Repair of any premises of the apartment is not only a joyful event, but also entails many issues, which are not always easy to solve. It's nice to see beauty and order in a new renovated room - perfectly clean and even surfaces of walls, floors and ceilings. I would like to make possible finishing touches and final improvements so as not to spoil the overall harmonious structure of novelty and purity. The bathroom is no exception.
Often after repair or moving to a new apartment, you can observe the gap between the bathroom and the walls. There is a need to close this joint so that it does not spoil the general view. In this article, we will try to make out all the most relevant ways to close the gap between the bathroom and the wall. This problem is the more acute, the wider the gap.
Why do you need to close the gap between the bathroom and the wall?
Bathroom - a room in an apartment with a constant wet environment. And it, as you know, is a favorable source for the rapid development and reproduction of various kinds of microorganisms. The result of their activity is the appearance of unpleasant putrefactive odors, fungi and bacteria can damage walls, decoration materials, bathtub coatings, etc. Therefore, when designing and repairing a bathroom, the issue of protecting the room from all possible moisture and water is a priority.
High-quality sealing of cracks between the bathroom and the wall is a solution to the problem of preventing the accumulation of water on the floor during washing and the formation of mold. The methods of such sealing may be different. You can decide how to close the gap between the bathroom and the wall during the installation of new equipment, maintenance, and even after its completion. There are several options for carrying out such work. Each has both advantages and disadvantages.
Joint seams
When installing the bath, at least two of its four sides adjoin the walls. At the same time, it is almost impossible to avoid the gap between it and the wall. In any case, at least a small gap will remain, and you will have to do something with it. More serious problems arise when the length of the wall is significantly longer than the length of the bath. In such cases, between the wall and the edge of the bathtub there may be a large space of several centimeters on one side. But this problem is easily solved. The interior will not suffer if the master knows how to fill the gap between the bathroom and the wall. Sealing the gap between the bath provides for different solutions. The choice of option depends on the width of the gap between the side of the bath and the wall:
- when the width of the lumen is not more than a few millimeters;
- when the width of the lumen is 1-2 centimeters;
- when the lumen width is more than 10 centimeters.
Activities prior to repair work
Before closing the gap between the bathroom and the wall, it is worthwhile to perform a number of preparatory measures. Not only the quality of the entire work, but also the absence of problems during the subsequent operation of this room depends on their implementation. Only then can the owners be calm that the master’s imperfections and oversight did not cause flooding of the neighbors, and mold does not form on the walls and finishing materials, which not only causes an unpleasant smell, but also some diseases.
Before directly filling the gaps between the bath and the wall, it is necessary to check the surface with a special building level. All angles between the walls should be even. If the indicator is far from 90 degrees, it is worthwhile to pre-align the walls.
The bath itself must be installed and fixed in a precisely horizontal position. All work during installation is also best checked by level. Most designs of modern bathtubs allow you to adjust their height with screw legs.
Surface preparation
Before you start sealing the bath, you must prepare the wall for work. First you need to clean it of debris, dirt, dust and residual old paint (if any), thoroughly wash and degrease the surface. The latter is recommended for the edges of the bath. This is an important event, on which the adhesion of surfaces and materials for sealing the lumen depends, and their tightness.
Washing and degreasing the walls should also be done in cases of tiled decoration of the walls of the bathroom. For these works it is necessary to purchase special disinfecting and degreasing household products.
An acrylic bath needs to be attached to the wall in at least three places, the only way to minimize its rapid deformation during operation. For these purposes, experts advise using special fasteners and recesses-connectors on the bathtub body (usually manufacturers place special devices on the outside of acrylic bathtubs for attaching it to the wall).
Decorative masking of the joint
Before starting work on sealing the lumen, you need to not only choose the method of repair work, but also worry about the future decorative appearance of the entire bathroom.
From the way in which the seam between the walls and the bathroom will be closed, from its size and the work performed, it will be possible to plan and events for decorative decoration. The best solution is to match the selected shade of the materials used with the color combination in the bathroom. If this seems a little (or impossible), you can use special decorative materials to match the color of decorative materials in the bathroom. In some cases, which will be discussed below, the same finishing materials that were used to repair the bathroom will help.
Joint sealing a few millimeters wide
The easiest way to seal small gaps of a few millimeters between the wall and the bathroom is to use a building cement mixture or glue, which was used to lay the tiles.
It is better to mix the cement mortar with PVA glue, the consistency of the solution should resemble thick sour cream. For work, a construction spatula is used. The mixture evenly fills the entire joint space, after which the seam is leveled.
It is important to remember that the building mixture quickly hardens and it needs to be leveled in the process of sealing the lumen. This method is recommended for slots no more than 5 mm.
A large gap between the bathroom and the wall can also be cemented with the cement mixture, but in this case it is necessary to attach a retaining profile, which is made of a building aluminum corner of the required width (depending on the gap between the bathroom and the wall).
After completion of the joint, it is possible to do decorative decoration of the resulting seam only after the mixture has completely dried. Experts recommend waiting 24-72 hours, depending on the humidity in the room.
Sealing the gaps with sealants
Another way of sealing can be silicone or other synthetic sealant. It is important that the composition has moisture resistant properties. The stores have a choice of more than a dozen different types of similar materials in different colors. For the bathroom you need to choose acrylic or silicone sealant with moisture resistant properties. Before buying, it is recommended that you read the instructions for use. Today you can increasingly find on sale silicone sealants with moisture resistant and antibacterial properties. This is the best option for the bathroom.
For a small clearance, a small tube of clear silicone is sufficient. Its quantity is enough to seal a narrow gap of a bathtub of a traditional size. If the joint is a few millimeters, you will have to buy a large tube, and for its use a special gun.
The tube with sealant is inserted into the gun, the tip of the package is cut off, and gradually squeezing its contents into the joint, fill it evenly. Synthetic sealants are very ductile and flexible material, it can be perfectly aligned with wet hands. If the seam is quite small, then, after the manipulations have been completed, it will become completely invisible.
Sealants usually dry completely in 7-12 hours. Only at the end, experts recommend final finishing of the resulting seam.
Using polyurethane foam
To seal the lumen, you can use mounting foam. This is one of the options that is suitable for filling a gap of up to 10 centimeters. In the case of a large gap between the wall and the bath (a few centimeters), you must first fix a corner or profile on the wall to the edge of the bath so that it overlaps the seam being sealed (that is, it has a width of several centimeters, not more than four).
When choosing a mounting foam, you should be guided by the same rules as when choosing a transparent silicone. Particular attention should be paid to the moisture resistance and acid level of the material. Polyurethane foam is available in special tubes, for the use of which you will need a special gun.
After filling the seam evenly, you need to wait for the mounting foam to dry, and then cut off its excess with a construction knife, leveling the seam surface. Experts recommend treating the leveled surface with sanitary silicone, which will fill all pores and bumps.
Many, after using polyurethane foam and completely drying it, carry out decorative work for a favorable view of the entire bathroom.
Use of self-adhesive border tape
Today, one of the most popular and quick options for eliminating the gap between the bathroom and the wall is the use of a special self-adhesive border tape. You can buy it at any hardware store. Such a tape is made of polypropylene with mandatory antibacterial impregnation. Modern manufacturers produce tape of different widths and shapes - from 2 mm to several centimeters. On one side, a special adhesive is applied to the tape, which when bonded to surfaces for a long time creates a strong and tight connection.
Using this tape, you can do without additional decoration of the seam. The disadvantage of this method is the short life of the tape, after 1.5–2 years of operation, it begins to wear out and deform, and it has to be replaced.
The border tape can be used as a decorative element. For example, after sealing small joints with a sealant, you can close the resulting seam with such a tape. For strength, it is planted on special liquid nails.
Elements for decorative joints
A plastic skirting board is one of the simplest elements of the decor of a closed gap between the wall and the bathroom. Today they can be selected and purchased in any size, profile, color to match the style or color scheme of the bathroom.
The baseboard is cut along the length of the wall to which it will be attached. At the joints of two skirting boards - in the corners - even sections are made at an angle of 45 degrees to connect them.
After that, each part must be carefully pressed to the selected place and the wall and edge of the bathroom should be glued exactly in the shape of the plinth with a special construction tape. This is necessary for accurate application of glue over the entire surface. To glue the skirting board you need a special synthetic waterproof glue for plastic. It is applied in a uniform layer and allowed to dry slightly. After that, carefully pressing the baseboard, glue it. The joints can be decorated with a special corner for the joints of the skirting boards. This finish will give the work a finished look. How to glue the corner between the bathroom and the wall? For these purposes, the same composition is suitable as for skirting boards.
Another, no less effective way, how to close the gap between the bathroom and the wall, is decorating with tiles, which was used to decorate the bathroom. Here you can not do without a specialist in working with ceramic material, since this is a complex and time-consuming process, in which you have to deal with cutting tiles. For such works, tile glue or cement mortar is used.
Sealing gaps more than 20 centimeters
The most difficult type of work to seal the gap between the bathroom and the walls is the option in which the length of the wall in the bathroom is much greater than the length of the bath installed near it. In cases where the gap is more than 10 centimeters, you will have to work on “building up” the wall to the edge of the bathtub. The surest and most reliable way is additional brickwork. It is carried out by specialists who make a niche or a similarity of a curbstone from a brick, carry out finishing work with tiles. Only after this clearance with such a pedestal or niche will it be possible to close up.
IMPORTANT! When using sealant pay attention to its acid-base level. For the bathroom, it is necessary to choose a neutral level of acidity, since at an increased rate, the substances of which it consists will begin to destroy surfaces.
It should also be borne in mind that when drying and hardening the volume of sealant and mounting foam increases 2-4 times.
After completing the masonry and using the border tape, you should not use the room during the day. It is necessary to give the materials to stick and dry properly.
As you can see from the article, there are several options for closing the gap between the bathroom and the wall. Everyone will be able to choose a suitable method for themselves both in terms of complexity of work and the cost of materials.