Schluter Kerdi-Board walls, Kerdi-Line drain, large format porcelain tile. They explained the waterproofing system before we signed and the install matched the spec exactly.
Mark R.
Massachusetts · Walk-In Shower
Curbless, frameless, zero shortcuts
Walk-In Shower Installation in Massachusetts
Walk-in shower installation for Shrewsbury and the surrounding towns. Curbless or low-curb. Kerdi or Kerdi-Board waterproofing. Frameless glass. Lines you can measure.
Licensed in Massachusetts Lifetime workmanship warranty 5.0★ / 24 reviews Mon–Fri 7–6, Sat 8–2
Get Your Free Bathroom Estimate
On-site quote, firm number, no high-pressure sales. Response within 1 business day.
Licensed & Insured
Massachusetts HIC #211749
Lifetime Warranty
On our workmanship
5.0 / 5.0
24 homeowner reviews
520+ Projects
Since 2014
Curbless done right
A walk-in shower that's actually watertight.
A walk-in shower is more demanding than a standard tub surround. Water hits every surface. Slope has to be correct to the drain. The waterproofing under the tile has to be continuous — from the pan, up the wall, around niches, through corners. One break in the waterproofing and you're replacing framing in five years.
We build every walk-in shower with a full Schluter Kerdi or Kerdi-Board waterproofing system. Pre-sloped pan, linear or center drain, sheet-membrane walls, pre-formed corners, hot-mopped nothing.
Curbless (zero-threshold) is our specialty. It's harder — the drain has to go below finished floor, slope comes from the pan membrane and mud, framing needs a depressed subfloor — but the result is a shower that looks part of the room and rolls in clean for anyone who needs accessibility now or later.
See all of our Massachusetts bathroom renovation services — from full gut remodels to accessible baths, tub-to-shower conversions and master suite builds — for homeowners in Shrewsbury and the surrounding Central Massachusetts towns.
What's included
Every walk-in shower project includes:
- Full existing shower/tub demo and haul-off
- Framing assessment and repair if rot found
- Depressed subfloor for curbless option
- Schluter pre-sloped pan (Kerdi-Shower-ST or custom mud)
- Schluter Kerdi or Kerdi-Board on all walls
- Linear drain or center drain of your choice
- Thermostatic or pressure-balancing valve install
- Handheld + rainhead or wall-mount combo
- Niche(s) with Schluter waterproofing
- Large-format porcelain or custom tile
- Schluter-Jolly or Schluter-Reno edge profiles
- Frameless tempered glass enclosure
Our Process
How the project actually runs.
No mystery. No surprise delays. Here's the exact sequence.
01
Design + spec
We walk the bathroom, measure, talk slope and drain direction. Curbless or low-curb? Rainhead position, niche size, bench seat or none?
02
Demo + framing
Tear out old shower, inspect framing. Sister joists if deflection is high. Depressed subfloor framing for curbless. Blocking for glass.
03
Waterproof + tile
Schluter pan, Kerdi walls, pre-formed corners. Tile dry-fit. Large format with 1/3 offset. Schluter-Jolly edges. Grout and seal.
04
Glass + trim
Template frameless glass, order, install on cured tile. Valves trim, rainhead, handheld, niche trim. Final leak test, caulk.
Materials We Trust
The brands and systems we spec.
We only install systems we can stand behind for twenty years. No brand bait-and-switch mid-job.
Schluter Kerdi sheet membrane
Orange-fleece PEVA sheet membrane bonded to substrate with unmodified thinset. Seams overlap with Kerdi-Band. 100% waterproof when installed per spec.
Schluter Kerdi-Board
Waterproof foam-core panel — both waterproofing and substrate in one. Speeds install; ideal for out-of-plumb old Massachusetts framing.
Schluter Kerdi-Line linear drain
Low-profile stainless linear drain that enables single-slope floor. Tileable top option for a seamless floor.
Kerdi-Shower-ST pan
Pre-sloped foam tray with integrated drain. Replaces traditional mud-pan builds. Flatter install, faster cure.
Schluter-Jolly + Schluter-Reno-T profiles
Aluminum or anodized edge profiles for tile terminations. Cleaner than bullnose tile, better-looking than mitered corners.
Fixtures: Kohler Artifacts, TOTO, Delta
Thermostatic valves (set-and-forget temperature), rainheads, handhelds. Brands with parts availability in 15 years.
Worth knowing first
Things most contractors won't tell you.
Curbless requires a depressed subfloor
Zero-threshold showers need the drain below the finished floor line, which means cutting the subfloor and dropping the framing 2–4 inches in the shower footprint. Can't do it over a concrete slab without a step-up. We assess on site day one.
Glass is a separate trade
Frameless shower glass is measured from cured tile, so it's the last item. Plan on 10–14 days between tile grout and glass install. We temporary-curtain until it arrives.
Schluter is expensive — for a reason
Schluter materials cost more than mesh-tape-over-cement-board shortcuts. The waterproofing warranty is what you're buying. A failed shower in Massachusetts costs many times the price of doing it right to repair. We don't take the shortcut.
Niche layout is design-first
We lay out the niche on a tile grid so it lands cleanly within the tile pattern, not cut straight through a tile. Small detail that separates a pro install from a contractor install.
What homeowners say
Reviews from walk-in shower clients.
Walk-in shower in our master bath. Curbless, bench seat, niche, beautiful frameless glass. Tile specialist was an artist.
Sarah H.
Massachusetts · Walk-In Shower
Commonwealth Bath rebuilt the framing to get us a zero-threshold shower over our basement. Nobody else would touch it. Great crew.
Peter G.
Massachusetts · Walk-In Shower
Questions
Most-asked about walk-in shower.
Usually no — a slab-on-grade Massachusetts ranch doesn't leave room to drop the drain. We can sometimes build a low-profile barrier-free entry with a single threshold. Framed floors over crawlspace or basement allow true curbless.
Kerdi is a sheet membrane bonded to cement board or drywall. Kerdi-Board is a foam-core panel that's already waterproof. Kerdi-Board is faster for irregular framing; Kerdi (sheet) is the gold-standard for certified-detail installs. We use both depending on job.
10–14 days for the build-out, then 7–10 additional days for glass measurement and install. 3 weeks total is typical for the shower portion of a larger remodel.
Ask us at the estimate. A steam shower needs a full-ceiling waterproof enclosure, a sloped ceiling and a sealed door, so whether it works depends on the room and the ventilation around it.
Linear drains allow a single slope, which plays beautifully with large-format tile. Center drains require a four-way slope and more small cuts. We recommend linear on 80% of walk-in showers today.
Related services
Other bathroom projects we handle.
Ready when you are
Let's start your bathroom.
Free on-site estimate. Firm quote within 48 hours. No high pressure, ever.
520+
Projects Completed
5.0★
24 Homeowner Reviews
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Licensed & Insured Lifetime Warranty On-Time Finish
Get Your Free Bathroom Estimate
On-site quote, firm number, no high-pressure sales. Response within 1 business day.