Fitting new Shower Tray

[ACIDTECHNO]

I have removed an old kinackered shower tray. It measures 740 x 740mm. Having read a few old threads, I can assure you that it is 740mm. The available space measures 760 x 760mm. Not being able to find a 740mm shower tray, I thought I'd fit a 760mm. Found one on eBay but its states that "Overall External Dimensions 778 x 778mm" .

So.. how can a 760mm tray measure 778mm? The side appear to be perfectly vertical, not sloped, and that is the case with all other trays I've seen.

Is 760mm just a guide, and will different makes and styles be different sizes? If that's the case, its a bit of a risk being one without seeing it and measuring it (unless of course space isn't an issue).

My three walls are in place, so size is an issue. I'm thinking of buying a 700x700 tray I've seen. Yes, its tiny, but there will still be the same elbow room. Is there any reason not to do this? I'll have to make a wood frame and tile it , but I'll have to do that anyway (the actual shower room is quite a bit wider).

The 'frame' that I've removed from around the old tray was tiled directly onto the wood. Is this OK to do?

Any other hints or comments?

 

[Richard C]

Shower tray sizes will always be nominal but +18mm seems rather excessive, have you tried a more reputable source of supply/quality; I’ve not had one that far out. What are the walls made of, can you not remove any plaster/plasterboard to get the tray to? Fitting a smaller tray with a frame around the bottom to make up the difference is not ideal; not only will it look totally naff, it will be a serious weak point. You should never tile over wood other than timber floors & it’ll be a disaster waiting to happen in a wet area, water will inevitably get in & ruin the installation.

Plasterboard even Moisture Resistant must be tanked in wet areas if you want it to last. Tiling isn’t rocket science but there are still many things that can catch you out, particularly if you intend tiling a suspended timber floor. I would advise you read the Tiling Sticky & Forum Archive posts before doing any work or buying materials, it could prevent you making disastrous & potentially expensive mistakes. It’s important to use only quality trade tilling materials of the correct type for your tiles & tile base; cheapo own brand & DIY stuff is mostly crap.

 

[ACIDTECHNO]

Thanks for that great reply.

The tray that I've taken out was already boxed in. The cubicle is quite a bit wider than the tray, so it had a wooden frame that was tiled. I see no other option, other than knocking walls down.

A 760 tray would be a very tight fit, so I thought if its boxed in, I would just be boxing in a little more when using the smaller tray.

To be honest, it looked OK before, I'll just have to keep an eye on the tiles for cracks.