To save time and aggravation the downstairs bathroom has got one of those plastic corner shower units installed now. The idea being that it should be easier than building a cubicle myself out of plasterboard and then having to fit a shower tray, tile and grout and connect up various pipes etc.

As it turned out it wasn’t quite as quick as hoped. Assembling all the various bits and pieces and getting the curved shower doors to fit and run smoothly took most of the day. The water connection was very simple, just two screw fittings, but the waste proved a little more tricky.

They provided a flexible waste outlet from the shower tray, but it was very difficult to get your hands in to connect the waste and push the unit back into the corner without kinking the pipe. After quite a bit of fiddling about and some cross words the whole unit slipped into place and the water seems to run away without a problem. I’ve no idea if there is a leak on the waste as you just can’t see properly.

With hindsight it might have been possible to jack the whole unit up in the air 30 cms then make the connections and lower it into place, but when you are up against a deadline and very tired the obvious or alternative solutions don’t always come to you.

In the last week we have also managed to get quite a lot of the other sanitary ware installed. The kids bathroom is basically finished. The painting is finished and it has a toilet, sinks and shower. It’s just waiting for the hot and cold water to be connected to the sinks and shower. The downstairs bathroom is also almost complete with it’s undercoat, toilet and shower. It’s just waiting on a corner sink to be fitted. It’s not much use moving in and not being able to wash and go to the toilet. The kitchen and lounge will have to wait until the last minute.

Nine days to go before we are homeless.