I'm going to be building shower niche in an upcoming remodel and, when everything is stripped down, drywall will be on the other side of the studs.
What's the best practice for constructing a niche in this situation? I imagine that waterproofing and tiling directly on the back of the drywall is not recommended?
My current thought is to press fit some cement board into the back of the niche, but not actually adhere or bond it to the drywall. I would put sealant around the edges of the back piece so when I put the side/top/bottom pieces in, they bond and seal. In addition the side/top/bottom pieces would be bonded to the studs/blocking. The final construction would be a backpiece sealed and bonded to the side/top/bottom pieces, which are bonded to the wall frame.
My reason for doing this is because I don't like the idea of tilework being structurally dependent on the drywall in the room behind it.
What's the best practice for constructing a niche in this situation? I imagine that waterproofing and tiling directly on the back of the drywall is not recommended?
My current thought is to press fit some cement board into the back of the niche, but not actually adhere or bond it to the drywall. I would put sealant around the edges of the back piece so when I put the side/top/bottom pieces in, they bond and seal. In addition the side/top/bottom pieces would be bonded to the studs/blocking. The final construction would be a backpiece sealed and bonded to the side/top/bottom pieces, which are bonded to the wall frame.
My reason for doing this is because I don't like the idea of tilework being structurally dependent on the drywall in the room behind it.