Shower Installation & Remodel
A new shower is a plumbing and waterproofing job first, and a tiling job second. We handle valve rough-in, drain and pan, liner and membrane, glass doors, and the code and venting side of it, including converting a tub to a walk-in shower. Licensed California contractor #1082507, serving Union City and 15 Bay Area cities.
If your existing shower or bath needs repairing rather than replacing, see our shower and tub repair service.
- New showers in a remodel or new bathroom
- Mixing valve rough-in and pressure-balance valves
- Shower pan, liner and drain assembly
- Tub-to-shower conversions
- Waterproofing behind tile and at the curb
- Glass door and enclosure fitting
- Permits, venting and code compliance
Signs You Need Shower Installation
Catching these early is almost always cheaper than waiting for the failure.
The pan or floor is failing
Tiles lifting at the base, grout that never dries out, a soft spot underfoot or a stain on the ceiling below all point at water getting past the pan liner. Once the liner has failed, the shower has to come out. Re-grouting the surface does not put waterproofing back where it is missing.
You want the tub gone
Climbing over a tub wall stops being reasonable at some point. A tub-to-shower conversion means a new drain position, a new pan or base, the valve raised to shower height, and usually a rebuild of the wall behind it. It is a proper plumbing job, not a swap.
The valve is obsolete
Old two-handle shower valves have no scald protection, and replacement parts for many of them no longer exist. California code has required pressure-balance or thermostatic mixing valves in new work for years. If yours surges hot whenever a tap runs elsewhere in the house, that is what it is telling you.
Persistent damp in the next room
Blistered paint on the other side of the shower wall, a musty smell or lifting skirting means water has been passing the tile for a while. Surface repairs cannot reach that. The wall has to be opened up so the substrate and the framing can be looked at and put right.
The bathroom is being remodelled anyway
If walls are coming off regardless, this is the cheapest moment there will ever be to move the valve, correct the drain fall, add a vent where one is missing, and get the waterproofing done properly. Doing any of it later means undoing finished tile to reach it.
The drain is slow or smells
A shower that pools and drains slowly, or breathes a sewer smell when another fixture runs, often has a venting problem rather than a blockage. Older bathrooms were sometimes altered without the vent being extended to suit. On a new installation that gets designed in properly.
Shower Installations We Build
Tile shower on a mortar bed
The traditional build: a sloped mortar bed, a sheet liner or bonded waterproofing membrane, a clamping drain, then tile. It suits any shape and lets us set the fall exactly. It takes longer than a prefabricated base, because each stage has to cure and be tested before the next one covers it up.
Prefabricated base with tiled walls
A moulded acrylic or solid-surface base with tile above it. Faster, very reliable underfoot, and a sound choice where the shower is a standard size. The critical detail is how the base is set and how the wall waterproofing laps over its flange, because that is where leaks in this build almost always start.
Tub-to-shower conversion
The tub comes out, the drain moves from the tub position to the centre or the end, the valve is raised, and the wall is rebuilt with proper backer board and waterproofing. Where a curbless or low-threshold entry is wanted, the floor framing has to allow the drop, so we check that before promising it.
Enclosures and glass
Framed, semi-frameless or fully frameless glass, or a curtain if you prefer. Frameless glass wants a genuinely level curb and true walls, so it belongs in the plan from the start rather than turning up as an afterthought once the tile is on and nothing is quite square.
How We Install a Shower
Survey and scope
We look at the existing drain and vent, the valve position, what is behind the wall and what the floor is built on. That decides what is possible and what needs opening up. Photos and video get us a long way before anyone visits.
Quote and permits
You get a written scope and price before work starts. Where the job moves drainage, alters venting or forms part of a bathroom remodel, it is usually permitted work. We pull the permit and meet the inspector rather than leaving that side of it to you.
Strip out and rough-in
The old shower or tub comes out and the wall is opened where needed. We set the drain and its fall, extend or correct the vent, run new supply, and fit the pressure-balance or thermostatic valve at the right depth for the finished wall thickness.
Pan, waterproofing and flood test
The pan is formed and the liner or membrane installed, then the pan is flood-tested and held before anything covers it. Backer board and waterproofing go on the walls with the laps running the right way, so water is always shed outwards and downwards.
Finish and commission
Tile or base, trim, door and glass, then a full run under hot and cold with the drain watched and every joint checked. We show you the temperature limit stop on the valve and how to set it, and we clear the site properly before leaving.
What Makes a Shower Last
A shower is a waterproofing job with tile stuck on the front of it. Tile and grout are not waterproof and were never intended to be. Water passes through grout, and the liner or membrane behind is what actually stops it reaching the structure. That is why re-grouting a leaking shower buys a few months at best. When we build one, the pan is flood-tested and held before anything covers it, because that test is the only chance to find a fault while it is still cheap to put right.
The valve is the second thing that decides how a shower feels for the next twenty years. Pressure-balance and thermostatic mixing valves are required in new work in California because they hold the mix steady when a toilet flushes or a washing machine fills. They also need setting properly. The limit stop controls the hottest temperature the handle will reach, and it is worth adjusting deliberately to suit the household rather than leaving it wherever it happened to arrive from the factory.
Drainage and venting are where older Bay Area bathrooms cause the most trouble. Plenty have been altered over the decades, with a wall moved or a fixture added, and nobody extended the vent to match. The result is a shower that gurgles, drains slowly and occasionally smells. During a remodel, with the walls already open, that is genuinely straightforward to correct. Once the tile is on it becomes expensive, which is precisely why we look at it at the survey stage.
Expect the unexpected behind an old shower wall. Homes here sit on expansive clay soil that swells and shrinks with the seasons, and a bathroom that has been quietly leaking will usually have rot in the substrate and sometimes in the framing itself. We open up, look, and show you photographs of what we have found before carrying on. Building a new shower over soft framing is how people end up paying for the same job twice.
What Affects the Price
We quote every job up front, so you approve the price before anything starts. These are the things that move it:
- Size and shape of the shower, and whether the footprint changes
- Whether the drain has to be moved or the vent corrected
- Tile on a mortar bed versus a prefabricated base
- The waterproofing system specified for the build
- Condition of the framing and substrate once the wall is opened
- Glass enclosure type, from a curtain rail to frameless panels
- Permit and inspection requirements in your city
Most quotes are free and can be done from photos or video you send us. Some on-site estimates carry a fee based on distance, and we tell you that before we come out.
Looking After a New Shower
Wipe the glass and tile down after use and run the extractor for a good fifteen minutes afterwards. Hard water here leaves mineral spotting on glass very quickly, and standing damp is what starts growth in the corners.
Silicone at the joint between wall and pan, and around the door, is a wear part. Check it once a year and have it renewed when it lifts, splits or darkens. That joint moves, which is why grout cracks there and sealant does not.
Lift the strainer every month or two and clear the hair out. A shower that has started pooling has almost always been telling you for weeks that the trap wants clearing.
Unscrew it and soak it in white vinegar a couple of times a year, or work the rubber nozzles with a thumb. Bay Area scale blocks the outer jets first, which is why the spray pattern gradually goes lopsided.
The earliest sign of a shower leak usually appears on the other side of the wall or on the ceiling below, not in the shower itself. Blistered paint, a dark patch or a musty smell is worth a call before it spreads.
Shower Installation — Frequently Asked Questions
Straight answers, without the sales pitch.
Do I need a permit to install a new shower?
Usually yes, if the work moves or adds drainage, alters venting, or forms part of a bathroom remodel. A straight like-for-like fixture swap sometimes does not. Requirements vary between Bay Area cities, so we confirm what yours needs before quoting, pull the permit ourselves, and meet the inspector on site when the time comes.
How long does a shower installation take?
It is not a one-day job if it is done properly. Between strip-out, rough-in, the pan and its flood test, waterproofing, tile and the enclosure, there are stages that have to cure and be tested before the next one covers them. A prefabricated base is quicker than a tiled mortar bed. We give you a stage-by-stage schedule with the quote.
Can you convert my bathtub into a walk-in shower?
Yes, and it is one of the most common jobs we do. The tub comes out, the drain is moved from the tub position, the valve is raised to shower height, and the wall is rebuilt with proper backer board and waterproofing. If you want a low or curbless threshold, the floor framing has to allow the drop, which we check before committing to it.
What is a flood test and why does it matter?
Once the pan liner is in and the drain is connected, we plug the drain, fill the pan with water and leave it standing for a set period to prove it holds. It is the only point in the whole build where a fault in the waterproofing is both visible and cheap to fix. Anyone who skips it is asking you to take the pan on trust.
Why does the temperature change when someone flushes the toilet?
That is an old shower valve with no pressure balancing. When another fixture draws cold water, the mix at the shower shifts and you get a hot surge. Pressure-balance and thermostatic valves are designed to hold the mix steady and are required in new work in California. Fitting one normally means opening the wall behind the valve.
Can I keep my existing tile and just replace the pan?
Rarely, and never cleanly. The wall waterproofing has to lap over the pan flange, so fitting a new pan means taking off the bottom courses of tile at minimum, and matching old tile is frequently impossible. We will look and give you an honest answer, but where a pan has failed the usual answer is that the shower needs rebuilding.
Do you charge extra for nights, weekends or holidays?
No. We do not add overtime charges, ever. The rate you are quoted is the same whether we come out on a Tuesday morning or at 2am on a holiday weekend.
Are you licensed and insured?
Yes. Power Plumbing USA holds California contractor license #1082507 and carries full liability insurance. All work is performed to California Plumbing Code, and we pull permits where the job requires them.
Where We Provide This Service
We cover 15 Bay Area cities from our Union City base. See the full service area →