We remodeled our guest bathroom 4 years ago @ $4,500.
Our master bath is tub and toilet only. Sink in separate dressing area.
We saw a showroom of acrylic tubs with 3 sided walls. Looks like
tile but very shiny (fake looking). It is mold and mildew resistant.
The tub is basically a mold that fits right over the old tub and the wall
is installed over existing wall. This concept relieves us from tearing
out anything which will reduce the cost and troubles.
My question is:
What experience do you have with this type of material?
Is this the material that new homes are using?
Is it as easy to clean as they claim?
Are you glad you switched from porcelain tile to acrylic?
Thank you for any response.
In the rental properties we have I prefer the one piece showers and tubs. They are much easier to maintain then tile. The problem is that a tile bathroom has more resale value then the inserts. Now the house I live in here in Florida has a shower like what you are describing and I find that it is a breeze to clean. I do have city water here and had well in PA so that may make a difference too.
If you want a really nice looking bath that is easy to clean, find a local Granicrete installer in your area. You can check out Granicrete at www.Granicrete.com and find an installer. Be sure to ask for references.
Granicrete will last you forever, not scratch and you will love the look.
My father and stepmother have these types of units and hate them. I think they are planning on tearing out at least one and going back to regular tile. The tubs/showers started to look pretty worn quickly. They installed them back in 2001 so maybe 10 years is the lifespan? Not sure.
I had one bathroom renovated and a new bathroom installed fairly recently. To cut corners, I went to Lowes myself and picked up all the tile. They have some really beautiful stuff at decent prices. I think the floor tlle I picked out was only .88/tile and the wall tile was something like .54/tile. I'm really happy with it. I had the contractor use a darker shade of grout to help keep it newer looking longer. The white grout stains/ages really quick.
Good luck!
I have porcelain tile in my master bath and acrylic in the kids bathroom. The porcelain tile hasn't been hard to clean. I specified 12" square tiles to minimize the amount of exposed grout, and keep a large scrub brush in the shower so I can scrub off any little spots while I'm in the shower, as soon as I see them.
I thought the acrylic would be easier for my kids to clean (they keep up their own bathroom). It is one piece, shower and tub, with no fake tile texture. The kids use softscrub to clean it but the soap scum build up is pretty thick and never comes completely off. There are also brown dirt and water stains that are hard to remove. My son who is in charge that bathroom is pretty diligent about cleaning.
My recommendation is to stick to a real tub and tile in the master bath. Most acrylic looks cheaper and doesn't wear as well. To save money, you can buy a coated steel tub instead of porcelain covered cast iron, then use large tiles on the side walls. This will lower the labor costs to install. Perhaps use a row of smaller decorative tiles near the top if the large tiles look too big and boring to you. Get a rod and pretty shower curtain to save money and cleaning, rather than paying for a glass shower door.
Those acrylic "rebath" type inserts are great for rentals or anywhere that will get really high traffic but won't be properly maintained. But they do look cheap... or at least, cheaper than tile. Think about resale value - if you have a high end house you may lower the value a bit. But if you have a lower priced house, it may fit in just fine.
Our master tub and shower was made of this. All of the new home builders are using it. Starter homes up to $350K homes. Here are my thoughts. It's VERY easy to clean. I like that. However, over time, it will scratch (surface scratches) and yellow. The scratching isn't that big of a deal, as it is not that obvious. The yellowing does bother me, however, I hear they can be sanded down a bit and they will look like new again. We've never tried this. It will chip too. I had a tiny chip in my bathtub and a chip in my sink. Overall, I was happy enough with it. It's not gorgeous but at least it looks clean and not outdated. If you can have the bathtub insulated though, do it!!! The water will not stay warm long. We have an insulated bathtub now and I had no idea what I was missing. I was also told that you should never fill an acrylic tub with only hot water on a cold winter morning. It could crack. Anyway, if you are looking for a cheap remodel, I think the acrylic is a good choice.
One last thought. I agree with the poster below. The life span is probably no more than 10 yrs. It will hold up but start to look a little gross. This is exactly why we remodeled.
