Bathtub installation

Fitting a bath in a new bathroom is the moment that decides whether the tiles laid later finish neatly on the rim, and whether water collects in a corner. The bath has to sit level, have access to the trap and be supported so it does not flex under the weight of water and a person.

How bath installation goes

• checking the alcove size, the waste position and the water supply points;
• assembling the legs or frame, setting the bath in place and levelling it both ways;
• fitting the trap with overflow and connecting it to the waste;
• a leak test: filling the bath, draining it and checking the joints;
• getting ready for boxing in: an access hatch to the trap and sealing tape at the wall.

Acrylic, steel or freestanding

An acrylic bath is light but flexible. Without a frame and support under the base it bends, and the grout line at the wall cracks within weeks. A steel bath is stiffer and noisier, so it is sound-deadened underneath with a mat or foam. A freestanding bath needs the waste brought up exactly beneath it and a floor-standing or wall-mounted tap planned before any tiling.

The order matters: bath first, then the wall tiles that lap over its rim. That way water runs down the tiles into the bath rather than behind it.

What to prepare

• the bath, trap with overflow, frame or legs, and a panel if there will be one;
• the waste and water points ready where the bath goes;
• the tap, if it is going in at the same time;
• a photo of the bathroom and the alcove dimensions in the job.

Common questions