How to build shower niche in established shower?

[lockers]

Just after ideas on whether this is doable, I really like the look of the shower niche/shelf built into the shower wall.  Our shower have large wall tiles that would be perfect size to build a niche in but I have read you shouldn't do it as you would damage the waterproofing behind the tiles.  Now I would have thought once you created the niche you would just waterproof that area anyway. Has anyone done this before, or have any tips.

[Vis-á-vis]

Hello lockers,

Your waterproofing should be a continuous and uninterrupted membrane that terminates at a leak control (puddle) flange under your tiles at your waste. 
You can’t just waterproof a small area as you would be creating a seam that water can find it’s way under. 

[MitchellMc]

Hi @lockers,

It's great to see you've already received a helpful reply from one of our resident experts @Vis-á-vis. As they've mentioned, you should never penetrate your shower membrane unless you are prepared to redo the entire bathroom/shower waterproofing and tiles. 

The membrane continues from the floor right up the wall to 1800mm. By cutting out the hole for the niche, you'll also be cutting through the membrane. If you attempted to re-waterproof that area, it would be next to impossible even if you removed all the surrounding tiles. There will always be a seam, which is not considered good practice.

A niche is something you could work into a future renovation. In the meantime, check out our range of shower caddies and shelves.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[lockers]

Thanks everyone,  best to find out your idea isn't good before cutting a hole in the wall.  

[EricL]

Hi @lockers

I understand how frustrating it can be when you have bottles of shampoo just lining up on the shower floor and you keep kicking them down. I'm sorry you can't cut into your shower wall, but perhaps it's time to invest in an upmarket shower caddy, one that doesn't rust, that can take a beating and will last just as long as the house. I'm talking about the aluminium shower caddy. 

When I first saw the aluminium shower caddy I could not believe that they've managed to shape it and weld it in such a manner. I've always thought of aluminium as a difficult metal to mould into shape. But I'm happy to be wrong, these shower caddies will last a lifetime if taken care of properly. 

If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.

Eric