a drain

[fosgate3]

Okay... the master bath has a 32 x 32 shower in it. I want to make something bigger. It's a foundation home, so i cant easily go in and re-route the drain. I am thinking of going to Lowe's and getting one of those 32 x 48 shower floors and building my own shower, however, the drain on that is in a much different location than the drain the house. Is it possible to build the floor of my new shower up about 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 inches and then elbow some 3 1/2 inch pvc from the new shower floor drain to the original drain?

"All that you touch and all that you see is all your life will ever be" - R. Waters

[LazyPup]

The first problem you would encounter is that they don't make 3-1/2" PVC so you would then have to choose between 3" or 4".

The next problem would be that all fittings used on a drain system must be DWV (drain,waste & vent)fittings.

All DWV fittings have a radius curve to insure a smooth flow under gravity pressure.

In order to make an offset such as you propose you would need one elbow up and one down and each elbow requires 12" vertical clearance for the radius of the bend, therefore you would need to elevate the floor a minimum of 24". Obviously this would not be pratical.

There is another, much simpler alternative. Construct a site built shower pan and use the drain in its present location.

Under the International Residential Code the minimum size of a shower pan is 32" x 32" (Uniform Plumbing Code is 34" x 34" but the maximum is only limited by your budget and imagination.

The floor of the shower pan must be pitched not less than 1/4" per foot nor more than 1/2" per foot from the outer edge of the pan towards the drain opening.

There must be a vertical dam not less than 2" nor greater than 9" above the finished shower floor around all four sides of the pan.

The pan must have a waterproof liner constructed of 3 layers of Hot Mop type 15 felt paper or PVC or Polethelene liner membrane.

The liner must cover the entire floor, extend up and over the damn, and must extend an additional 3" above the top of the damn on the walls.

There may be no mechanical fasteners installed through the membrane.

At the door opening the liner must extend up and over the threshold and be attached on the outside of the threshold.

The walls must be watertight until they are 72" above the drain elevation.

The door opening must be a minimum of 22" wide and must open outward.

The shower head must be positioned so it will not discharge in the direction of the door.