How to Replace a Tub With a Walk-in Shower

Demolish the existing tub by ripping down the surround walls. Cut through the walls with the reciprocal saw and pry them away from the framing with a crowbar. Cut through the drainage pipe beneath the floor of the tub with the reciprocal saw. Pry the entire tub out of the tub area and clean up all the remaining drywall and debris.

Set the new showering pan into the bath alcove and line it up with the framing walls. If it is a corner shower, line up the back sides of the pan with the two corner walls. If it is a full-length shower pan, slide it into the bathing area and make sure all three sides of the pan are flush with the framing walls. Fill any gaps between the pan and the framing boards by mounting wood strips to the framing with screws and a screwdriver.

Check the shower pan with a level, and slip a shim board under the pan in any area where the pan falls under the level mark. Trace an outline of the drain hole on the floor with a pencil and remove the shower pan. Cut the drainage hole into the floor with a hole saw.

Attach the shower drain to the pan by threading the connector nut onto the bottom of the drain. Put the shower pan back into the space. Mount it to the wall frames with screws and a screwdriver. Drywall the surrounding walls after the shower pan is installed with drywall and drywall screws.

Dry fit, without PVC adhesive, a run of new drain pipe from the main stack to the shower pan drain using fittings appropriate for your installation. Once the run is complete, push the pipe up into the shower pan from below, slip a compression washer over the pipe, hammer the washer and the pipe together into the drain to form a seal. Disassemble and glue the piping and fittings with PVC cement after the drain is connected and let them dry for eight hours.

Measure and cut holes into the surround panels for the shower head pipe and faucet with a hole saw. Secure the new surround walls to the drywall by coating the walls with adhesive, interlocking the edges with the shower pan and adjacent walls, and pressing them against the drywall until bonded.