Service
Custom Tile Showers in the Treasure Valley, Idaho
A shower designed around your room's real dimensions, then set tile by tile so the layout lands where it should.
Short answer
A custom tile shower is built on site from separate components — a sloped and waterproofed substrate, a drain assembly matched to that waterproofing, and tile set into the finished enclosure. Unlike a moulded acrylic unit, nothing about it is fixed in advance, so the size, the tile layout, the niche positions and the glass line are all decisions. The quality of a custom shower is decided in the two layers you never see again once tile goes on.
What “custom” actually changes
Most showers in Treasure Valley homes were sized by whatever fibreglass unit fit the framing when the house was built. A custom shower starts from the opposite end: we measure the room, decide how large the wet area can reasonably be, and then build the enclosure to that dimension. The practical result is usually a shower several inches wider, with the controls where you can reach them before stepping into the spray.
- The footprint follows the room, not a stock pan size
- Tile layout is planned so cuts fall at the least visible edges
- Niches, benches and grab-bar blocking are framed in from the start
- Valve and head heights are set for the people who use the shower
- Glass is measured to the finished tile, not ordered off a shelf
Tile layout is a drawing, not an improvisation
Before any tile is set, the walls get laid out full size. We establish the horizontal datum, decide which wall the eye reads first, and work the courses so that the top of the niche aligns with a grout joint rather than cutting through the middle of a tile. Where the shower has a curbless entry, the floor layout is set from the door opening back, so the visible run of tile stays uninterrupted.
A sliver cut at eye level is the single most common tell of a rushed tile shower. Avoiding it costs planning time, not material.
| Tile format | What it does well | What it demands |
|---|---|---|
| Large-format porcelain (24×48 and up) | Very few grout joints, calm modern surfaces, easy to clean | Extremely flat substrate, back-buttering, careful lippage control |
| Standard field tile (12×24, 4×12) | Forgiving, wide selection, straightforward repairs | Layout discipline so courses stay level around niches |
| Handmade and zellige-style ceramic | Depth and light movement no printed tile reproduces | Wider joints, accepted variation, slower setting |
| Mosaic and small-format | Slope tolerance, higher slip resistance on floors | More grout to seal and maintain, careful sheet alignment |
| Natural stone | Genuine variation and a soft, honed surface | Sealing, sensitivity to acidic cleaners, heavier substrate needs |
What sits under the tile
Tile is a wear surface. It is not, and has never been, waterproof — grout joints pass water and so does the setting bed behind them. A custom tile shower only lasts if the layer behind the tile is a continuous, tested waterproofing system tied into the drain. That is why our tile work and our waterproofing are never quoted as separate trades.
- 1Framing corrected to plumb and square, blocking added where anything will be fastened
- 2Substrate installed: foam board or cement board depending on the system
- 3Sloped floor formed to the drain at a consistent, verified fall
- 4Waterproofing membrane, banded corners and a matched drain flange
- 5Flood test held before a single tile is set
- 6Tile set, then grouted and sealed after cure
Building for Treasure Valley water
Groundwater across much of Ada and Canyon County is hard, and it shows on shower surfaces faster than homeowners expect. That informs real specification choices: through-body or glazed porcelain over highly polished finishes, a grout that will not etch under routine descaling, and glass that has been given a factory-applied protective treatment rather than left bare. We would rather choose a surface that survives your cleaning routine than one that photographs well for a month.
Preparing for the build
Before the first day, clear the bathroom and the route to it, take anything off the walls that shares framing with the shower, and tell us which bathroom stays in use and where the crew can park. We bring floor protection, door containment and dust control, isolate the water supply at a point we show you, and clean the work area at the end of each day.
- Selections — tile, grout, valve trim, drain and glass — are confirmed before demolition so a lead time cannot stall the build.
- In a single-bathroom home we sequence the work so the shower is out of service for the shortest possible stretch, and we say up front how long that is.
- Pets and children are kept clear of the work area; there are open drains, power tools and wet membrane in there for days.
Timeline and site conditions
Most single-shower projects run roughly two to three weeks on site once materials are on hand: protection and demolition, framing corrections and blocking, plumbing and electrical rough-in, the complete waterproofing system with its cure and flood test, tile setting, grout, then glass. Glass is templated after tile is set, so the panel often arrives a week or two after the shower already looks finished. Your written scope carries the schedule for your specific shower rather than a stock number.
Conditions found after demolition change that schedule more often than anything else — rot at the base of a wall, a drain that is not where it should be, framing out of plane, or an older pan with no membrane behind it. We photograph what we find, price it, and get your agreement before we carry on.
What drives the price of custom tile showers
Estimates are written after we have seen and measured the shower. We do not publish prices, because a shower quoted sight-unseen is a guess. These are the factors that move the number most, in roughly the order they matter:
- Size of the wet area and how high the tile runs — square footage of tile and membrane is the base of the estimate.
- Whether the drain and valve stay where they are. Moving either means opening the floor or the wall and coordinating a licensed plumber.
- Floor structure. A joisted floor lets a curbless pan be recessed; a slab often means either a ramped approach or cutting concrete.
- Tile choice. Large-format panels, mosaics, natural stone and any pattern that needs mitred or mapped joints all add setting time.
- Waterproofing system specified, and whether a linear drain, bench, niche or steam enclosure has to be integrated into it.
- Glass — a fixed panel, a door, low-iron glass or a custom radius each price differently.
- Conditions behind the old shower, which is why nothing is quoted before we have seen it.
Written scope, exclusions and change orders
Every project is built from a written scope that names the waterproofing system by manufacturer, the drain type, the tile and its layout, the glass, the schedule and the price. It also lists what is excluded, because that is where disputes come from.
Typically included
- Protection, containment, demolition and disposal
- Framing corrections and blocking for benches, niches and grab bars
- Plumbing and electrical rough-in for the valve, drain and any light or fan in the wet area
- The complete waterproofing system, flood test and pan slope verification
- Tile setting, grout, sealing where the material requires it
- Glass templating and installation, final clean and a punch-list walkthrough
Typically excluded and stated as such
- Work outside the shower: vanities, mirrors, bathroom flooring, paint beyond patching
- Hidden rot, mould remediation or structural repair discovered after demolition
- Moving walls, windows or the room's ventilation route
- Whole-house water treatment, though we will tell you when hard water is the real problem
- Owner-supplied materials, which we install but do not warrant
Anything that changes the scope becomes a written change order with its price and schedule effect, agreed before the work is done. Nothing is carried out on a verbal instruction.
Permits and inspections
A like-for-like tile shower replacement often needs no permit, while relocating a drain, altering supply plumbing, changing framing or adding electrical usually does. Jurisdiction follows your address, and the Treasure Valley has several — Boise, Meridian, Eagle and Star each issue their own permits, and county addresses go through the county. We identify permit-triggering work in the written scope and confirm the requirement with the authority for your address before work starts, rather than assuming.
Warranty and aftercare
Our craftsmanship is covered by a 1-year warranty, alongside the manufacturer warranties that come with the waterproofing system and materials specified in your scope.
Idaho contractor registration RCE-57919. Bonded and insured, with the current certificate of insurance provided in writing with every estimate. At handover you get the product documentation for the waterproofing system and tile, plus written cleaning guidance suited to the surfaces we installed and to Treasure Valley water. If something is not right, tell us and we will come back. Request an estimate or call (208) 891-1890.
Frequently asked questions
Related reading
Ready to plan your shower?
Tell us about the shower and what is not working. We will follow up, arrange a visit and put a written scope and price in front of you.