limestone shower benchI get a LOT of questions about how to build and waterproof a bench in your shower. I’ll touch on the easiest method here, but there are a couple of different methods you can use.

I will describe simple framing of a bench with your substrate over it. You can also use after-market, pre-fabricated benches. Better Benches (google it) attach directly to your wall substrate, the top gets filled with deck mud and it gets tile. There are also several different Styrofoam products available from companies like Schluter and Laticrete. They are made from the same type of foam used for their shower bases. Although they are ‘foam’, once tiled they are more than sturdy enough to support your tile.

While you ‘can’ build a bench in your shower after you form the shower floor with deck mud, it’s always easier to make your bench first. Your floor substrate is flat, your shower floor (should be) sloped. It’s difficult to build a level bench on a sloped floor.

But you can do it if you wanna.

Rectangular frame for shower bench

Rectangular frame for shower bench

As I said typed, the easiest way is to simply frame a bench and cover it with your substrate. The waterproofing is ALWAYS easier if you use a topical membrane. Either a liquid like Hydroban or redgard, a sheet membrane such as kerdi, or a topical board like kerdi-board.

If you are using traditional waterproofing in your shower with a membrane behind your substrate, I will cover that in a little bit.

Triangular frame for shower bench

Triangular frame for shower bench

The rules for benches and concrete are the same as curbs and concrete. If you are building on top of concrete rather than wood use bricks (cinder blocks) to build your bench. Just stack them up to the height you need and bond them to one another with regular thinset.

There is no hard and fast rule to framing your bench. Just build a square frame box out of 2×4’s and put your substrate (cement board, or drywall if you’re using kerdi) around it. It’s really that easy. If you want to build a corner bench then build a triangular frame, or arced frame, to place in the corner.

Arced shower bench

Arced shower bench

The first couple of photos are small bench frames I made for showers. The top one is only 2 ½ feet wide by 1 foot deep. It is 22” high. I normally build them 21 or 22 inches high, but that isn’t required either. The other two are corner benches.

 

 

 

 

 

Slope the top of your bench!

Slope the top of your bench!

Be sure you slope the top of your bench ¼” per foot toward the front of the bench! Water needs to drain off of it rather than collecting in the back of it.

So how do you decide how high to build it? Ask the woman in the house. I’ll let you guys in on a little secret. The bench she wants you to build in the shower? She’s not going to sit on it. She wants it so she can shave her legs. Really. Ask her.

So it really depends on how tall she is and where the comfortable height is for her. Ask her. Starting to see a theme here?

It usually looks better if you build the bench around the size of your tile. For instance, if you have 12” tiles, don’t build your bench 25” high because you’ll have a 1” strip at the bottom. It’s not imperative to get it exactly the size you need it, but keep the tile size in mind while building it.

Kerdi waterproofed bench

Kerdi waterproofed bench

Your bench doesn’t need to be huge. It can even be just a little triangle in the corner, like the one above. It’s for a foot, not a butt.

Once you get it framed and covered with your substrate just waterproof it with your choice of topical membrane. This one is kerdi.

 

 

Kerdi-board waterproofed bench

Kerdi-board waterproofed bench

And this one is kerdi-board.

I don’t have any photos of a cinder block bench, but it’s just as easy to build one. Stack your cinder blocks up however high you want them, minus 2”, with the open holes vertically.  Once you get them stacked up place cinder block ‘caps’ on top. The caps are solid 8 x 16 x 2 inch bricks that fit right over the top of the cinder blocks to give you a solid top.

Once again, make sure the top of your bench, in this case the caps, are sloped ¼” per foot toward the front of the bench.

Once the thinset cures just cover your cinder block bench with your topical waterproofing.

Now, if you are using a traditional waterproofing method it’s a bit different. You need to build your bench BEFORE you put your membrane up on the walls. I really don’t recommend this method, it’s a pain and if one thing is done incorrectly then your bench may leak. But it can be done.

And I don’t have pictures of that either, because I don’t build them like that anymore. But I will answer any questions you may have about them if you leave a comment below.

Frame your bench against your wall framing and put a solid piece of backerboard on the top, making sure it’s sloped. When you run your membrane down the walls, run it down and over the bench, down to the floor overlapping the front of the floor membrane.

Your regular substrate will be installed on the face of the bench (and the sides, should you have them) but you need to make the top of them 1” higher than the frame. The front of your bench is treated as any of the walls. The floor membrane runs up it and the wall membrane overlaps that with the substrate screwed to the front.

Your substrate will stick up 1” over the top of the frame to form a ‘box’ around the top of your bench. Your seat, the top of the bench, is formed from deck mud. The extra 1” will give you an edge for your top and the top is simply shaved flush with the top of the substrate. Tile is bonded directly to the cured deck mud on top of your bench.

You cannot use your wall substrate on top of your bench! It will drive fasteners through the membrane on a horizontal surface – it will create a problem. You need to use deck mud.

If you are going over concrete and using the traditional method you need to build and waterproof your entire shower, then build your bench INSIDE the shower, so the waterproofing is surrounding your bench. There is no waterproofing on the bench itself, it’s all under and around the bench.

If you build your bench inside the shower it needs to be built out of cinder blocks. You cannot frame a bench inside your shower using wood unless you are using a fully topical waterproofing method in your shower.

This is why it’s better, and easier, to use a topical membrane of some sort for your bench. It is, in my opinion, the only way to build a bench. If you want a bench, spend the money for some sort of topical membrane for it.

If you have a bench you cannot use a topical membrane only on the bench with traditional membrane on the walls. There is no way to channel the water from your membrane behind your wall substrate, over the membrane on the bench, then into the floor membrane (unless your bench is built inside your waterproofed shower).

As I said typed, there are many ways to build a bench for your shower. This is the easiest. I realize some of this may be confusing due to different types of waterproofing and lack of pictures. I only build my benches with topical waterproofing, so I just don’t have them.

The important keys are to ensure that your waterproofing on the wall is continuous from the wall, over the top of the bench, and down the face of it, and to ensure that the top of the bench is sloped toward the drain. Anything wooden needs to have waterproofing OVER it, and the waterproofing needs to tie into both the floor and the wall membranes.

I’m absolutely positive there will be questions, so leave a comment in the comment section below and I’ll answer it as best I can. Not necessarily about this method, either, if you have a question about any of the pre-formed benches, better benches, etc., I’ve used most of them and can answer those as well.

Below are a bunch of photos of different benches. Look through them first, you may discover an answer in there. You can click on any of them for a larger version.

{ 329 comments… add one }

Leave a Comment

  • Steven

    So Mr. Elf,

    I have built anything but a simple bench. I have a taj mahal style bench with a sloping back and a separate shower head over the bench so it can rain down scalding hot water on my sore knees and back from tiling the shower. I have two questions and searched for them everywhere on your site. In your book you say i need a two inch drain and i get that but i see their is an available 3in drain. If i have two shower heads that at oddly intermittent times may be running is their a volume issue where i should upgrade to a 3in drain? Second of all in waterproofing my bench i have a lip at the top where i can rest my arms and store empty chocolate milk containers. i plan on sloping that like my curb and should i use blocking in between my bench legs like the walls for a trad. floor?
    thanks bud and good reading like the prose!

    • Roger

      Hi Steven,

      The three inch drain won’t hurt, but it’s not really necessary in anything but a commercial setting. A 2 inch drain is more than adequate for just about anything you’ll put in your shower. Yes, the blocking will definitely help.

      • Steven

        Thanks Roger!

        I would maybe mention to your readers that in modular homes they glue the drywall on to the studs and removing that drywall and adhesive is a miserable nightmare. I would have bought the kerdi manual just to not have to tear that adhesive and drywall off the wall. hind sight 20/20 :-P

    • Steve In Denver

      Steven,

      You may find this helpful – one commenter posts a reference that indicates a properly vented 2″ drain with 1/4″ per foot slope can handle 8.4 GPM flow:

      http://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/87734/how-many-gpm-from-a-shower-can-go-thru-a-2-trap

      • Steven

        Thanks Steve,
        Great read sounds like it was getting a little heated there at the end! I will run with the 2in I am no where near that GPM.

        Thanks again
        Great name by the way!

  • Ann

    So, I’ve built a simple wood frame for my shower bench. 30 in wide, 18 in deep. What do I need for the seat top? Do I need a plywood plank over thr frame, then backerboard? Or is the backerboard strong enough on its own? If I need plywood, how thick? I plan to use a topical membrane when all the backerboard is up.

    • Roger

      Hi Ann,

      The backerboard by itself will be just fine.

  • Bowen

    Hey love the site. I’m in process of waterproofing and tiling my 4×5 shower. I’ve decided to go with a liquid membrane over my cement board as my waterproofing method. I have a prefabricated shower pan with the cement board installed over the the walls of the pan. I want to install a corner bench so I will have to frame over my cement board and on top of my shower pan. I have the cement board coated in the liquid membrane where I plan to frame the bench. I guess my question is, what do I need to do for the 2x4s I will frame onto the walls? I assume they will need to be treated somehow to prevent rot since they’ll be in direct contact with the wall. And will taping my seems in fiberglass tape and liquid membrane be sufficient enough?

    Thanks, Bowen

    • Roger

      Hi Bowen,

      Just build your bench and cover it with backer. Then seal the whole thing with more liquid. Once covered no water will get behind it to the 2×4’s.

  • Steve

    Hey Roger,

    My showers are new construction and I plan on using Hydroban on everything. I would like to build a curved corner bench and have these questions:
    1. I plan on framing it over the deck mud (I can deal with the slope and slope the seat-no problem), then Hardiback it, Hydroban the walls, floor, and bench and then tile everything. Does this sound OK to you?
    2. If so, how do I curve the Hardibacker around the face of the bench? Can I cut vertical lines on the front of the Hardibacker (Not all the way through – much like is done to curve wood), bend it around the face, and then fill in the grooves and smooth out the curve with thin set, then Hydroban and tile?

    Will probably cut a niche out as well and have been reading your article on niche building with great interest. I am building the shower and water proofing it as per your manual and I thank you for the help there.

    Steve

    • Roger

      Hi Steve,

      That sounds just fine. And yes, that is exactly how you ‘curve’ backerboard, unless you use Permabase flex, which can be bent 90 degrees in a six-inch span. Kerdi-board V also works very well, but may be a bit difficult to get a hold of depending on where you are located.

  • James

    Roger,

    The previous homeowner built a bench in my shower. The bench is now leaking through my ceiling of my kitchen below. I removed the cracked grout, and resealed it, and made sure to open up the weep holes in the shower tray/tile wall interface. At this point, I’m out of ideas, and looking (i suspect) and having to redo the entire shower. Any ideas to try before I go through the demo/re tile phase?

    thanks

    • Roger

      Hi James,

      Unfortunately if it’s leaking you need to at least remove the bench and the tiles around it to find out what the problem is. Cracking grout has nothing to do with it, that just indicates that water is getting into your substrate and swelling stuff, that’s causing the cracking.

  • Kent

    Roger – any words of wisdom on installing a marble triangular corner piece that my wife can rest her foot on while shaving her legs? Do I cut notches in the cement board and then use construction adhesive to bond the foot rest to the studs? If so, would I then just caulk the seam between the cut in the cement board and the foot rest itself?

    • Roger

      Hi Kent,

      You can just install the row of tile directly beneath where you’ll have the shelf, bond the shelf in there with thinset against the backer, then notch the tiles on the next row around it. That will lock it in there and it will be more than solid enough. Unless your wife is a ninja – in which case: a) Congrats on that and b) tell her to quit kicking shit.

  • Maggy

    we Are having a shower made. bench is framed for 12″ deep. what is the maximum depth we can do granite/quartz slab? We want it to overlap maximum possible making seat deeper. thanks for your help.

    • Roger

      Hi Maggy,

      If it’s framed for 12″ and you have 1 1/4″ or larger slab you can make it 15″ deep or so.

  • Brandon

    Hello Roger,
    Great site with lots of useful information. Shower question, Im going to build a bench first out of cinder blocks on concrete subfloor. Then do the deck mud. Next, lath over the curb and mud it. Finally coat the Bench, Deck and curb with Hydroban? I would just use the hydraban for the pan instead of pvc liner?

  • LEE

    Roger–I followed your excellent instruction for making a shower floor over a concrete slab. I have hardibacker up on the walls. Everything looks great. We now have a last minute idea to add a shower bench. My first thought was to make a sloped shelf with 2X4s covered with a membrane and hardibacker that fit within the confines of the hardibacker covered walls. We would have to penetate the walls with lag bolts to anchor this shelf. However, after reading more of your instruction, I am questioning myself. Plus, it may be hard to clean the small space under the shelf. Can I build up cinder blocks on top of my mud deck? If not, can I saw out a section of the mud deck and set the cinder blocks directly on top of my membrane?

    • Roger

      Hi Lee,

      You can build it out of cinder blocks inside the shower, just use thinset to level out the bottom row.

  • Josh

    I recently purchased your book, it’s very helpful, I have built a small shower before. I have a couple ?’s. I am building a 50″x98″ shower, it’s new construction, I added the blocking today, how much space do you allow between your cement board & the shower floor? If I do a bench should I build it before doing the pan, or does it go on the finished cement before the tile? If I use the red waterproofing paint stuff will I need the moisture barrier behind the backer? I was considering the trench drain, should I abandon that
    Idea and do the standard drain? Thanks for your help.

    • Josh

      It is a wood floor house

    • Roger

      Hi Josh,

      If you are using the traditional waterproofing method then leave 1/8″ – 1/4″ between the bottom of the backer and the floor. If using topical I run the backer to the floor, then build the floor against it.

      Bench should be built first, treat the front of it as you would a regular wall. If you use redgard – do not use a moisture barrier behind your backer. Drain is completely up to you – both work very well.

  • Chris

    This site is fantastic! I’ve been putting off redoing my bathroom because I didn’t really know what I was getting into with building the shower floor. I’ve had one catastrophic failure with a shower floor in the past and have been hesitant to try again. I just read through your How to Create a Shower Floor series and it all seems so simple now! I also read the post on creating the curb and the one for benches. They are all well written in clear language that is easy to understand. Thank you. I’m heading to Home Depot. (I’ll let you know if my dog explodes.)

  • Matt

    Hi Roger –

    Thanks for this website!

    I have a 4’x6′ shower space. One of the 6′ walls will have a glass door (about 2′) and the rest of that wall is studs (the other 4′), and I want to put a bench (about 3’6″) along that stud wall. But this means I will have a front corner of the bench in the shower pan.

    2 issues I see with that (maybe there’s more?)…
    1- how do I do the membrane on the outside corner created by the bench
    2- the shower floor will have an elevation change along the front edge of the bench. I can deal with that, just not ideal.

    How would you handle this?

    Thanks,
    -Matt C

    • Matt C

      Ok, more research and I think I know what to do with #1… I should build the 4×6 shower pan and durock the walls, do topical waterproofing and THEN make the bench out of cinder blocks inside the shower, right? Then nothing can leak. (and there’s no outside corner or running a membrane up a bench)

      Any trick for #2 – elevation change along the bottom front edge of the bench? (As opposed to a constant elevation all the way around the outside edge)

      -mc

      • Roger

        Oh. :D Yes, building it inside the shower will work. You can level the first row of cinder blocks with deck mud, let it cure, then build the rest of the bench.

    • Roger

      Hi matt,

      I would build everything and waterproof it with either kerdi or hydroban. Topical waterproofing can be used to waterproof the entire bench, inside as well as outside the shower. If I’m misunderstanding what you’re doing I’ll need a bit more detail. :D

  • jody jones

    Thanks for your website. It gave me the confidence to proceed with a shower that was 5 yrs in the making. 6×6 with hardibacker walls and redgard coating. Floor done w/ initial pan (we sloped the 1st pan as well as the 2nd pan) poured, floor membrane and 2nd pour. NOT in that order of course. Now I am building a bench and will use cinderblock method. Hopefully it will not be another 5 yrs.

  • Lynnette

    Question on repairing slope to bench. After finding other flaws in the tile work done on our new addition, I purchased a level and sure enough our bench has a 1/16 slope back towards the wall. Will the entire shower need to torn out in order to property slope and water-proof it? The niche also appears to have been built without a slope, but it doesn’t seem to be collecting a lot of water since it is so high. But should I make him replace that too? I wish I had taken more pictures during the construction, after seeing your pictures I think I am going to lose sleep over whether this guy actually did every step correctly…

    • Roger

      Hi Lynette,

      You’ll need to at least remove the tiles above the back of the bench and on top of the bench to build a new top (properly sloped) and tie it into the existing waterproofing. Once you do that you can replace all the tile and you should be just fine.

  • Barry

    Hello Roger,

    Thanks for all the great information!

    Our house is built on a slab and we’re wanting to add a shower. Since we have to bust up the floor for the plumbing we’re wondering if we could recess the shower floor instead of having a curb? If so, how deep should it be? Thank you for your time and advice!

    • Roger

      Hi Barry,

      Yes, you can recess it. Take the distance from your drain to the entrance in feet, multiply that by 1/4″ then add 1 1/2″. That will give you the recessed amount so you have the correct slope and room for a 1 1/2″ mud deck.

  • bob

    when installing hydro ban with trowl should you let notches dry before you fill in or nock down edges wile wet like they recamend

    • Roger

      Hey Bob,

      I let them cure without knocking them down. That way, you go over it with the second coat with the flat side of the trowel and you are guaranteed to have the proper thickness.

  • Marat Kagan

    HI,
    I’ve learned a ton from your posts, thank you. My question is about Redgard on the shower floor. So far I have the preslope, the pvc membrane and top deckmud done. When it comes time for me to Redgard the walls, do I need to redgard the floor as well?

    Thanks

    • Roger

      Hi Marat,

      No, just the walls. You can paint the redgard out onto the floor 2 or 3 inches if you want, but that’s all.

  • Joe

    Hello Roger,

    We have a newly tiled 48″x48″ shower stall w/ no seat and we really could use one. Other than a demo, can you recommend any methods on installing a corner seat now? I was thinking of bedding in place a preformed seat w/ 3M-5200 or something like it, waterproofing it, sealing the joints w/ the 5200, tile-it, marble seat top, grout the tile and color calk the joints. Any advice is appreciated.

    Thank you …. Joe

    • Roger

      Hey Joe,

      Look into either Laticrete or Schluter foam benches (they make corner ones as well). You can simply thinset it onto the existing tile, waterproof it, then tile it. Easy.

  • Chris

    Hello Roger,
    I am building a corner bench out of cinder block on concrete slab. Read on one website that you should use mortar mix and fill all of the empty spaces in the bench as you build it (including using scrap pieces). I like your suggestion of using thinset to join all the pieces together (since I am awful at mixing mortar). I am building the bench before doing the pitch in the pan. Then Redgarding the whole thing.

    Does it matter if the bench is hollow (using the thinset approach to bonding the blocks) if I plan on using Redgard on the whole thing?

    I used a masonary blade in my circ saw to cut the angles and pieces. Wish I saw that nifty $3.00 blade in the beginning.

    • Chris

      forgot to ask, should I tape the seams where they meet the hardiboard walls of the shower?

      • Roger

        Yes.

    • Roger

      Hey Chris,

      It doesn’t matter at all. I leave them hollow most of the time with surface applied waterproofing.

  • Bryan

    Roger-
    Yes, That’s what I meant. So my plan then is to frame the bench. Pour the floor pan and place the liner up the face of the bench. Then cover bench with backer board and waterproof walls and bench. Thanks.
    By the way do you have a preference on backer board? Den shield , hardi or anything else?
    Thanks again. Bryan

    • Roger

      I like the hardibacker 500. It seems to be the easiest and most available currently.

      • Amy

        Is Kerdi board strong enough for the top of a bench? Kerdi board alone?

        • Roger

          Hi Amy,

          If you have the bench framed then 1″ kerdi board is strong enough for it. If you will not have a frame around the perimeter of the top 2″ kerdi-board can be used. If you just have 1/2″ kb then you should have a sheet of plywood or osb under it to fully support it.

  • Bryan

    Hi Roger,
    My shower is 6′ x 6′. Wanting to put a 6′ bench along the back wall. I am using traditional rubber membrane for the shower pan and hydroban on the walls. My question is why can’t you run the floor pan up 6 inches on the bench, then run the backerboard over the top of that. float all the seems and coat it with hydroban for water sealant. That should take the water into the pan, correct?
    Thanks Bryan

    • Roger

      Hi Bryan,

      Because it may cause a mold sandwich with the backer trapped between your floor liner and the hydroban. There is no reason to do that. You can run the liner up the face of the bench six inches (just like you would a wall) then build your bench with the backer and waterproof it with hydroban, running it all the way down to the floor so it overlaps the liner behind it. Is that what you meant?

  • Rodnelle

    Question:
    Is it acceptable to reguard the walls and use the kerdi sheeting to waterproof the floors?

    • Roger

      Hi Rodnelle,

      Yes. Install the kerdi first, then overlap the redgard onto it.

  • Mark

    Hello Rodger,
    I did not find your website until after constructing a shower stall and as fate would have it my construction methodology follows what you have advised. I will now sleep better. The walls are cement backer board covered with two coats of Hydro Ban. I put a better bench, per the manufactures instructions, in one corner after the Hydro Ban on the walls had dried. This bench is metal with a hole in the bottom and filled with mortar.
    Question 1 – Should I now cover the better bench in Hydro ban and then use fiberglass tape and hydro Ban where the top of the bench meets the wall leaving the bottom of the bench wall connection untreated allowing water to drain . Will this arrangement trap moisture in the bench?
    Question 2 – Is it better to just tile over the better bench to allow moisture to evaporate out of the bench.
    Great website. Wish I had found it earlier would have saved me from hours and hours of reading and sorting though different sources of information. Thank you for your help.

    • Roger

      Hey Mark,

      1. You don’t have to hydroban it if you don’t want to. It’s not necessary. If you do seal the whole thing except the hole in the bottom.

      2. Yes.

  • Marty

    Hi Roger,

    Thanks for sharing all of your knowledge either purchased or free on your website. You take the mystery out of all the confusing and conflicting information available. To me it would be easier to change a jet engine then to build a shower, but hey! that’s what maintenance manuals are for.
    I am making a triangular corner seat in a 5 ½ x 3 ft. shower using 2x4s. My plan is to screw duorock to plywood for the top. I plan to use sealant in all of the edges and then to thinset them. Would like to use marble, granite or solid surface material for the top of the seat. Any preferences? How much of an overhang do I need if any?

    How do I deal with the difference in thickness when I transition the hydroban to the regular bathroom wall, especially at the shower glass? I am using 9 x 13 tiles, the larger side vertically.
    In your liquid topical manual you say to tape and mud the seams the corners after you calk them but in the checklist you only say to tape and mud in-plane backerboard seams?
    Thanks for your help because I don’t want my dog to spontaneously combust.

    PS I don’t own a dog. I have fish and they are already under water. That lets me sleep well at night. Thanks again.

    Marty

    • Roger

      Hey Marty,

      Provided your bench is waterproofed correctly you can use anything you want on the top of it, makes no difference. An overhang is not required but you can if you want.

      All seams need to be taped and mudded, in-plane as well. I’ll need to change that in the manual, I thought it was on the checklist as well. I don’t really understand what you mean by the difference in thickness. Are you talking about the hydroban? If so it’s only about as thick as a credit card, it doesn’t throw anything off. If you mean the board itself then either the backer or the drywall should be shimmed to they are even.

  • Kent

    Hi Roger,

    My shower is 48×80″ with 3/4″ OSB flooring (second floor). My plan is to do a traditional installation of deck mud pre-slope/liner/mortar/tile. I am building a bench in the back corner with 1/4″ slope, and will be using Redgard as my barrier. My questions are:

    1. Should I re-enforce the floor or is 3/4 OSB sufficient?

    2. I have been reading about using Redgard in the floor process but its unclear exactly how that would be done. Is Redgard an acceptable barrier between the preslope and upper levels or would there be a completely different process? or is Redgard even feasible for my floor?

    3. Is cement board the best choice for walls, bench, and ceiling in the shower? if so, what thickness?

    • Roger

      Hi Kent,

      1. The 3/4″ is fine.

      2. You can do it that way or you can do it with a single layer with redgard on top and tile bonded directly to it, but you would need a topical drain for that method. Yes, it is approved for shower floors.

      3. Yes, 1/2″.