How Do I Install a Shower Wall Panel Kit From Ella's Bubbles?

An Ella shower wall panel kit goes up only after the shower base or walk-in tub has been set, leveled and water tested, and after the glue up flange has been bonded to the edge of the fixture, because the panels must run down over that flange so water drains back into the base. From there the job is measuring each wall, trimming the panels to fit, gluing them to the wall and sealing every joint with silicone, all done by your local licensed installer. Which wall lines Ella offers and how cultured marble compares with acrylic is covered in Where Can I Buy Cultured Marble Shower Walls, and Is Acrylic Better?, and this page walks through the installation itself in order.

Know Which Wall Product You Have

Ella shower products are sold per item rather than as one bundle, so a wall surround is put together from the panels you need, and the installation steps depend on which line you ordered. The cultured marble travertine surrounds come as eight, six or four panel sets. They are made from a natural quartz and granite composite with a gel coat surface, and each panel is light enough that one person can carry and install it. The acrylic 3-panel kit is a different product, with one back panel 60 inches wide and two side panels 40 inches wide, in a 98 or 105 inch height, made of 0.118 inch thick ABS and PMMA composite with a glossy sanitary acrylic surface. Ella also sells 12 inch by 24 inch grout-free wall tile and interlocking click tile by the box, and SMC subway white wall panels as a wall kit. Those are separate products, so tell your installer exactly which one arrived. The steps below cover the glue up panel surrounds, and the video on this page shows the cultured marble panels being handled and describes the surfaces they bond to.

What Must Be Finished Before the First Panel Goes on

Wall panels are one of the last things to go in, and several jobs have to be complete before they are glued:

• The tub or base is level, with every leg bearing on the floor, and the water test is done. Ella's instructions are clear that no wall is finished before that test.
• The shower valve and trim have been chosen with your plumber and the openings marked and cut. An Ella shower wall arrives solid, with no valve cutout and no preset height or offset, so the plumber cuts the openings on site once the valve is in hand.
• Any ceiling fixture location is decided and the wiring above the shower is finished. Ella showers are open at the top, the panels install against the room's walls, and the ceiling above is finished by the room, so a fixture is easier to plan before the walls close in. Can I Add a Ceiling Light Above an Open-Top Ella Shower? covers that planning.
• The glue up flange is bonded to the fixture edge, which is the next step.

Step 1: Bond the Flange to the Tub or Base Edge

Ella walk-in tubs have a flat deck edge with no molded tile lip, so the water barrier at the wall is a glue up flange added at installation. The manual calls for a rustproof, waterproof strip about 5 inches tall, glued to the tub edge with 100 percent silicone so it overlaps the edge by about 2 inches. Measure the total run of edge that meets a wall, the back plus each end, at deck height, and match that to the kit lengths. Clean the edge with the alcohol tissues packed in the kit, then bond the flange with 100 percent silicone. The strip is reversible, and which colored side faces out depends on whether the fixture already has an integral flange. For a shower base the same approach applies, and the flexible strip can go on after the base has been set. The full flange procedure is in My Tub Has No Tile Lip. Which Flange Do I Use?.

Step 2: Measure Each Wall and Trim the Panels

Measure each wall at the top, middle and bottom, use the largest figure, and note any windows, valves or niches the panel must be cut around. Cultured marble panel sizes are fixed at the factory because each panel comes out of a mold. The back panel tops out at 60 inches wide by 96 inches tall, and side panels are molded 30, 32, 34 and 36 inches wide, so you order the size equal to or slightly larger than the wall and trim the excess on site. The edges are factory finished for seamless joining, and the panels can still be trimmed for a custom fit. Cultured marble cuts with a masonry blade in a standard circular saw. A cut edge is finished with a bead of caulk or covered with a 2 inch trim piece, so plan cuts toward corners and the tub edge where trim will hide them.

Step 3: Glue the Panels to the Wall

The cultured marble panels glue over drywall, plaster, painted walls, Durock or even existing tile, which is what makes them practical for a remodel: a sound existing wall does not have to be stripped to the studs. Existing wall tile that is sound and properly sealed can stay, and your installer confirms its condition. Set each panel so it runs down over the flange and onto the deck of the tub or base, since that overlap is what sends water back into the fixture rather than behind the wall. Because the panels install against the room's walls, nothing closes the enclosure at the top. Ella does not offer a dome or ceiling panel, and the bathroom ceiling and the room's ventilation handle steam and moisture.

Step 4: Trim and Seal Every Joint

Once the panels are in place, silicone every joint, including where an extension panel meets the tub and where an end panel meets the wall. Ella carries a 1 inch corner trim in 96 inch lengths for the inside corners and a 2 inch by 3/4 inch flat trim for the gap at the tub, and any cut edge gets either a bead of caulk or the 2 inch trim piece. The result is a surround where the panel edges, the flange and the deck are all sealed as one surface.

Who Does the Work, and When to Open a Ticket

Ella's Bubbles manufactures the panels and ships them nationwide, but it does not perform installations or send technicians. A local licensed plumber or contractor sets the fixture, cuts the valve openings, bonds the flange and hangs the panels, and Ella's support team answers questions about the product while the work is under way. The installation manual for your kit is published with the product listing and is also available from the team, so have it on site before the first cut. If you are unsure which flange length fits, or the walls are already partly finished, open a ticket at ellasbubbles.com/support with your model, a sketch of the alcove with wall lengths in inches and a photo of the fixture edge at the wall, and your Ella dealer or the team at (800) 480-6850 will confirm the kit and how to place it. What a shower kit itself includes and what the plumber still supplies is listed in Where Can I Buy a Complete Ella Walk-In Shower Kit?.

Watch: Transform Your Shower with Cultured Marble Wall Surround | Ella’s Bubbles with chapters and a full transcript.

Related Guides

• Cultured Marble Shower Wall Panels: Stock Sizes, Cutting to Fit, and Finishing the Edges
• How do I seal shower wall panels to keep water out?
• Drilling an Ella Acrylic Shower Wall for Accessories, and Whether Third-Party Window Kits Will Fit

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