(France) Shower upgrade question

[Lower]

Literally millions of shower enclosures are constructed of tiles on plasterboard and the vast majority are fine.

Some will fail because they've been badly grouted, the silicone joint between the tiles and shower tray or bath fails and water gets in, or they get used excessively and water soaks through the grout. Personally i wouldn't be concerned. A tiled, plasterboard wall will be well able to take the load of that shower pipe and head. You just need to use decent plasterboard fixings and silicone the holes to stop any water getting in.

 

[foxhole]

I have to agree with you, Father Dougal, I mean.. I thought that's what tiles were for? No?

Tiles are not the problem , it’s the grout between which is often porous letting moisture thru . So the background is very important .In my experience EVERY tiled plasterboard shower enclosure I have removed had heavy water damage .
The forum has many posts about failure of tiles on plasterboard .

 

[denso13]

I thought that's what tiles were for? No?

Yes, if the tiles are sound, crack on.

 

[tinpanalley]

Hmm... I had reached out to the manufacturer via Amazon. This was their response (I've translated from French)

Thank you very much for providing us with detailed information about the walls, along with the photos.

We have forwarded all the information you provided to our engineers for evaluation.

Our engineers have advised that the load-bearing capacity of this type of hollow wall is very limited. Using only 6 mm or 8 mm DuoPower expansion wall plugs fixed into the wall panel surface is not sufficient to support the weight of a shower fixture and poses a risk of it coming loose.

To ensure a safe installation, the screws must be anchored deeply into a solid structural support (such as wooden framing or a solid wall). If no solid support is accessible, we cannot guarantee the stability of the installation.

If you are able to locate a solid support, please choose screws of an appropriate length so that they can be securely anchored into it.

We also recommend contacting a local professional plumber to inspect the installation site, assess the installation conditions and the feasibility of the project, and help avoid any risk of the product falling later on.

If you have any questions or need assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us at any time. We will be happy to help.

Kind regards,
Karen
Rainsworth

 

[denso13]

Well, they would say that...

 

[tinpanalley]

Well, they would say that...

True.