What Can Be Used Under the Shower Pan to Strengthen the Pan?

The Shower Pan

• The shower pan does not exist as a single, solid pan that collects and distributes stray water droplets into the bathroom's drainage pipes. Rather, a shower pan consists of several layers of waterproofing material that work together to prevent moisture from seeping through the bottom of the shower enclosure and spreading out into the surrounding flooring. Shower pans vary, but most consist of a layer of plastic or waterproof roofing felt, a layer of mortar and another layer of plastic waterproofing material underneath the actual tiled shower bed.

The Mortar Bed

• A strong mortar bed provides a strong shower pan. You can create a mortar bed to whatever thickness you like. Over time, water will build up in your mortar bed. Using sand mix to create your mortar bed rather than traditional Type N or Type S concrete ensures that your mortar bed is strong but can also easily direct moisture through to the pipes rather than cracking and crumbling due to the high moisture levels it is regularly exposed to.

Mortar Bed Additives

• Adding strengthening materials to the mortar bed that makes up a portion of your shower pan increases the strength of the overall system. For example, if you mix your mortar with latex and water, rather than mixing the mortar with water alone, you can increase the strength of the mortar itself by almost double that of a mortar bed containing only water. Hydrated lime added to your mortar mix will also increase the strength. In turn, this increases the strength of your shower pan as a whole.

Shower Pan Liners

• The shower pan liner you choose to install over the top of the mortar bed also influences the strength of your shower pan system. While many different types of shower pan liners are available to choose from, selecting a liner that can both withstand high moisture and high pressure for long periods of time without deteriorating, increases the longevity of your shower pan system. For example, a shower pan liner composed of flexible poly-vinyl chloride – the same material used to create PVC pipes – is incredibly strong and will outlast other shower pan lining materials such as lead and copper sheeting.