Talked to a plumber about my shower pan slope and he changed my whole plan

I was over at my buddy's house helping him with his bathroom reno last weekend. He had this old plumber there, guy named Frank who's been doing it for like 40 years. I told him I was planning my own remodel and wanted to do a tiled shower with a linear drain. He just laughed and asked if I knew about the 2% slope rule. I thought I did but then he explained how even a tiny dip can let water sit and cause mold. He showed me a level on a pan he was setting up and it was dead flat. Said he sees people mess this up all the time and having to rip it out later. I went home and checked my plans and yep, I had it wrong. Has anyone else had a pro point out something simple that saved you a big headache? What else do first timers miss?

3 comments

3 Comments

hannahcraig6d ago

@tessap73 linear drains need pitch both ways not just one (ask me how I know).

amyh126d ago

Is water really that dangerous to have sitting for a few hours?

tessap736d ago

and what'd he say about your linear drain, because I've heard those can be tricky too with the pitch. i've got a buddy who did one and ended up with his waterproofing membrane not overlapping right because he had to slope the whole floor different. did frank say anything about preslope under the liner or did you already have that figured out? i feel like that's the thing that trips up most people, they think a flat floor is fine but then water just sits there.