Doesn't kerdi have a niche that's ready for tiling?

 

Will the finish eventually be tile inside the niche

 

Yes

 

Actually, the current shower I'm working on, I didn't feel like building my own niche so I'm trying a Duk Liner for the first time.
http://www.dukliner.com/
It fits between 16"OC framing and is ready for tile. I will just overlap the Kerdi right over the lip.
It cost me around $38USD so if you could come up with something that's as simple to install and in the same price range, yes I could see using it.

MD, Noble makes the preformed niches. Schluter does not (yet?).

 

Actually, the current shower I'm working on, I didn't feel like building my own niche so I'm trying a Duk Liner for the first time.
http://www.dukliner.com/
It fits between 16"OC framing and is ready for tile. I will just overlap the Kerdi right over the lip.
It cost me around $38USD so if you could come up with something that's as simple to install and in the same price range, yes I could see using it.

MD, Noble makes the preformed niches. Schluter does not (yet?).

Angus, is the niche you are using designed to be screwed in on top of the substrate or flush to it?? Is it plastic?

Thanks!

 

noble niches. www.noblecompany.com great product and cost effective.

 

I use and sell these. Currently I'm selling a Matte white 12"x12" x4" for $125 plus shipping and handling. Works out to $149 delivered.

This unit is much better than a built in shower niche as it is simple to install, doesn’t have the nooks and crannies to collect mold/mildew and is a third of the cost of a custom niche. It cleans easily and is the color of most soaps so doesn’t show soap residue . Unit can be retrofitted in existing tiled tub/shower stalls by a qualified remodeler or tile person. Cutout dimensions are 11 5/8 x 11 5/8” x 4” deep(into wall). I sell a matte finish, slightly off white colored 3 or 1 compartment ceramic unit ($125) shipped($24.00) to your house for $149.00. Unit weighs about 13 pounds. I do not guaranty delivery times! You should receive the unit within a week .

This is an example of a competing product, though plastic does expand and contract more than ceramic.
Corian unit http://www.kitchensource.com/bau/tfrecshsohold.htm?utm_id=1101

 

I use and sell these. Currently I'm selling a Matte white 12"x12" x4" for $125 plus shipping and handling. Works out to $149 delivered.




This unit is much better than a built in shower niche as it is simple to install, doesn’t have the nooks and crannies to collect mold/mildew and is a third of the cost of a custom niche. It cleans easily and is the color of most soaps so doesn’t show soap residue . Unit can be retrofitted in existing tiled tub/shower stalls by a qualified remodeler or tile person. Cutout dimensions are 11 5/8 x 11 5/8” x 4” deep(into wall). I sell a matte finish, slightly off white colored 3 or 1 compartment ceramic unit ($125) shipped($24.00) to your house for $149.00. Unit weighs about 13 pounds. I do not guaranty delivery times! You should receive the unit within a week .

This is an example of a competing product, though plastic does expand and contract more than ceramic.
Corian unit http://www.kitchensource.com/bau/tfrecshsohold.htm?utm_id=1101

While I agree that these would be easier to install, I can't imagine sticking one of those big white things in the middle of the tile jobs we do. Perhaps in a tub surround where the tub is white, but in a tile shower,...don't think so.
I think a properly installed tile niche looks a lot better and (again, if installed properly) will not harbour mould or mildew.

 

No offense but, those white ones look lke they came out of a RV or something.

 

Sorry Mark but I'm with Jarvis and Warner. Those niches may have a place but I don't ever see needing one for a shower we'd build. Has almost a Bath Fitters look to them.
Good luck selling them. :thumbsup:

 

Those really take away from the tile. I would not feel right charging my customers for a tile job and a nook and just slapping one of those in. Might as well just use a shower surrond, easy to install and will match those nooks!

 

Those really take away from the tile. I would not feel right charging my customers for a tile job and a nook and just slapping one of those in. Might as well just use a shower surrond, easy to install and will match those nooks!

Dear PlatinumLLC,

Oh oh... not another negative comment about the RV soap dishes!!

(expect a PM asking you to remove those dastardly comments!!)

 

I don't like the pre-fabed niches because tile varies extensively in size. And like kevjob's picture, the niche is a small 2" high cut into the next row of tile. It would have looked a lot better to have the top of the niche flush with the bottom of the next course of tile.
It's not that hard, and doesn't take much time to screw in some framing and backerboard and brush on waterproofing. And this way it fits exactly as should.
What if you run into some wierdo framed wall studs? Then you'll be scratching your head over a pre-fabed niche.

I'm not going to comment on those things mark has pictured.

 

I don't like the pre-fabed niches because tile varies extensively in size. And like kevjob's picture, the niche is a small 2" high cut into the next row of tile. It would have looked a lot better to have the top of the niche flush with the bottom of the next course of tile.
It's not that hard, and doesn't take much time to screw in some framing and backerboard and brush on waterproofing. And this way it fits exactly as should.
What if you run into some wierdo framed wall studs? Then you'll be scratching your head over a pre-fabed niche.

I'm not going to comment on those things mark has pictured.

I will agree, it doesn't really take that long to frame, backerboard, and (in my case) cover it with kerdi, however, their is one thing to keep in mind.

When I build a recessed niche I will cut a piece of 1/2" concrete board to fit the back and adhere it to the back of the existing drywall on the other side.
What happens 10 years down the road when the HO or next HO decides he wants to or has to re-drywall the wall that you have built the niche into??

I normally use a few dabs of silicone then make sure the side pieces are tight to the back. Once kerdi'd it is very solid.

Would you wreck the niche (and therefore the tile job) if the drywall is pulled off the back?? Chances are probably good that the back of the niche would be ok, but...



Anyway, thanks for the input Matt, I hope they are keeping you busy in your neck of the woods!

 

When I'm making my niches, I use only two cut pieces of 2x (top and bottom blocking). Then I push the framing through a table saw to make a width that I'm able to fit the 2xs in with a square of cement board screwed to the back of them. Then I screw the top stud in first, and then the bottom. Screw some backerboard strips over the 2x. Waterproof it. Take a lunch (to give time for waterproofing liquid to dry) and then tile it.

 

What waterproofing liquid do you prefer when doing your niches? I have seen a few different kinds tilers are using when I visit townhome construction sites around the area. Just wondering thanks

 

I like the ceramic dishes i have them in my house, i use them on every job, my customers are always happy with them. Corner caddies suck they take needed space and look like they belong in a trailer home.

 

Mr. Jarvis

Pictured on your website, most your projects seem to be close quarter shower stalls where you include no niches or the opposite, corner caddies. Why is your preference corner caddies? I see one of your customers has a wire shelf that hangs on the shower head, I forget what they call those? Do you feel corner caddies go well with mud set pans?

Anyone have pictures of their niche’s they would be willing to post?

http://www.remodeling.hw.net/bath/high-drama.aspx

 

Mr. Jarvis

Pictured on your website, most your projects seem to be close quarter shower stalls where you include no niches or the opposite, corner caddies. Why is your preference corner caddies? I see one of your customers has a wire shelf that hangs on the shower head, I forget what they call those? Do you feel corner caddies go well with mud set pans?

Anyone have pictures of their niche’s they would be willing to post?

Well, it looks like you have taken the comments about your soap dishes pretty personally.

As for the jobs on my website (which is going on three years old with no updates - which reminds me to get some new photos taken and together),
There are 10 bathrooms shown, 3 have corner dishes, 5 have recessed soap/shampoo niches and 2 (Huron Street), we re-used the original porcelain soap dishes at the customers request.

My preference is Tiled recessed soap shampoo niches. Does that mean thats all I have used in the 20+ years I have been doing this?? Absolutely not.

And as far as your comments about my customers wire rack (which is called a wire rack), that was something they added after we were done.

And Finally, "Do I feel corner caddies go with mud set pans"

About as much as the RV soap dishes you are trying to hawk.

PS: as soon as I get some time to take some pics I will post them to show you what soap shampoo niches should look like.:whistling:whistling

 

Sweet, I coined the term for those!!:laughing:

Seriously, they are ok but, in my opinion, look like an after thought.

Like, ****, I wanted a recessed shelf, what can we do.

I am sure they work for you, thats just not my bag.

 

Sorry dude, I ripped off your phrase!! But damn, it fits well!!

 

If $125 is our cost, I think they are a bit too expensive.

I'm not against them, there are different clients and different budgets, no different then one client wants an acrylic surround, another wants swanstone, another wants cermamic tile, another wants porcelain, another wants stone and the last one wants sheet granite. All different price points all different budgets.

I like having different options for different types of customers, those plastic things would be a nice option for the low end customer. But not at $125 our cost, that wouldn't make much sense.

 

When we are asked to do niches, i will recomend a total stone unit. My stone yard will fabricate a custom niche the exact size and design that i need, if the shower is tile, i will match a granite or marble that works. If the shower is stone, my niche will match perfectly. On average i pay about 350 per niche. G. Note, the niche will have a 2'' face frame that allows me to pop it right in to a rough opening, the faceframe overlays the cut tile edges, neat and clean. Gene:thumbsup:

 

These units are Ceramic and weigh about 14 lbs.

 

These units are Ceramic and weigh about 14 lbs.

Is that drywall I see at the top of that rough opening?:blink::no:

 

This unit was ceramic, granite, and travertine (the chair rail) and doesn't weigh NEARLY that much, but I bet it looks alot nicer.

Oh-- and I made the money-- not some manufacturer:

 

This unit was ceramic, granite, and travertine (the chair rail) and doesn't weigh NEARLY that much, but I bet it looks alot nicer.

Oh-- and I made the money-- not some manufacturer:

Nice Niche Bill!!

 

Thank you. Don't get me wrong, Mark. Although that one WAS built on site, I don't mind using one of the others that have to be tiled over. They only cost 20-30.00. But considering that for most 12x12 niches I only CHARGE 125.00 (not the one pictured!), I might as well just have them put in a one piece fiberglass unit-- that'd be even faster!

Only one problem-- I'm not doing this as some sort of philanthropy, trying to help out companies in the industry. I'm out to make money, and it does me no good if I'm giving it all away in materials.

 

Here's a niche we did a little while back.
Although it's a little bit of a pain, I like to do some custom framing to widen the area in between the studs for a larger niche. Sometimes those shampoo/conditioner bottles can accumulate space.

 

Matt-- that's pretty sweet. I like the "panel" on the wetwall, too. I'm about to gut the main bathroom in my own house and the niche I was to do is going to look very similar to the one you did there, with the arched top. Probably the only difference is I'm going to see if there's any way I can "fabricate" a pronounced "keystone" for the center of the top of it.

Is that drywall I see at the top of that rough opening?

I just took a close look at that pic, and I think I can barely make out a "tinge" (technical term) of grey. Looks like it's probably Denshield.

 

Those are some nice looking niches. I've got a customer now that wants me to put one in the shower that I'm doing as part of the full bath remodel. I'm inclined to build it myself rather than use a prefab. It's an old house and the walls under the tile that I'm ripping out are plaster. I have no idea what I'm gonna find when I start the demo.

Bill, just a quick question on that niche you made. Why did you miter the top corners of the travertine and not the bottom? Was that your decision or the customer's?

 

Why did you miter the top corners of the travertine and not the bottom? Was that your decision or the customer's?

That was my decision. I wanted it to be a skirt, as opposed to part of the framing. I wanted to make sure I got the shelf out past the stone so it would act as a true drip edge. I thought about it later and probably should've "returned" the two ends with miters and plugs, which is what I'll do next time. I still liked the way it came out, though.

 

Oh, so do I! I was just curious.

I've looked at your site and some of your pics over at John Bridge's site as well and am very impressed with your work. Now, if I could just convince myself that I REALLY need that Target saw...:laughing:

In the job I'm planning for right now, I definitely have to buy a bigger saw. I've got a small one (7") that's been a real workhorse for me over the past few years. I'm getting tired of renting for the jobs with bigger tile that I get and it's probably time to bite the bullet. My current job is about 200 sq.ft. of marble. It's a small bathroom, so I'm sure there'll be a fair amount of cuts, not to mention the sh!tload of holes I'll have to cut/drill to accommodate the $1,200 shower system my customer picked. :w00t:

 

See, I'm at the other end of the spectrum. I'll swear by that saw, but there are times when it's just TOO damn big. I was in Lowes last night, and they had a Felker TM-75 for about 260.00. I'm thinkin real seriously about it. For something like doing the main floor of a house, or large format tile, I'll still use the Target every time. But for something like what I'm doing right now-- I've got three showers out on an island, and bringing the Target across is almost completely out of the question because of the freight I'd be charged. That little Felker would be just the ticket.

 

If it's not a Kerdi Shower, 9235. :thumbup: