Plasterboard or tile backer board - experts needed??

[sjb74]

Evening,

I am stripping and recreating my bathroom as my disabled daughter needs a walk-in-shower with supports, rather than just the over-the-bath shower we have at the moment.

The bathroom is VERY small, so space is everything.

I have stripped back all the tiles, plaster and render back to the block, so that I can maximise the space I have. I intend to move things around and put the toilet as close to the internal soil stack as feasible, this will leave room for the shower cubicle and shower seat etc.

The question...

Now that I've ripped everything back, can I just dob dab plasterboard on main walls and tile backeroard the shower area - direct to the breeze block / stud wall?

The plan is to seal the breeze block wall, plasterboard the walls that will just be tiled, except shower cubicle area, where tile backerboard will be used. Tape and seal all joints, seal backerboard again, then tile. Is this OK?
(sink / toilet temporarily replaced as bathroom needs to be usable...)

 

[opps]

Not cheap, and possibly not suitable for your daughter but Duravit make a shower that folds away

https://www.trendir.com/folding-shower-enclosure-by-du/

I fitted one for a customer a few years ago.

You can use cement based tile adhesive to dot and dab the tile backerboard but it is recommended that you screw through some of the dabs/dots (when dry) to strengthen the boards. It would also be advisable to dot the fixings for the seat so that you can use long fittings that will reach the block work. If the seat is on one of the stud walls, fit noggins at the required height

Oh and don't forget to SBR all of the walls prior to dot and dabbing

 

[RandomGrinch]

I may be being silly, but to save even more space, couldn't you tile straight to the blockwork?
It may take a bit more adhesive than normal and a tile leveling kit could help keep everything plumb.
I would also tank the area around the shower before tiling.

 

[opps]

I may be being silly, but to save even more space, couldn't you tile straight to the blockwork?
It may take a bit more adhesive than normal and a tile leveling kit could help keep everything plumb.
I would also tank the area around the shower before tiling.

Load bearing for unplastered plasterboard is 32kg/m²- that is sufficient for 10mm thick porcelain tiles plus adhesive. Once plastered that falls to 20kg/m². I might be wrong, but those walls look like Thermalite blocks, which I suspect have an even lower load bearing rating.

Personally, I can tile flat surfaces much faster than rough surfaces. I guess it may be possible to render the walls but if the render cracks, so will the tiles. That is less likely to happen with plasterboard.

 

[RandomGrinch]

Load bearing for unplastered plasterboard is 32kg/m²- that is sufficient for 10mm thick porcelain tiles plus adhesive. Once plastered that falls to 20kg/m². I might be wrong, but those walls look like Thermalite blocks, which I suspect have an even lower load bearing rating.

Personally, I can tile flat surfaces much faster than rough surfaces. I guess it may be possible to render the walls but if the render cracks, so will the tiles. That is less likely to happen with plasterboard.

Good points opps
Thanks for the info.

 

[sjb74]

Thanks both.

To keep the depth down, I was thinking I may just use the 6mm Tile Backerboards:
https://thisiswholesale.co.uk/next-...MI4NC79YiS8gIV0-3tCh3WTQM1EAQYASABEgJUzfD_BwE

I know 10mm is recommended for walls, but hoping the 6mm will work - this should still hold more than plasterboard in terms of tile weight per kg/m2.

@opps - thanks for the folding shower cubicle link I’ll have a look into that, although I’m not sure if they would be suitable due to the depth of hand rails that I’ll be fitting to each wall, but will have a look