Wet rooms, tanking & mosaic
Wet room waterproofing, tanking and mosaic tiling
Level-access wet rooms built the way they should be: correct falls, a fully tanked waterproof envelope photographed before it disappears, and mosaic laid to follow the fall.
In short
Apex Tilers install and waterproof wet rooms across London, Essex and Cambridge. Every wet zone is tanked with a complete manufacturer-approved membrane system before tiling, falls are formed at 1:50–1:80 to a linear channel or centre gully, and shower floors are finished in slip-rated mosaic so the tile follows the fall without lipping.
- Service
- Wet room installation, tanking, waterproofing & mosaic tiling
- Typical cost
- £3,500–£8,000 per wet room; £120–£180 per m² labour
- Typical duration
- 5–10 working days
- Waterproofing
- Liquid membrane, tanking slurry, sheet membrane or backer board
- Falls
- 1:50–1:80 to linear channel or centre gully
- Grout
- Epoxy or flexible anti-mould cement grout
- Standards
- Tiled to BS 5385 and BS 8000-11 practice
- Areas covered
- London, Essex, Cambridge
- Guarantee
- Insured, guaranteed, tanking photographed before tiling
Tiles are not waterproof — the tanking is
Almost every leaking shower we are called to has the same story: tiles straight onto plasterboard, no membrane, no reinforcing tape in the corners, and water quietly tracking into the joists. Grout is porous and silicone eventually moves, so a wet room only stays dry if there is a continuous waterproof layer behind the tile. That is what tanking is, and it is the part of the job you never see once it is finished — which is exactly why we photograph it for you before a single tile goes on.
We install level-access wet rooms, walk-in showers, steam rooms and pool surrounds in London terraces, Essex family homes and Cambridge flats — upstairs on timber joists as often as on ground-floor screed. Mosaic then does the finishing work: because the sheets flex, they follow a curved or four-way fall to the gully that a large-format tile physically cannot, and the extra grout lines add grip underfoot.
Waterproofing systems we use
Liquid tanking membrane
Paint-on flexible membrane over plasterboard, ply or backer board — the standard domestic wet room system.
Cementitious tanking slurry
Brush-applied slurry for masonry, basements and below-ground shower rooms.
Sheet membrane & backer board
Bonded sheet or foam board systems for fast overtiling and awkward timber floors.
Wet room formers & trays
Pre-sloped formers for accurate level-access falls on joisted upstairs bathrooms.
Vapour-tight steam systems
Full envelope waterproofing with ceiling falls for steam rooms and spas.
Leak diagnosis & re-tanking
Tracing water tracking behind tiles, then stripping back and rebuilding the waterproof layer properly.
Mosaic tiling we install
Porcelain mosaic
R10/R11 slip-rated, near-zero absorption — our default for shower floors.
Glass mosaic
Deep colour for feature walls, niches and pool waterlines, set in white flexible adhesive.
Marble & stone mosaic
Basketweave, hexagon and herringbone stone, impregnator-sealed after grouting.
Penny round & hexagon
Small formats that hug multi-directional falls without lipping.
Metro, brick & fish-scale
Bathroom and kitchen feature tiling with tight, consistent joints.
Pool & hot tub mosaic
Pool-grade adhesive, epoxy grout, waterline bands and coping detail.
Same-day quote
Get a fixed price
Send a photo of the wall or floor and your postcode — we usually reply the same day.
How we build a wet room
Six stages, in this order, every time
1. Survey & moisture check
Substrate, joist deflection, drainage route and existing damp are checked before anything is priced.
2. Strip out & prep
Old tiles and failed adhesive removed, floors over-boarded with tile backer or WBP ply, walls made flat and sound.
3. Falls & drainage
Pre-formed sloped tray or hand-screeded 1:50–1:80 fall to a linear channel or centre gully, with a shallow trap between joists.
4. Tanking & waterproofing
Primer, reinforcing tape to every corner and pipe collar, then two coats of flexible membrane over the whole wet zone. Photographed before tiling.
5. Tiling & mosaic work
Solid-bed adhesive, mosaic sheets set to follow the fall, large-format porcelain on surrounding walls and floor.
6. Grout, silicone & sign-off
Epoxy or flexible additive grout, silicone to all movement joints, 24-hour cure, then a water test and guarantee.
FAQs
Wet room tanking & mosaic tiling questions
Everything we get asked about waterproofing, falls, drains, mosaic and grout — for the work itself and for the tiles. Still unsure? Call 020 3519 8007 or WhatsApp a photo of the room.
Related tiling guides and services
Wet room waterproofing explained
How tanking membranes, tapes and collars work together, and where installations usually fail.
Bathroom and floor tiling services
Full wall and floor tiling for bathrooms, kitchens, hallways and large-format porcelain.
Epoxy vs cement grout compared
Which grout to specify for shower floors, mosaic joints, steam rooms and pool surrounds.
Best tiles for a small bathroom
Format, colour and layout choices that make a compact wet room feel larger.
Pool, balcony and outdoor tiling
Waterproofing and mosaic work outside — pool waterlines, balconies and terraces.
Tilers in London
Boroughs we cover, day-rate guidance and availability for London wet room work.