Bath frame: installation and assembly, how to make your own hands

Baths were made from stone, wood, copper and even silver and gold. But the most popular for today still more prosaic materials: steel and cast iron, covered with enamel, and acrylic, which is gaining increasing popularity. To ensure that the bathroom interior conforms to a certain style, and it was comfortable to use it, an important element, as well as an invisible element, is needed, such as a frame, which holds the bowl and sides. If it is durable, suitable for the chosen model, the bath will be fixed securely, steadily.

The skeleton is absolutely necessary when choosing a font of unusual shape:

• Multifaceted;
• Round;
• Oval.

Generally, products of complex shape can not be reliably secured to walls, and a skeleton is required in the form of a platform. A special frame also supports the wide sides of such baths, which provides them with an even more stable position.

Bath installation principles are approximately the same for the most common types:

• Cast iron;
• Steel;
• Acrylic.

To install a bath of steel or cast iron, it is enough to use the legs, or to attach to the walls an iron corner. More thorough will be the support of bricks, which are then masked with a ready-made or self-made screen. Products made of acrylic, pleasing with the most elegant and creative forms, require a stable support, protecting them from stress and deformation. Despite all the beauty and sophistication, the bottom of the elastic acrylic bath, which is inferior in strength to other materials, can buckle, or even fail to withstand too much weight. In addition, if the sides are constantly deformed, this will eventually lead to moisture penetration into the joints between the bathroom and the walls and the formation of mold and other troubles. Therefore if for a bath of strong steel or reliable cast iron the frame is desirable, then for the longevity of an acrylic bath is vital. Especially, for not too expensive products, having a thickness not exceeding 0.5 mm.

Usually in sanitary ware shops offer skeletons only to certain types of baths available for sale. Unfortunately, not all supporting structures can take out the mass of a bath filled with water with people washing in it, especially if it is not a compact bowl for one person, but a luxurious font with solid dimensions and shapes. In this case, the choice of a strong support and a proper installation should be approached with all seriousness in order to avoid unpleasant surprises in the future.

The vendors suggested series frames can be:

• Prefabricated;
• All-welded.

If you can not buy the right model in the store, it seems unreliable or does not suit its design( universal models are rarely found on sale), the frame can be made by hand from wood, galvanized profile or profile iron pipe.

Attention should be paid to the dependence of the strength and quality of the purchased bath on the number of points of the frame support: the thinner the bath, the more support it requires. The solid welded design also indicates insufficient strength. Remarkably, if only four points are used for a support. If the font has an unusual configuration, a special platform is required to support it, since the usual frame will be unreliable.

Frames frameworks offered with the bathtub are made of square metal section and protected from corrosion by a special coating.

The main elements of the frame, regardless of configuration:

• Supports, at the corners holding the bowl;
• Basic legs, the height of which is adjustable;
• Stiffeners, without which an acrylic font can not be dispensed with.

If the offered finished products do not inspire confidence, do not fit the configuration, there is a desire to save and apply the skills of the home master, then you can make the frame yourself.

To build a frame, you need to choose a material that is strong enough and affordable. The most common types of self-made structures:

1. Of a wooden beam, the positive sides of which are low cost, ease of processing and strength, and a clear defect is the susceptibility to rot in a wet bathroom environment. Therefore, high-quality protective antiseptic surface treatment or the use of wood resistant to moisture: cedar, oak, alder, larch and others;
2. Made of galvanized profile used for gypsum boards. It does not withstand a heavy load, so it is more advisable to shift the entire weight of the bath to the legs and wooden beam, and use the profile for an additional supporting and decorative frame;
3. An iron profile pipe is the most optimal option for a frame that holds a font from any material. Trub forces can become a support even for a non-standard bath of cast iron, but manipulation with a pipe requires the presence of a welding machine and some skills of handling it. Problems with rust are easily solved with a primer.
4. Brick masonry, completely repeating the contours of the bathtub, is a rather difficult task that only a professional builder can accomplish, and a home master who does not have the skills will be difficult to handle, especially if the bathtub is asymmetrical or oval.

The most affordable home-made craftsman to make a frame of wood and moisture-proof plywood or chipboard. The procedure is as follows:

• Construct the base along the perimeter of the bath of the bar;
• Attach vertical racks to it;
• They put boards or timber on them - they will be the top of the frame.

For a rectangular bowl this is enough, if it is, for example, oval, then the frame is covered with a sheet of chipboard or plywood, in which the hole of the desired shape is then cut.

Before proceeding with the installation of the wooden structure, it is necessary to determine the height of the pillars, which directly depends on the preferred height of the frame. It should be as little as possible to use the bathroom in the future was convenient for all family members. Calculate the number of racks, too, is not difficult: they must necessarily be in all corners and additionally fastened every half a meter along the rails.

The installation algorithm is as follows:

1. Use a self-tapping screw with an anti-corrosion coating to attach the wooden base to the concrete floor;
2. Fasten the posts to the base with metal corners or wooden bars;
3. If the stand is adjacent to the wall - fix it on it;
4. Lay the timber over the posts and screw it to the walls and racks;
5. Sheet of 15 mm plywood or 25 mm chipboard fastened from above along the entire perimeter;
6. Using a template provided in the set, or using a saw with a special saw or electric jig saw to cut out the hole;
7. Close the frame on the sides with shields.

It is more convenient to install an acrylic bath after finishing the decoration of surfaces with different materials:

• Drywall;
• Plastic;
• Tile.

The choice depends on the material possibilities and taste preferences of the owner. In this case, a cement cushion is poured onto the bottom of the frame and immediately a bath is placed on it. A little bit more complicated is the installation made before facing:

1. It is necessary to lay pads of plywood pieces, wood, corresponding to the thickness of the future tile and the layer of glue under it;
2. Evenly distribute the gaskets along the entire perimeter;
3. Carefully lower the bath in the hole on the cement base.

Once the solution has finally hardened, you can proceed with further plumbing: connect to water and sewerage.