Tile tub surround with window

mxingislife

I will be starting to tear out the existing cheap and thin tub surround and replacing it with tile 12x12 tile. The shower has a window that is approx 24" x 36" and I will be tiling around it. Below are pictures of the shower now (note that this picture does not show the new vinyl O-X sliding window I put in).





This will be my first tile job and I want to make sure I'm doing things right. I will be putting a mosture barrier underneith my durock and then using thin set to set the tiles.

One of my main questions is how to choose a layout. The Tub is 30" wide and the long wall is 59". I plan on tiling up to the top of the window which is 72" above the tub lip. I've read that all of your cuts should be done in the corners and that your corner pieces should be no less than half of the tile width, which in my case would be 6" since I have 12" x 12" tile. Is this true? Also should I start tiling from the bottom up? Or top down? My biggest challenge will be the window, so any help is appreciated. Thank you!

Bud Cline

First let's not get too far ahead of ourselves.

1. What are the walls made of now. They look as if they could be plaster. Is that right or wrong?

2. Is the window perfectly centered in the wall?

3. Well I don't have a 3 right now let's get this far first.

mxingislife

1. The walls are drywall

2. The window is not perfectly center, I see how far off it is when I get home

mxingislife

Here are some up close pictures of the new window...

Bud Cline

Windows in showers are always a problem.

If you are only going to install tile to the top of the window you will have to remove the drywall to that point. Personally I would install tile all the way up to the ceiling.

The one wood piece under the sill is the apron and that should be removed totally and discarded. It is on top of the drywall anyway and will have to come off.

I would be tempted to also discard the window casings and re-work those corners (returns) also.

mxingislife

Here is an update on my tear-out yesterday

Bud Cline

That's a fair start. Looks like your siding might be leaking a little.

If you haven't already purchased your insulation and cement board I would suggest open face insulation and Denshield wall board.

mxingislife

All of the wood is solid I did already purchase some John Manville R-13 insulation. You would use Denshield wall board over durock?

Bud Cline

I would use Denshield instead of Durock.

mxingislife

I took the window measurement while the sheetrock is torn off and it is almost centered. The left side is 17 1/4" from the wall to the outside of the window frame and it is 17 3/8" from the right side to the outside of the window frame.

mxingislife

I went to the GP website to try and find a local store that carriers Densshield and there are no distributers within a 50 radius

Bud Cline

Well then....Durock it is.

I would consider waterproofing the Durock on its surface with liquid waterproofing. If you do, then you don't want to use a plastic vapor barrier on the studs. If you don't water proof the Durock on its surface then a vapor barrier on the studs is required but you can't do both.

What about the window, what's the plan for finishing there?

mxingislife

The local tile store provided me with Foresight Vapor Retarder for vapor barrier on the studs, its like a tar paper. Do you recommend just stapling it to the studs? I've also seen that some people use a roofing tar on the tub lip to adhear the vapor barrier to the tub lip and they also apply it to the studs and then staple. What do you recommend?

As far as the window goes, that is going to be my biggest challenge. I was thinking of putting the durock up to the little 1-by window stops and then just priming, painting and caulking the heck out of it since it is such a small amount of wood. And the window sill is probably only going to be 1" deep so I was going to put a couple pieces of bullnose on there? What do you think? Also, I'm doing a 3" x 12" bullnose border around the sides and top of all the tile.

You can see what I mean in the pic below. The tile will go to the red line.

Bud Cline

I wouldn't do any of that. Don't know why every time your tub area heats up you would want smell fresh tar.

Your best bet and the standard of the day (if there was one) would be to install the wallboard and waterproof it on the surface. Tile installations are not waterproof and water will get into your wallboard. cement board is used because water won't hurt it. But because it will get wet you need the barrier on the studs.

If you waterproof the wallboard surface then you don't need the barrier and you don't want to use it for reasons of creating condensation inside the walls.
Oh I doubt they "provided" you with it. I imagine they were more than happy to sell it to you. I'd take it back unopened.

Bud Cline

Here's my suggestion:

Buy a plastic wallboard termination. It is a "J" shaped piece that will wrap the raw edge of the wallboard. Fashion four of them around the window as you install the wallboard and fit them so that they lap the window jamb leaving about 1/8" of jamb revealed on all sides. The small juncture between the jamb-side and the J-molding can be later caulked when the tile is caulked.

This way you don't require window casings or any other nonsense to make it work.

Your tile then would finish at the corner of the "J" with a bullnose or even a metal tile edging. No sill, no casing, no apron.