How to Make Your Own Epoxy Shower Walls

Are you looking for something to bring your old shower to life? If you have the DIY spirit—or if you know a friendly contractor—then epoxy shower walls may be just what you need.

Epoxy is a fantastic material. It’s durable, easy to work with, and it looks incredible. With a little elbow grease, your shower could look just like any exotic natural stone. So, ask yourself…

Do you want your shower to look like Carrara marble? How about fractured jade? Or quartz with natural blue highlights?

If yes, then epoxy will do the trick. And it’s just a fraction of the cost of actual exotic stone. Oh yeah, and epoxy shower walls are lightweight, making them easy for a single person to install them. Altogether, epoxy is a dream for home improvement projects.

We love epoxy shower walls because you can build panels ahead of time. Then, when you’re ready to install them, you can begin your demo and put things in right away. You can tear everything down to the studs, create your template, and start on the panels. And this is all before you finish working on the shower prep for your new epoxy walls! Now, are you ready to start your own epoxy shower transformation? We’ll give you everything you need to know about how to make them. In this guide, you’ll learn:

• The pros and cons of epoxy shower walls
• Frequently asked questions about the process
• A few pro tips Step-by-step instructions
• Links to additional resources and useful products

We also offer many videos about the subject that may help. We hope they give you some ideas about what’s possible—and provide a visual guide for finishing your project.

1. Epoxy is very easy to work with. Any DIYer can handle the project by themselves. You’ll need a few tools and probably a couple of days (to allow for drying). Compare this to tile, which can take weeks to properly prep, lay, and grout.
2. It’s lightweight. That may not seem like a big deal until you try to hoist a giant stone slab. Or until you try to lug a bunch of tiles around! Heavier materials require reinforcements in the shower to support all that weight, which complicates the job.
3. Epoxy is durable. You won’t have to worry about premature wear and tear. It’s also heat resistant, stain resistant, impact resistant, and more.
4. Epoxy is easy to clean and maintain. Have you ever tried to clean a tile shower? Or a stone shower floor? It can be quite difficult. Not so with epoxy, which is much easier to care for.

1. Epoxy does require good prep work. You can’t just glue in epoxy panels and expect them to stay in without issue. You’ll need to renovate your shower first, so prepare for some downtime.
2. Epoxy is slipper when wet. You shouldn’t use bare epoxy for your shower floors without something to keep your grip. On the other hand, epoxy shower walls don’t suffer the same setback.
3. Epoxy design may require some practice. Recreating the look of natural stone is easy, but it’s possible to make mistakes. It’s a good idea to create a test panel to make sure you can get the look you want.

We’ve heard every question on the planet about epoxy projects. When it comes to shower walls, some of the ones we hear the most are these:

• Can you epoxy shower walls? Yes! That’s the whole point of this guide, of course! But it must be done with premade panels—you can’t slather epoxy on existing shower walls and expect it to work. The process is different from that of epoxy countertops.
• Can you epoxy a shower floor? Yes again! Although, as we noted above, it can be slippery. You’ll want to add something to help your feet grip when it’s wet.
• How do you clean epoxy shower walls? It’s just easier that cleaning grout, we can tell you that. You can clean with soap and water or any epoxy cleaning agent you like.
• Is epoxy good for bathrooms? Epoxy is great for bathrooms! If you’re planning to do your shower walls, you might as well do your bathroom countertop, too.
• Is epoxy waterproof? Epoxy is very waterproof. You won’t have to worry about water leaking through your shower walls, floors, or anything else.

Of course, you may have more questions. And we’re happy to answer them! Feel free to drop us a line any time—we’ll try to help you figure out how to make your project succeed.

Every good DIY guide has a few pro tips! Here are some of ours: Our customers love darker stone colors in their showers. Two of the most-loved kits from us are our Black Galaxy Epoxy Kit and our Black Marble Epoxy Kit.

In the Black Galaxy Epoxy Kit , the metallics and colors are:

• 15 grams of silver glitter
• 15 grams of black glitter
• Black epoxy undercoat

In the Black Marble Epoxy Kit , the metallics and colors are:

• 15 grams of black metallic powder
• 15 grams of white metallic powder
• Black epoxy undercoat

Our Carrara marble is also very popular. If you want a lighter look in your bathroom, try out white marble.

In the Carrara Marble Epoxy Kit , the metallics and colors are:

• 15 grams of white metallic powder
• 15 grams of black metallic powder
• White epoxy undercoat

You’ll need to take your shower down the greenboard sheetrock. Check for mold. If you see mold, remove it with mold removal spray.

Then, apply two coats of Ardex SK1 waterproofing membrane to the back of the sheetrock and walls. This is also the best time to adjust the height of your shower head.

Template and lay out your shower panels on your substrate of choice. Use a small amount of acetone to glue Stone Coat templating material together. Use a permanent pen to mark the template with helpful information like window and shower head placement. We often recommend foam panels reinforced with fiberglass mesh.

If installing shower doors, you will need something stout to hang the doors to. We used a plastic solid piece of trim. Router a channel large enough to fit the trim piece to be installed. Use mixed Quick Coat to glue in the screw strip. Quick Coat is a 1:1 ratio by volume epoxy. Mix for 2 min, scrape off excess Quick Coat.

Mix up Quick Coat at a 1:1 mix ratio thoroughly. Add a metallic powder or epoxy dye to color your epoxy as desired. Apply 2 oz per sq ft of quick coat to panel.

If necessary, glue two foam panels together with Quick Coat. Use Tyvek tape or 3 mil plastic underneath the foam to keep panels from sticking to your table.

You’ll need to get the shower area ready for epoxy shower wall panels. We recommend using our epoxy undercoat and then letting it dry for 24 hours.

Measure & mix Stone Coat Countertop Epoxy at 4 ounces per square foot of shower panel. Stone Coat Epoxy is a 1:1 ratio by volume epoxy, mix for 2 minutes with a drill and paddle mixer. Pour mixed epoxy into separate containers (as many containers as colors you will create).

If using the Exotic Pour technique, use a couple colors from each of the following epoxy additives: Metallic Powder, Liquid Epoxy Dye, and Spray Paint. Add in colors and mix thoroughly. Layer mixed colored epoxy back into your larger mixing bucket, taking time to fog spray paint colors between some layers of epoxy. Pour in your colored epoxy in a random fashion.

Apply clear coat in layers. You’ll need to wait for each layer to dry. After you apply your second clear coat, it should be ready.

Remember to remove drips by pushing them down with your brush or trowel.

You’ll also need to waterproof the backsides of the panels. Even though epoxy is waterproof, this step ensures that the walls themselves are also waterproof. Apply two coats of Ardex SKI waterproofing membrane.

Use 100% Silicone to attach your shower panels to the wall. Ensure your walls have a proper moisture barrier installed before gluing your new epoxy panels. Shower walls can be installed by a single person, however, a second (or third) set of hands may make it easier. Two people make the project move much more quickly. Both can fill in joints with 100% silicone (and apply 2” blobs to the panels and walls), but if necessary, one person can also hold the epoxy panels in place.

To keep things where the need to be, apply pressure, tape in place (if needed), and allow to dry.

Use blue painter’s tape to mask off joints. Then, apply 100% silicone to the epoxy shower panel joints. You can remove the tape when the silicone is dry.

After that, screw in your shower head and fixtures. Then, you’re done! You have a beautiful shower that you can enjoy for years to come.

We love epoxy shower walls. They really transform any bathroom into a beautiful statement piece. Epoxy offers so many options for colors, designs, and inserts. You can make anything you want for the shower of your dreams!

So, just remember…You Got This!

OPTIONAL STEPS