Wet Room Buyer's Guide: What to Know Before You Start

Wet room or walk-in shower: which is right for you?

This is the first and most important choice. Both give you a shower without climbing over a bath, but they are built differently.

If someone uses a wheelchair, needs a wheeled shower chair or has a carer helping them, a full wet room is usually the right choice; our disabled wet rooms page explains why. If everyone can manage a small step, a walk-in shower may give you most of the benefit for less work.

Start with who the room is for

A wet room for a fit couple who like the look is a different project from one for a parent who has started to fall, and different again from one for a wheelchair user. Think about who will use the room now, who might use it in five or ten years, how they move, whether they sit to shower, and whether anyone helps them. If an occupational therapist is involved, their recommendations should shape the plan. Answering these questions first stops you paying for features you do not need, or missing ones you will want later.

Floors: what is underneath matters most

The floor decides much of what is possible:

• Timber floors, usually upstairs, need a pre-formed shower former set between the joists so the floor falls to the drain. The joists must be sound and stiff enough; a floor that flexes can crack tiles and tear tanking.
• Concrete floors, often downstairs, in rear extensions and in many bungalows, may need a channel cutting for the waste, or the floor building up to create the fall.
• Floor build-up can affect the threshold at the door. In a fully level wet room, the aim is no step at all between the landing or hallway and the bathroom floor.

Ask your installer what they found when they checked your floor and how they plan to create the fall.

Drains: linear or point?

There are two main types of wet room drain. A linear drain is a long, narrow channel, usually along a wall. The floor falls in one direction towards it, which feels flatter underfoot and suits narrow rooms and wheelchair users. A point drain (or centre drain) is a square or round grate, with the floor falling from several directions. It can suit square shower areas and is often easier to position between joists.

Whichever you choose, the drain must be properly connected to the waterproof membrane, have an easy-to-clean trap and a waste pipe with enough fall to carry water away. Slow drainage is one of the most common wet room complaints, so ask how the waste will run. Where gravity drainage is not possible, a shower pump is sometimes used.

Screens and splash control

A screen is not essential in every wet room, but in most homes it makes daily life easier. A fixed panel of toughened glass holds back spray from the toilet, basin and towels, while keeping the room open. In small rooms, a short hinged or pivoting return panel adds protection. For people who need a carer, a shorter screen or a weighted curtain can give the helper room to work. Think about where the shower head will point, and keep the wettest area away from the door. Our page on small wet rooms has more on making a compact space work.

Ventilation

A wet room puts a lot of moisture into the air, and without good ventilation you will get condensation, mould and slow-drying floors. A properly sized extractor fan, ideally with a run-on timer or humidity sensor, is essential. A window helps but is rarely enough on its own, particularly in winter. Underfloor heating helps the floor dry faster and keeps the room comfortable. Extractor and heating wiring in bathrooms must be done by a qualified electrician.

Slip resistance and flooring

Wet room floors need to grip when wet, particularly for older people. The two common choices are slip-resistant safety vinyl, which has few joints, feels warmer and is easy to clean, and slip-rated tiles, which offer more design choice. Smaller tiles on the shower floor also give more grip, because the grout lines add texture and make it easier to follow the fall. Avoid polished or glossy floor tiles in the shower area. Ask your installer what slip rating the flooring has and how it will be cleaned.

Accessibility checklist

Even if nobody needs these features today, it is worth thinking about them before the walls are finished. Use this checklist when you plan:

• Level accessNo step at the door or into the shower.
• Turning spaceRoom for a wheelchair or frame, and for a carer if needed.
• Shower seatFold-down, at a suitable height, on a wall that can take the load.
• Grab railsBeside the shower, toilet and basin, fixed into solid walls or backing.
• Thermostatic showerProtects against scalding; lever controls are easier to use.
• Toilet and basinComfort-height toilet; basin reachable when seated.
• DoorWide enough, opening outwards or sliding.
• Lighting and contrastBright, even light; rails and fittings that stand out from the walls.

Adding timber backing behind walls now means rails can be fitted strongly later. See our accessible bathrooms page for the wider room.

Tanking: the part you will never see

Tanking is the waterproof layer under the tiles. It needs to cover the floor and the walls in the wet area, with special attention to corners, pipe entries and the drain. Grout and sealant are not waterproof on their own. If tanking is skipped or done badly, the room can leak into ceilings and floors below, and the fix means stripping it out. That is why we never recommend DIY tanking. Our wet room repairs page shows what happens when it goes wrong.

Budget and funding

The cost of a wet room depends on the floor, drainage, strip-out, tanking, finishes, accessibility features and electrics. Our wet room cost guide explains each factor. If the room is for a disabled person, check whether VAT relief applies, and ask the council about a Disabled Facilities Grant before you start work, because starting early can affect funding.

Questions to ask a wet room installer

1. Will you visit and check the floor and drainage before quoting? A quote without a visit is a guess.
2. How will you form the fall? Ask whether a pre-formed former or another method will be used, and why.
3. What tanking system will you use, and where? It should cover the whole floor and the wet walls.
4. Where will the drain go and how will the waste run? Make sure there is enough fall to the stack.
5. What flooring will you use and what is its slip rating?
6. How will you fix rails and the seat? Ask about backing on hollow walls.
7. Who will do the electrical work? It should be a qualified electrician.
8. What is included and what is not? Check strip-out, disposal, making good and decoration.
9. How long will the room be out of use? Plan for washing elsewhere if needed.

Planning a wet room in Merseyside

Merseyside homes have their own quirks: small first-floor bathrooms on timber floors in inter-war semis, downstairs bathrooms in rear extensions on Victorian terraces, and bungalows with solid floors in places such as Formby, Maghull and Heswall. Each brings different floor and drainage questions. If you live in Allerton, Maghull or anywhere across the region, we can visit, answer these questions for your home and give you a written plan. Find out more about our wet room installers in Liverpool or about level-access wet rooms across Merseyside on our main page.