The Shower wall
Shower Wall
How many of us have heard of Nuance by Bushboard? It is a shower wall product. The company says it ‘is the future of bathroom design and could ultimately replace ceramic tiles, thanks to its ease of installation and finish quality’. But is this really accurate? Let’s consider the advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages of the Shower Wall
Shower wall is used instead of tiles. It is made up of floor to ceiling panels, 600mm, 900mm, and 1200 mm wide which do not need grouting. Nuance shower wall is available many colours and styles. It’s smart, easy to clean and the panels have a 15 year guarantee.
Nuance Shower wall is a good product, in my view one of the best available in the UK. However, if you have been thinking that shower wall can be installed cheaply and easily, you may be wrong.
Shower wall is claimed by the manufacturers to be a better option than tiles because they say it lasts a lifetime. Tile manufacturers might consider these claims to be exaggerated. Tiles can also last a lifetime, are easy to clean and install and look smart. When installed with modern antifungal grouting systems that are cleaned properly, tiles will last, as they claim, for life.
Disadvantages of the Shower Wall
Unfortunately, in a room with poor ventilation, that’s often left damp and not cleaned properly, I would suggest that both shower wall and tiles will start to look grubby pretty quickly.
In the same way that there many different types of tiles, there are also many types of shower wall. Shower wall is a generic term. Shower wall is made in different ways by competing manufacturers.
The Shower wall can be difficult to prepare and fit
Prices for a Shower Wall
I believe that shower wall products fit into three categories, cheap, middle of the road and top of the range. Shower wall is available in different styles and colours from all manufacturers. The price point differentiates each category and the durability of the product and the core material, alter the price point and product category.
Cheaper shower wall products appear as profiled plastic sheets that have tongue and groove vertical joints, the edges are finished with coloured plastic trims. The plastic trims are important and must be used, they ensure a good fit at the wall, corner and ceiling joints. The edge trims are mainly only available in a limited range of colours, normally Black, White or Silver.
Middle of the road, or mid-price point products tend to have a base material that is often HDF, a water tolerant material that is wrapped and finished using a plastic film. These panels may have T&G vertical joints, and require coloured plastic edge trims that may be a close colour match to the panels.
Top of the range products like Nuance Shower wall use the pro click technology for joining panels, it’s a hi tech T&G joint that is designed to pull the panels together and create a sound mechanical joint. Nuance is available with prefinished edges that if you are lucky do not need to be cut and appear to have seamless joints. However in the real world, edge trims are a reality and Nuance offer quality trims in matching colours.
Shower Walls – not always the best option for your bathroom
Shower wall in my opinion, is not always the correct option for your bathroom. The finished effect is dependent on the skill and integrity of the installer to get the panels cut right and installed in your home and often the limitations of your home affect how your shower wall is installed. Why? Well:
a. The panels have to be cut in a clean dry and adequate space, often NOT in the bathroom.
b. We need to consider how the installer will move the cut panel into the bathroom via tight / constricted doorways, stairways and corridors
c. The flatness and alignment of the bathroom walls needs to be right for shower wall as there is no room for error.
So what are my conclusions? Shower wall is brilliant product but please don’t think that it is easier to install than tiles.
Shower wall is a great product that can deliver a brilliant looking bathroom but often there are other factors which come into play that may limit the dream installation.
Here at 1st Bathrooms we have installed many manufacturers shower wall products over many years and we have the experience and knowledge to install them correctly. Make sure you choose an installer who has the same skills and experience before you decide to use the product in your home.
