Shower – Twisted Wall Studs In Tub Surround

Most tub enclosures, like the one pictured, use a 1/12 to 2" nailing flange down each side and along the top. They are also designed to be used with tubs that have an anti siphon lip along the wall parameter of the tub. It sure looks like you have very little extra relief between edge of tub/tile to the actual corner. In order for the surround to fit snugly to the wall, it must be secured using this nailing flange. I think that you may have to build out the edge of that corner, thus reducing the opening size of the pocket door by an inch or two. This would not be very difficult, but would require some extra finishing work and some changes to door trim etc. If this clearance issue is the same on the opposite side of the tub, the same procedure may be necessary. Also, if you find that your tub does not have the anti siphon lip, extra attention will be needed to seal this joint. If and when you get to the point of tearing out the tile wall, be sure to insulate the stud wall and cover it with a good 4 to 6 mil vapor barrier, tuck tape any joints and the sides and top. This will provide not only water protection, but give you some degree of sound deadening to adjacent rooms. Use only MR (moisture resistant) or paperless drywall to finish off around your new surround. A completely different approach might be to cover the existing tile with a glue on surround kit. Assuming the tile is secure, after carefully cleaning all soap residues and prepping the surface with a dewaxing agent, (isopropyl alcohol for example) trowel on adhesive and install the kit. There are actually some nice surface mount enclosures out there, usually five piece. the box stores typically only have one or two choices and are pretty cheap looking. Check out a specialty kitchen and bath supplier for a much better selection.

I recently took apart the bathroom in my basement. It was a steel tub and I had to bust up the tiles around it to take the screws out, then bust a hole in the other side of the wall to disconnect the plumbing. If you don't need to save it, take your anger out on it. Just be careful not to smash it near the plumbing and be careful to smash it only where it's not directly contacting a stud. If you hit it wrong, you could damage the other side of the wall. I would get everything around it down to bare studs before trying to remove it, just to be safe so you can see what you're doing.

Also, some bath tubs have their base set in thinset. If that's the case, you'll probably need to cut a section of floor board out and replace it.