How to Make the Correct Angle for Shower Drainage

Move a wheelbarrow to the bathroom where you are installing the shower. Open a bag of Portland sand/cement mixture and pour it into the wheelbarrow slowly, so that you don’t stir up dust.

Add water to the mixture per the bag instructions. Mix it well using a shovel until the cement mixture is approximately the constancy of peanut butter. If desired, substitute liquid latex additive instead of the water.

Scoop up the mixture with a trowel. Fill the prepared shower pan area until the entire floor is filed with the mortar mix and it rises up to the center drain’s top. Do not extend the mortar over the drain.

Smooth the mortar’s entire top surface using the back of a trowel until it is as level and even as possible.

Measure the distance from the shower wall to the drain. Multiplying the number of feet by one-quarter inch determines how much lower the center of the mortar must be. For example, if the distance from the wall to the center is 2 feet, the center of the mortar near the drain must be one-half inch lower than the mortar at the edge of the wall.

Slide the trowel from the edges to the center of the shower bed sloping it downward at the determined angle as you do so. A carpenter's level determines when you achieve the proper slope. Work your way all the way around the mortar bed using the same technique.

Wiping off the center drain removes excess mortar.