Tub Walls and Surrounds vs. Tiles

Installation

• Ceramic and porcelain tile installation requires you to install the tiles with mortar, wait for the mortar to dry, and then fill in all of the lines between the tiles with a cement mixture called grout. During the process, you must ensure that your tiles align perfectly and do not slide out of place. You can install a tub wall more easily by applying adhesive to your solid wall and securing the surround to the wall surface. The process does not require mortar, drying time or grout. Some surrounds come in several pieces that make installation easier, but the seams can separate, allowing soap, moisture and mildew to form on your drywall. According to Trained Eye Home Inspection, "one-piece laminate surrounds or cultured marble slab surrounds are much better quality and must be installed professionally." Unfortunately, some one-piece surrounds are too large to fit through standard bathroom doorways and come with a high price tag.

Maintenance

• Maintenance on hard tile is often tedious and time-consuming. You usually need to spray the tile with a bathroom cleaner with bleach and use an old toothbrush or scrub brush to remove mildew and soap scum. Then you have to scrub between the grout lines and around the faucets. With a tub surround, you simply wipe the area down with a towel or wash cloth after use. Harsh chemicals, scrub brushes and elbow grease are not necessary. If your bathroom has sufficient ventilation, you probably don't even need to wipe down the tub walls unless you want to remove any remaining soap scum.

Visual Appeal

• When it comes to decorative colors and patterns, tile options far outweigh bathtub surround options. Tile is available in a variety of materials, including ceramic, glass, slate, stone and porcelain, and a wide range of colors. Bath tub surrounds have a much more limited pool from which to choose. According to Trained Eye Home Inspection, "the reason for use of tiles in a shower is their excellent moisture resistance combined with aesthetic appeal and almost infinite choice of styles and colours."

Durability

• Trained Eye Home Inspection states that inexpensive acrylic bathtub wall surrounds are not durable and have a limited lifespan; higher-priced surrounds are longer lasting. When it comes to hard tile, porcelain tile is one of the best materials because it is durable and water resistant. Glazes applied to porcelain tile further protect it against moisture and humidity. Most tile and high-quality surrounds that are installed properly last for years, sometimes even decades.