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It is often presumed that contemporary showering solutions – in particular wetrooms – are not suitable for installing into period properties. However, a recent project has dispelled this myth by installing a wetroom in an almost impossible location: a disused lift shaft in Forde Abbey – a Grade One listed building and heritage attraction located in Dorset.
This project demonstrates perfectly the possibilities open to period property owners, or contractors working on renovation or conversion projects, who want a modern showering solution.
Current Forde Abbey steward, Alice Kennard, had found leaking bathroom products to be one of her major concerns and problem areas, affecting the extremely valuable decorative plaster ceilings at the property.
The solution to the problem was to create a wetroom within the space of a disused lift shaft using a number of innovative, leak-free wetroom solutions.
Firstly, a self adhesive waterproofing product was chosen for this project to tank the wet-floor area to guarantee a leak free solution – crucial in a setting like Forde Abbey where original features and antique ceilings would be impossible to replace if damaged. The project specified Impey's Waterguard. Once the Waterguard is applied, the fleece membrane, which features a one-sided self-adhesive butyl rubber backing, does not need any curing time which means tiles can be laid straight away.
To add to this, Waterguard comes with pre-formed corners making the process even more straight-forward and time-efficient. It’s also extremely durable, consisting of a Copolymer based sheet that can be used with epoxy grout and solvent based sealers which are not suitable for bitumen-based waterproofing products.
Neil Whitehead, from Impey Showers, said: “Impey’s Waterguard created a watertight barrier which will ensure that no water escapes when the wetroom is in operation, so it was ideal for the job especially for a period property like this. The family did not want any more leaks and yet they needed somewhere to shower. The fact that you don’t need to leave Waterguard to cure was appealing too because it meant the tiles could be laid straight away, saving time and money.”