Converting a Tub to a Shower

The case from the research

CDC found 68.3% of bathroom injuries happened in the tub or shower, and that 37.3% happened bathing, showering or getting out, against 2.2% getting in. Rates rise from 58.8 per 100,000 at 15 to 24 years to 515.3 at 85 and over.

A tub rim is a threshold crossed at the least stable moment. Removing it removes the threshold, which is a more substantial change than a new surface.

Source: CDC, MMWR: Nonfatal Bathroom Injuries Among Persons Aged ≥15 Years, United States, 2008.

What the job actually involves

The tub comes out, the drain moves or is adapted, and the floor of the new enclosure has to be formed and sealed. That last part is the job: a shower floor is a waterproofing problem where a tub was a fixture.

It is also why the work behind the wall matters more than it did — what is found there decides the rest.

What you lose

A bath. That is obvious and it is still worth saying aloud in a house with small children, and worth checking against how the property will be seen later if it leaves no tub at all.

A home with one bathroom and no bathtub is a different proposition to a buyer. That is not a reason against it; it is a reason to decide deliberately.

And what to specify while it is open

Blocking for a grab bar, whether or not a bar goes in now. The ADA dimensions are a useful reference even though they govern public facilities rather than houses, and the cost of putting timber in an open wall is close to nothing compared with opening it again later.

Source: US Access Board, ADA Standards, Chapter 6: Bathing Rooms.