[Tom M]

Back in the 70’s, we tried heat coving Corian much the way we heat formed laminate. Over a bar. Using a torch as a balancer, we would route a relief in the back of the sheet, so it would cove tighter, easier, with even heat spread.

Worked real well, until you tried to cut it. The early sheets of Solid Surface were full of post cure stresses. By thermal coving the splash, you create a whole new bit of resistance against the stresses that were there. As soon as the panel saw hit that point, the whole top blew apart.

With aknealing(sp?), better manufacturing methods, and better heat transfer technology, shouldn’t this be revisited as a viable wet wall coving alternative? Route the relief, to thermoform a fairly tight cove? Should we finsh the rabbet with a bevel bit, or figure on a gradual slope in the CNC?

Wet walls are barely advanced right now. There has to be a way to make it simple, good, and affordable (but never cheap!)

Tom

[Andy Graves]

Can’t you do the same thing with the v-grooving method of coving?

What would you do at the inside corner, or are you just talking about straight tops?

[Tom M]

hmmm…

[Jon Olson]

Tom How Tight of a Cove are you talking about? When we install Wet walls we use a 3 inch Corner that we Thermo-form. Doesn’t Dupont make a cove corner?

Have you thought of using heat bands on the Solid Surface? It might get hot enough to bend 1/4 Material.

[Tom M]

Andy, Jon,

First, thanks for responding.

I probably started this off badly, but what I am trying to acomplish is an efficient way to install shower surrounds, so the materials can be processed quicker. If I can figure out some way to make the installation and shop process cheaper I can sell more. If I sell more, maybe the manufacturers will look at better sizing, which will make the whole product more affordable, so we all can sell these great things called wet walls.

I was at an install today. I pre-patterned the walls when I measured, and it worked great on the back wall (which is predictable). Even the side walls weren’t terrible, but they obviously change a bit after the backwall sheet goes in. We then used the templates and refit them to the walls. Then we transfered the pattern to the sheets, then all we had was some minor fit work to make the sheets perfect.

So I need to either figure out a way to make a quick fit template that I can overlay on the sheet and simply route flush with a top bearing bit (some kind of soft stuff that can harden very fast, to get an easy profile?), Or I need to find a way around the problem.

Coved corners will be a good way to avoid and work around that problem. Andy, I’ve been thinking about the batwing bit after you brought it up, but the problem is you want some type of way to stay close to out of plumb walls. Jon thermoforms to a three inch radius. Pretty darn tight, if you ask me, but do most out of box shower pans allow for that large an inside curve?

Another way is to install, say ,an aluminum corner track, whereby the sheets can interlock, so as to not worry about a fit. With extrusion, you should be able to create a receiver where water can’t work it’s way around corners. Finding an attractive way to do this is tricky, but if you suceed, you will finally have a true do it yourself wet wall kit.

Jon, can you explain the heat bands more?

Tom

[Andy Graves]

Holy Crap Tom, I didn’t even read the name of the thread. MY BAD.

We have thermoformed a tight inside radius for a showe and it was fine. We just don’t like the look much in a shower. It looks better in a Bath application. The radius was prabably a 3″, maybe a 4″.

Haven’t done that but the one time. Now we just put a quarter round moulding in the corner for extra protection. Looks nice and clean and it is easy to make with 1/2″ material.

[Joe Corlett]

Tom:

I’ve found it’s much easier to shim out of plumb walls back to plumb than to try to bend and stick solid surface sheets to them. If you fabricate a coved shower wall and corner like you would a top with a 4″ backsplash to be hard seamed together, you’ve got to shim the walls, because you can’t bend the sheet.

Make the walls come to you, don’t go to the walls,

Joe

[Tom M]

Holy Crap Tom, I didn’t even read the name of the thread. MY BAD.

I actually didn’t see the ctop reference till you mentioned it. I hit the wall when you mentioned the v-groove cove and started thinking from there.

Joe, this is easy to do? Do you run a 6′ level every so often for plumb, or what?

Tom

[Len Smith]

Tom,

We have installed over 10,000 wet walls over the past 10 years, and you are right. A coved corner won’t sit flat on walls that aren’t straight. Most walls really aren’t straight in wood frame houses.

The piece of corner trim you want needs to be a tad flexible to be able to accomodate the walls, and it doesn’t really have to be large. In fact, large pieces of trim start to detract from the design.

[Jon Olson]

Len and Joe. Very good information.

[Tom M]

Len, I have to look at this two ways.

If I were to design an out of box product – I think the corners will have to be “removed” from the equation. This could be done using some kind of aluminum or rigid plastic molding where the sheets slip in and the walls are protected. Oh, it would have to look nice as well.

The other is custom walls, that we install. We used to put up 15# felt paper, made a pattern from that and transfered to the sheet. Nowadays we use strips of ply. If I can remove or simplify part of the transfer process to the sheets, or the fitting of the sheets themselves, it would be a help to reduce job time.

Tom

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