Free written scope consultation - allowances, timeline, and change-order rules on paper before a single trade is scheduled
Schluter Bathroom Remodeling: The Orlando Owner’s Guide
A full Schluter-system bathroom remodel in Orlando typically runs $9,000 – $28,000 installed, and we complete most tear-out-and-rebuild projects in 10 – 18 working days. If you’re reading this, you probably already know what Schluter is: the orange waterproofing membrane and drain systems behind a lot of the tile showers going into Central Florida homes right now. What you may not know is that when a Schluter part fails, it’s rarely the product itself. It’s usually the installation around it, and that’s where we come in.
The most common call we get from Orlando homeowners starts the same way: water staining on the ceiling below a second-floor bathroom, cracked grout lines that won’t stop weeping, or tile that sounds hollow when you tap it. The homeowner pulls the spec sheet from their remodel folder, sees the Schluter name, and wants someone who actually works with the system, not someone who’s going to patch over it and hope. That’s a fair ask. Trevor Nash and our crew have been doing this long enough that we can usually tell you what went wrong before we open up the first tile.
Which Schluter Systems We Work With
Schluter makes a whole line of waterproofing and uncoupling products, and they’re not all interchangeable. The KERDI membrane is the flexible orange sheet used behind shower walls and on shower floors. DITRA is the waffled underlayment that goes under floor tile to stop cracks. KERDI-BOARD is the rigid foam backer that replaces cement board in a lot of newer installs. Each one has its own drains, corners, and banding, and mixing products from different series is where a lot of failed installs start.
We carry KERDI membrane, KERDI-BAND, inside and outside corners, pipe seals, DITRA underlayment, and Schluter’s linear and point drains on the truck for most service calls. When we encounter a Schluter shower that’s failing, we identify exactly which series was used, measure the drain diameter (standard is 2 inches, but some older Schluter drains are metric), and match the replacement to the original spec. We’re an independent contractor, not affiliated with Schluter-the-company, but we’ve been using their systems long enough to know which corners fail and why.
Styles & brands we work with
Signs Your Schluter Shower System Is Failing
- Water staining on the ceiling below a second-floor bathroom. This usually means water is getting past the membrane at a seam, often a corner that wasn’t banded correctly during the original install. The stain shows up before you ever see it in the shower itself.
- Grout cracks that keep coming back after you repair them. Grout cracks in a Schluter shower usually mean movement behind the tile. The substrate (the layer your tile sits on) is flexing, and flexing breaks the waterproof seal.
- Hollow-sounding tile when you tap it. Hollow spots mean the thinset didn’t bond to the KERDI membrane. This is almost always an installation error, and it’s not going to fix itself. The tile will eventually crack or come loose.
- A musty smell that won’t go away even after cleaning. Moisture is trapped somewhere it shouldn’t be. In a properly installed Schluter system, water drains to the drain. When it doesn’t, it’s sitting inside your wall or under your floor.
- Loose drain grate or water pooling away from the drain. The Schluter drain is designed to sit flush with the tile and slope toward it. If water pools in a corner, the slope was set wrong, and standing water will eventually find a seam.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterReplacement Cost and What’s Included
In Orlando, a full Schluter-system shower rebuild runs between $9,000 and $28,000 depending on the size of the shower, whether we’re replacing the pan or just the walls, and what tile you choose. The Schluter materials themselves are a small fraction of that cost, usually $1,500 – $3,500 for membrane, board, drain, corners, and banding. The rest is labor, and that’s where the range comes from: tear-out and disposal, framing corrections (Orlando’s humidity warps framing over time), the rebuild itself, and tile setting.
We give you a written number before any work starts, not a range or a ballpark. The price on day one is the price on the invoice. Every Schluter project comes with our 365-Day Done Right Promise: if anything fails inside the guarantee period, we come back and fix it at no charge. That covers the workmanship, the substrate, the waterproofing, and the tile. If we install it, we stand behind it.
DIY or Call Us?
What you can safely check yourself: look for water stains below the shower, tap the tile for hollow spots, and check whether water pools away from the drain. That information helps us diagnose the problem before we arrive. What you should not do is start pulling tile off a Schluter shower wall. The membrane is one continuous waterproof layer, and once you cut or tear it, water gets into places that were previously sealed. You’ll turn a $200 repair into a full rebuild.
If you’re in Orlando and your Schluter shower is showing any of the signs above, call us at (850) 427-6454. We’ll ask a few questions, give you a straight answer about what we think is going on, and schedule a time to come look. Give you the number first, then pick up the tool.
FAQs
A properly installed Schluter shower should last 25 – 30 years in Orlando’s climate. The membrane itself doesn’t rot or break down, which is why Schluter’s product warranty runs long. What shortens the lifespan is installation error or movement in the house, and that’s why we spend so much time on substrate prep before the first piece of KERDI goes up. Call (850) 427-6454 if you’re seeing signs of failure earlier than that.
Sometimes, yes, if the failure is caught early and it’s a single seam or drain issue. We can often repair a leaking corner or drain without tearing out the entire shower. If water has been sitting behind the tile for months, the framing underneath is usually compromised, and a full rebuild is the honest answer. We’ll tell you which one you’re facing before you spend a dollar.
Most Schluter shower rebuilds in Orlando take 10 – 18 working days from tear-out to final grout and silicone. The waterproofing itself needs cure time between coats, and we don’t rush that. We’ll give you a real arrival window and a completion date in writing before we start, and we’ll update you if anything changes.
Yes, we keep KERDI membrane, KERDI-BAND, corners, pipe seals, DITRA underlayment, and common drain sizes on the truck for service calls. For less common parts we order them from our Orlando suppliers, usually within 1 – 3 days. We also work with KraftMaid, Cambria, and Silestone for the finish materials around your bathroom, so the whole job comes from sources we know and trust.
Call (850) 427-6454 to schedule your free estimate. We’ll put the number in writing before anything gets touched.
Written by Trevor Nash, Owner, Penhallow Remodeling Orlando at Penhallow Remodeling Orlando, serving Orlando and nearby areas.
