What material do you recommend to waterproof and protect a wall that urinals are hung on? Our church has an acrylic sheet screwed to the wall behind the urinals in the men’s bathroom that also has a shower. After a mission group who was staying there left, we discovered mold growing behind the acrylic.
We need to remove the urinals to take off the acrylic and probably replace the damaged drywall. We are trying to decide if we should tile the wall, just paint it with an epoxy paint, or glue a counter covering material on the wall. What do you recommend?
(FYI, I’m a transplanted Houstonian in Missouri who still tries to follow you!)
Tracy
Tom: No I like that, what really gets me the question is it says mission group came through.
Charlie: Yeah.
Tom: Then we talk about this wall that’s got a problem. I don’t know what the mission group did to it, maybe it’s just not having the mission group visit. Then you can pretty much do whatever you want.
Charlie: You know what the boy scouts used to say.
Tom: What?
Charlie: Leave no trace, and apparently these guys were no boy scouts.
Tom: Well, I guess not, so the best thing is, is don’t let people abuse your bathroom. Quite frankly I think there’s another issue there, maybe you have a leaking gasket on the urinals or something of that nature, because all the products you mentioned will be fine. I wouldn’t use a counter top product, but the acrylic panels are fine, tile is obviously a great thing to do. If you don’t want the mold issue on the sheetrock behind the urinals when you go to replace it, replace it with a backer board first, and go ahead and put your finished material on there that you can wash. Usually that stuff is just there for looking at and for washing to make sure it can be disinfected and cleaned. Sheetrock isn’t always the best bet behind a urinal.
Charlie: Your advice is?
Tom: Use whatever you want, don’t have the mission group back. You asked.
Charlie: Would you go with tile?
Tom: I would go with backer board if you have to replace the sheetrock, and then if you want tile, you want the acrylic board back because it’s got a better backing, or just don’t use one of the things she said a counter top material, no don’t use that.
Got a question?
Click here to ask Tom
Podcast: Play in new window