remodeling basement shower

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jaydub2010

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new to posting here. wanted to get some advice. I'm remodeling a shower in a basement. old fiberglass shower pan and subfloor removed. The drain is a galvanized pipe with about 2-3" exposed out of the concrete. The problem is, that the previous shower pan drain, was not connected very well and had some leakage that had been going on for some time. The threads on the galvanized drain coming up through the concrete slab are rusty and are starting to erode. I had planned on using a 2" female ABS adapter to screw to the top of this drain and connect to a new shower drain and pan using ABS. so my questions are..
1) if the threads on the galv pip were intact, would that course of action been appropriate?
2) since I can not use the threads on the drain to screw to, what are my options for hooking up a new drain and shower pan?
Appreciate any advise
 

Cacher_Chick

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If you are installing a traditional pan with a mud bed, I would use a fernco coupler to transition the galvanized to ABS or PVC.
 

Jadnashua

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Is the new shower a one-piece pan, or are you going to do a tiled shower and traditional pan with a liner?

In either case, I'd feel more comfortable cracking up some concrete to see what's really there, assess its health, and deal with it. If the riser and trap are galvanized, the whole line back to the main drain might be. If the part you can see is corroded, the rest could be as well. I'd feel better digging up to at least the trap and see what condition it is in. Transitioning to plastic pipe from there is easy. Galvanized drain lines tend to rust, then they trap hair, lint, and other crud, get narrow, and don't drain well. Eventually, they rust through, and you are seeping into the ground, and it can empty the trap, and let sewer gasses into the house.
 

jaydub2010

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Thanks for the replies. I was planning on replacing it with a one piece pan ( no mortar bed etc). It appears that the damage is mainly just the threads of that stub out. The section of the galvanized pipe just below the threads is intact and not very damaged. I'll have to take a closer look at it to be sure. Was hoping not to have to break uo teh concrete but I'm you Jadnashua, want to do it right and not have to worry about it later on. I thought about using a fernco connector but since I'm not doing a traditional mortar bed shower pan, will that be an issue with the one-piece fiberglass shower pan?
 

Cacher_Chick

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It depends on how much room you have. The clamps on the coupler will need to be tightened before the pan is set. If there is room to transition to an ABS stub, then you can set the pan with a glue-in ABS drain.

Most one-piece pans should have some mud under them to prevent flexing.
 

jaydub2010

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there should be room. the shower pan will be sitting on a "raised" subfloor. that is, I am coming up off the cement slab 2-1/4" (1-1/2" + 3/4") to match the rest of the subfloor in the bathroom there. I know that the slab is a little uneven in the area under the shower. (debated about using a little self leveling cement first in the appx 32"x32" shower pan area) but figured if I end up putting some mud/mortar/plaster under the pan I should be able to level it that way. Any suggestions on what material works best under the pan? or should I do the self leveling cement?
oh hey should I put anything on the pipe stub out before attaching the coupler (plumber's putty or silicone)?
 

Jadnashua

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The connector is designed to attach to clean pipe...nothing else is needed as long as you torque the fastener to spec. The least expensive thing to put down would be deck mud (mostly sand with enough portland cement in it to hold it together). Some people like structolite. SLC would level the floor, but unless the pan is solid and flat, you wouldn't get the full support of something that you could smush the pan down into.
 

jaydub2010

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going to be using a Lasco Bathware two piece unit. (sold at HD) Is that a solid enough pan?
It sounds like the best move is to mix up some self leveling cement (SLC) and lay that down, then build the floor up from that?
 

Jadnashua

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SLC is way more expensive than what you need. You can level the pan in deck mud, plaster, stuctolite. Those also have the advantage of filling in irregularities on the bottom of the pan when you smush it down so it is level.
 
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