wall behind and that’s not necessarily a good thing.

How high you go up the walls is a personal choice. Are you planning on closing the circular cut-outs before lining?

[Chotu]

Is there may be some kind of plastic sheet material, not like vinyl where it will show bumps, but a more stiff plastic material that will take the bend and go from floor, around the whole deck radius, and become the ceiling and floor panel all in one piece?

I am thinking I can use silicone to make a transition between the sheet and the floor of the shower pan. And for any transitions to make it look nicer.

The corners, the cove joints, are another matter. There are inches of space between the panels on either side of a cove joint. What can I do with that spot in there?

I am open to expensive solutions here,, because I have to hire someone to sand anyway in there if that is what I have to do. If I can find another way to do this without sanding that epoxy, by putting something over the top of it, that would be preferable. But it really should look nice and have minimal seams.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by CassidyNZ

I would consider using a typical plastic shower liner as found in an ordinary domestic shower. Clearly it can’t be one-piece due the curve of the back wall but one piece glued to the back wall using a decent construction adhesive and following the curved contour, followed by a flat panel on the left bulkhead.

Sure there would be a joint in the corner and getting the exact shape on the flat panel would need a pattern to be accurate but a carefully applied heavy bead of white silicone would fill and waterproof the corner leaving an easily-cleaned (and strong) joint.

One would need to work smart with the adhesive because the shower liners I have installed in homes are thin and very flexible so the liner will accurately follow the shape of the wall behind and that’s not necessarily a good thing.

How high you go up the walls is a personal choice. Are you planning on closing the circular cut-outs before lining?

Wow. We are thinking alike. I was on the same sort of solution in my head too. The circular weight reducing holes in the bulkhead can be filled in with foam if necessary.

I’d love to go all the way up. And use the same thing for the ceiling. That would reduce tremendous amounts of expense with hiring someone to sand that. It would avoid the sanding and painting.

[CassidyNZ]

The domestic plastic liners are pretty light-weight so would fit with your weight-saving ethos. If the flat inner panel is installed first, filling the round cut-outs with foam after would be quite simple.

I would finish the liner at the joint of the floor pan an then paint the floor (depending on its present finish) with a high-gloss two-part urethane paint.

[Rob_P]

The curve of the hull makes that corner nearly impossible to go around seamlessly.

I say nearly impossible because you can fit it if you know one of those bath-fitter remodelers. They use a big vacuum bag and heat to bend vinyl into a 1-piece surround that fits over bathtubs and walls. If you were to do that, you could have what you want. Otherwise, you're going to be stuck with a seam somewhere if you use a panel-the-walls approach.

Your other choice is to go to the home store and buy a prefab shower surround and use that with dead space between it and the hull.

If you don't want / can't do that, I'd tell you to buy some Schluter-Kerdi waterproof membrane, stick it on the wall like the instructions say how to do it, and then use a lightweight tile for the surface and grout to fill in between the tiles. You can get siliconized grout in tubes at Home Depot. Basically I'd do the shower just like at home only using the lightest materials I could get.

Here's a You Tube animated video on how it goes together. The corner strip thingies are finishers and you don't have to use them but it does make the end result nicer because there aren't any exposed cut tile edges.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Po0s0fHoUFk

I used this product underneath standard porcelain tiles to remod my master bath. It's good stuff and if you do it like the instructions say to, the shower won't leak even if you fill the shower pan/ floor full of water.

[Chotu]

I do have a complete vacuum bag kit actually if that’s helpful.

[Chotu]

I still have to take a trip to a Covid store to touch some vinyl shower panels but I have formica sheets.

What about vacuum bagging those to the hull and doing trim work to blend them together at the fillets/cove joints?

If yes, what adhesive would be good for the shower? I’d silicone all cracks to keep moisture out from behind the Formica.

Contact cement would work, but it’s fast. May not be able to get the bag in in time.

Same with construction adhesive.

I have polyester and vinylester, but both seem like a slippery, gooey mess to try to do this with.

[coopec43]

I used a product called "Wet Area Paneling" PVC strips are used to "join" sheets and on the corners. And I made up a fg molding over the toilet to make it easy to clean up after using the shower.

[Sos]

Have a look at PVC hygienic wall cladding sheets. I have used these. They are are quite flexible. I have used 1.5mm thick, to keep the weight down.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by coopec43

I used a product called "Wet Area Paneling" PVC strips are used to "join" sheets and on the corners. And I made up a fg molding over the toilet to make it easy to clean up after using the shower.

Is this a composter head you made yourself??? It’s beautiful!

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by Sos

Have a look at PVC hygienic wall cladding sheets. I have used these. They are are quite flexible. I have used 1.5mm thick, to keep the weight down.

Thank you. That’s exactly what I’m trying to find. Something glossy, very thin, but not floppy enough it collapses under its own weight or shows wrinkles

[coopec43]

Originally Posted by Chotu

Is this a composter head you made yourself??? It’s beautiful!

Hi Chotu

No it is a molding I made up myself (see attachment)

I am now working on the aft cabin and I will make my own compost toilet.

If you put a compost toilet it will cost over $A1000 but you save

• a standard "head"
• X2 through hulls
• pump
• black water tank

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by coopec43

Hi Chotu

No it is a molding I made up myself (see attachment)

I am now working on the aft cabin and I will make my own compost toilet.

If you put a compost toilet it will cost over $A1000 but you save

• a standard "head"
• X2 through hulls
• pump
• black water tank

That is a piece of art!!

Wonderful finish work.

I’m making my own composting head in a couple months. Can’t see paying $1000 or whatever for a bucket and pee jug.

I plan to make the bowl, too. The urine diverter. Customized, so it’s easier for women to use.

[coopec43]

Originally Posted by Chotu

That is a piece of art!!

Wonderful finish work.

I’m making my own composting head in a couple months. Can’t see paying $1000 or whatever for a bucket and pee jug.

I plan to make the bowl, too. The urine diverter. Customized, so it’s easier for women to use.

I'm now putting floors (sole) at two slightly different levels in my aft cockpit.(The higher level one will be where the toilet is)

I've downloaded two brochures on compost toilets and one of them states there is no pee bottle: just a tube. I have yet to check it out but I think the toilet is above sea level so I could put a very small outlet through the hull to empty the pee.

I suppose you've seen the YouTube videos on how to make a compost toilet?
https://www.youtube.com/results?sear...compost+toilet