What to consider when installing the frame
Since the bathroom has a high concentration of humidity, it is best to choose more stable materials for the frame - metal or plastic. Such profiles do not require additional treatment to protect against pests, mold and water.
The direction of the rails depends on the laying of the plastic panels. If you plan to lay the slabs vertically, the frame should be parallel to the floor. When mounted horizontally, the rails are strictly vertical. In rare cases, diagonal styling is used, but this is technically more difficult to implement. In addition, diagonal cladding will require much more material, there will be a lot of scraps.
If the walls in the bathroom are uneven, sheathing them is somewhat more difficult. Irregularities are pre-closed with spacers made of wood or plastic. Also, on uneven walls, you need to use the level more often to monitor the accuracy of lines and masonry.
Features of care
It is not allowed to use preparations with abrasive components, as well as brushes, hard brushes in the process of cleaning the panels. They damage the surface of products and contribute to the fact that mud deposits accumulate in the formed cracks. Also, you should not use such tools for the reason that they spoil the appearance of the panels.
Most bathrooms are attacked by black mold. To remove the fungus from the panels, you can use special antifungal drugs. Soap stains are easily removed with water, to which lemon juice is added (1: 10 proportions should be observed). A rubber spatula will help remove the dirt that accumulates between the panels.
Criterias of choice
When choosing PVC panels for bathroom decoration, you should pay attention to some design features of the panels so that they last as long as possible.
- The number of elements needed to stiffen. The more such strips are present in the sheet frame, the stronger the material itself will be. They should not be damaged or deformed, this primarily indicates that errors were made during their storage.
- Quality painting. There should be no voids or poorly colored areas on the surface of the panels, the image should be clear and bright.
- Parameters. Each unit of the product must be the same length and width, otherwise, installation problems may arise and the wall will look uneven.
Important! When buying, you need to pay attention to the general condition of the material. Planks to maintain static loads should not protrude on the surface, and the panels themselves should be smooth in appearance and touch, not have bumps, defects and chips.
Types of crates
So, finishing the bathroom is done step by step. First, the old coating is removed, then the pipes are replaced and, finally, the wiring is done. However, this is not enough for the installation of plastic plates; it is necessary to make a crate - a frame. This is a rather long process, in terms of time it is no less than preliminary work. In most cases, wood or metal is used for the crate. Each material has its own advantages, disadvantages, as well as installation features.
Wooden
Natural wood is a strong and durable material, but in a bathroom it is unlikely to last long. So that the wooden frame does not suffer from constant exposure to moisture and mold, pre-impregnation with an antiseptic and a water-repellent coating will be required.
To install a wooden crate, you need to make vertical markings on the walls. The distance between the slats depends on the size of the plastic tile, but usually it is no more than 40 cm. If you increase the pitch, the finish will begin to sag inward. Here is further step by step instructions:
- According to the marking, mounting brackets are installed at a distance of 40-50 cm from each other vertically;
- Next, the rails themselves are attached; to screw them to the mounting brackets, small screws 25 mm long will be required;
- For work, slats 2x5 cm thick are used;
- In order for the frame to be installed evenly, it is necessary to strictly maintain the vertical. For these purposes, you can use the building level.
After the wooden crate is ready, for greater strength, it should be fixed around the perimeter with special corners of a suitable size.
Frame made of metal profiles
To install wall panels in the bathroom with your own hands, in addition to wooden slats, metal profiles are used, the same as for the installation of drywall. The method of erecting the frame is identical to the wooden crate, however, instead of screws, small self-tapping screws are used.
When installing metal guides, it should be borne in mind that from the side wall it will not be possible to screw the end profiles to the mount. To screw the bracket on the side wall side, you first need to fix the profile on the accessible side, and then bend the fastener so that you can screw it on top from the front side.
While metal framing is a bit more difficult to install, metal is superior to wood in many ways. The metal profile is not afraid of water, mold does not start on it, it does not rot from moisture, which cannot be said about wood. How to mount a crate for finishing a bathroom with PVC panels with your own hands can be seen in the video.
Plastic
Plastic rails are mounted in the same way as wood with metal. This crate has several advantages. Plastic slats are lighter in weight, they are more flexible, which means they will not crack under the weight of the panels, as can happen with wooden ones. Plastic easily transfers water, however, compared to natural wood or metal, it is more fragile.
Appearance
There are many PVC panels for bathroom cladding. At the selection stage, you need to choose the right color and ornament. If the bathroom is small, then for finishing it is worth choosing a plain coating of light shades. It can be white, gray, pearl, beige, sand, pale blue, etc. Ideally, the surface of the plastic crate should be glossy, so the small-sized room will visually become larger. If you want decor, it is better to choose a small non-contrasting ornament, otherwise the interior will look too bulky.
To implement the design intent, you can arrange panels of two types
If the dimensions of the bathroom allow, you can choose rich and dark colors for lining up to black. Charcoal glossy walls can look luxurious in combination with the same floor. However, all plumbing and furniture should be white, pearly, milky to stand out from the background. If I use rich or dark plastic tile panels, it is worth equipping the bathroom with good bright lighting. Under this condition, the interior will look harmonious, without catching melancholy with its gloom.
Plastic panels will help to hide all communications in the bathroom
With the help of properly selected patterns, you can visually change the proportions of the bathroom. Plastic panels with horizontal stripes will make the room wider, but it will visually underestimate the ceiling. Vertical lines, on the contrary, make the room taller, narrowing it.
This is important to consider when choosing PVC boards. Options for repairing a bathroom with PVC panels in different colors and textures can be viewed in the overview video
https://youtube.com/watch?v=xeiBgj6XrqY
What are panels
The technology for the production of polyvinyl chloride is not particularly complex. For the manufacture of the material, ordinary salt and refined products are required. All this is crushed as much as possible to the state of a powder, then by forcing a viscous melt through a mold.
For strength, moisture resistance and plasticity, specific additives are added to the mass. And to get the desired shade, it is dyed in different colors.
Material Advantages
Before other finishing materials, plastic panels have a number of advantages, such as:
- Ease at work. Due to their low weight, sheets or tiles are fastened quickly and easily, unlike tiling, which saves time and effort, and the installation of plastic panels does not require any specific skills and knowledge, which is undoubtedly a winning option for a non-professional. Anyone can quickly master the technique of working with panels, while you can do without the intervention of a master.
- Practicality. Under the structures, you can hide any bathroom communications without resorting to additional construction work, and you can also apply a layer of insulation or sound insulation.
- The panels do not require a special surface. If, when working with tiles, an important condition is the initial preparation of the walls, then puttying is not necessary for the panels, and if the walls themselves are even, it is not necessary to additionally prepare the surface before sheathing.
- Moisture resistance. Water does not have a harmful effect on polyvinyl chloride, and, therefore, mold will not form on them.
- Range. The choice of panels is very wide, you can choose the material of any color and shade, both with and without ornament.
- Availability. Plastic panels are a fairly budget option, and also do not require the cost of any expensive tools, accessories and consumables for installation. And in case of damage to the decorative surface, you can always replace it with a new one and for a nominal fee.
There are not very many disadvantages - first of all, it is a weak resistance to mechanical damage. As a result of impacts, dents may appear on the plastic, it is deformed and loses its appearance.
It should be noted that for fastening shelves and furniture, holes must be made very carefully, otherwise the sheet will burst along the entire length or width.
Where to start repair
It is best to decide before the repair where the communications will take place, after which they will hide under the panels and it will be much more difficult to carry out any work. It is also necessary to take care of expanding the bathroom, the crate, together with the panels, hides part of the space. How to prepare a bathroom for finishing with plastic panels with your own hands can be seen in the training video.
Space Expansion
How to start do-it-yourself sheathing with PVC bathroom panels? Before starting repairs, it is recommended to remove the old layer of plaster from the walls. This will not add extra centimeters, but it will allow you to even out the ratio of wall thickness - the panels, together with the crate, will take up about the same amount of space as the plaster, along with the old finish.
Space savings depend on the thickness of the plaster layer. Considering one wall, this seems too small an achievement, however, when transferred to the entire area of \u200b\u200bthe bathroom, there may be enough free space for a narrow cabinet-pencil case or a hanging shelf. Given the dimensions of the premises in houses built during the Soviet period, even a few extra centimeters are important.
In Khrushchev, plaster is often made on the basis of sand and lime, so removing it from the walls will be quite simple. Dust during the repair process will become a much bigger problem, but you can escape from it by using a respirator and goggles in your work. In order not to stain the bath, it is better to cover it with a film.
Pipe replacement
Before installing plastic panels in the bathroom, it is better to completely replace the old pipes. Why is it needed:
- An old, rusty pipeline can leak at any time. If the pipes are hidden behind the panels, in the event of an accident it is more difficult to fix the problem, you will have to dismantle part of the wall, and this takes time, effort and money.
- In place of the old ones, it is better to put plastic or metal-plastic pipes. They don't rust.
- Since the old pipes already recede at least a few centimeters from the walls, the thickness of the crate for plastic panels will be greater. As a result, the bathroom area will be noticeably reduced, which is unlikely to have a positive effect on comfort.
In addition, new pipes will last much longer than old ones, and modern materials are more wear resistant.
Wiring
In modern bathrooms, sockets are indispensable, they are necessary for a washing machine, showers with electronic filling, a hairdryer, electric shavers, etc. You will also need switches, especially if the lighting is at several levels. Therefore, even before sheathing the bathroom with plastic panels, you need to determine exactly where the wires will go out.
But the process of installing sockets and switches in PVC plates is no different from the same on drywall. To better understand how to wire under the plastic panels in the bathroom and install everything you need during the repair, you can watch the video with instructions.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=yKRbGKGd74c
