iac27
Member
Hi friends I'm looking to tap into your expertise so I can create a better shower pan for you. This ain't something sexy but it's something that I believe plagues many builds down the road. Please correct me if I'm wrong on anything I write here because that's why I'm asking you.
It looks like commercial off the shelf solutions for shower pans are lacking in durability. Mine's ended up cracking and leading to me having to caulk various parts. Other people fabricate their's from stainless or build one out of wood and coat with some sort of water proofing. This leads me to think we need a more durable shower pan because replacing it down the road or having water leak out of hairline cracks is no bueno.
I'm thinking something that's
-24 x 26.5" and 3 3/4" deep that's angled to direct water into a 2" drain
-rectangle
-frp construction
-single drain (double drain would be nice but usually rigs are pretty level and the pan has a slight slope to it)
-double drain could also complicate the install a bit and introduce a second leak point
-reinforced around drain area because that's the unsupported part (mine cracked here)
-flange on three sides to tuck under the wall panel to provide overlap
-tapered rigid foam to support the base of the pan
All this is pretty standard except it would be sturdier. Am I missing anything? Is the trade off of a increase in weight for durability ok? Would a rigid base under the pan made from FRP that supports all aspects of the pan so that all you have to do is build the shower enclosure around it be helpful? Typical installs require you box it in structurally (usually with wood). Or is this easy enough to do and you'd rather save the money? Do you want access to the drain underneath the pan by having this structure higher? Or leave the pan height as low as possible and you can build a platform if you require access and want to keep your drain line inside?
Would this be helpful to the overland community or am I barking up the wrong tree? Happy to hear your thoughts.
Examples of your typical pan:
Cross posted on the van forum
It looks like commercial off the shelf solutions for shower pans are lacking in durability. Mine's ended up cracking and leading to me having to caulk various parts. Other people fabricate their's from stainless or build one out of wood and coat with some sort of water proofing. This leads me to think we need a more durable shower pan because replacing it down the road or having water leak out of hairline cracks is no bueno.
I'm thinking something that's
-24 x 26.5" and 3 3/4" deep that's angled to direct water into a 2" drain
-rectangle
-frp construction
-single drain (double drain would be nice but usually rigs are pretty level and the pan has a slight slope to it)
-double drain could also complicate the install a bit and introduce a second leak point
-reinforced around drain area because that's the unsupported part (mine cracked here)
-flange on three sides to tuck under the wall panel to provide overlap
-tapered rigid foam to support the base of the pan
All this is pretty standard except it would be sturdier. Am I missing anything? Is the trade off of a increase in weight for durability ok? Would a rigid base under the pan made from FRP that supports all aspects of the pan so that all you have to do is build the shower enclosure around it be helpful? Typical installs require you box it in structurally (usually with wood). Or is this easy enough to do and you'd rather save the money? Do you want access to the drain underneath the pan by having this structure higher? Or leave the pan height as low as possible and you can build a platform if you require access and want to keep your drain line inside?
Would this be helpful to the overland community or am I barking up the wrong tree? Happy to hear your thoughts.
Examples of your typical pan:
Cross posted on the van forum
