Bath inserts: features, types and choices

The liner in the bath is most often purchased in cases where it is not possible to restore the old coating, and do not want to take water procedures in a rusty container, risking flooding the neighbors. Features of plastic inserts allow you to place them directly on top of the old bowl of the plumbing fixture. At the same time, the bath turns out to be warmer, more comfortable and looks like new. But not only the aesthetic side of the matter matters, because the metal base that has leaked near the drain can lead to flooding of neighbors and even more waste.

How to choose a pad and what should be considered when applying it? Can the liner completely replace the new bath or is this a temporary solution? How difficult is it to mount the liner correctly? To understand these issues, a review of reviews and a detailed analysis of all available options will help.

A bath insert is a finished product made of polymeric materials that fully repeats the size and shape of a standard range of plumbing fixtures. Such an insert allows for the restoration of the outer coating, replaces the worn enamel. The use of inserts on cast iron products with thick walls is especially relevant. During installation, a thin patch will not slip and bend, there will be less risk of voids.

It is worth considering immediately that the insert is made of cast acrylic or composite material in standard shapes. If a bath with original parameters is to be restored, purchased abroad or simply non-standard in depth, height, width, shape, the liner will most likely fail. The material of manufacture also matters. In addition to acrylic, vinyl and a combination of flexible industrial ABS plastic with an acrylic outer layer are on the market.

The main purpose of the lining for the bath is to restore its presentable appearance, extending the life of the product by several years. Do not count on its long-term use. With the estimated acrylic durability of 20 years, the real life of the product barely exceeds 3-4 years.

Among the obvious advantages of the liners in the bath are the following.

1. Comfort level. It is much higher than that of any metal bathtubs, it allows you not to feel discomfort from contact with a cold surface. The bath warms up faster, provides a pleasant tactile sensation.
2. Thermal conductivity. In this quality, acrylic polymers are superior to metal analogues. The cooling rate of water does not exceed 1 degree in 30 minutes, respectively, with a liner, taking a bath will be even more pleasant.
3. Aesthetics. Acrylic bathtubs are considered to be one of the most beautiful. Their coating is always perfectly smooth and smooth, without defects, roughness. Cast iron even after applying enamel remains porous, and this property is clearly visible during operation. Pores intensively accumulate dirt, can become a place of accumulation of pathogenic microflora, mold and fungus.
4. The minimum noise level. Polymers have higher sound-absorbing abilities, so they can muffle audibility when a stream of water beats against the walls of a bath. This is important if you have to take water treatments in the evening or at night.
5. High density. The absence of pores leads to the fact that the material does not absorb dirt in the same way as its more porous analogues. A soft sponge and detergent without scratching particles are sufficient to remove plaque. Rubbing the bath for hours is no longer necessary.
6. Possibility of self-installation. With a minimum set of tools and a second person, even the owner with little experience will be able to cope with the work.

In addition to the advantages, there are also disadvantages that complicate the operation of acrylic liners. The insert itself is much thinner than a regular acrylic bath and it retains its properties only partially. In addition, the product does not remain glossy and shiny for a very long time; easy to scratch and even chop. In multilayer products with a plastic substrate, the lower part will inevitably become visible after some time due to wear of the decorative coating.

All types of inserts for repair method "bath to bath" can be divided into several varieties.

• Cast, made of acrylic. The desired shape is given to them by heating and subsequent processing. The product is solid, with fairly thick walls, uniform throughout the thickness. The manufacturing process is maximally simplified and eliminates the violation of geometric parameters. Such pads are quite durable, but more often deformed when loose against the base of the bath.

• Composite They are made of ABS polymer by casting, then processed from above with a layer of acrylic to give greater aesthetics. The plastic insert is less prone to deformation, it is more elastic, but its service life is significantly shorter. In addition, the acrylic coating may wipe off the surface over time.

• Vinyl. The most fragile, rather slippery, but very aesthetic, with a pronounced glossy sheen. Vinyl should be considered only as a temporary option, providing with its help the restoration of the bath for 1-2 years.

Among the most important parameters when choosing an insert, there are several.

• Coating color. If it is cast acrylic, it should be only white, without impurities and shades. The presence of gray, blue, pink tint indicates the use of low-grade components that do not meet quality standards. Such a polymer cracks rather quickly.

• Wall thickness. It is recommended to check it in the field of boards, where manufacturers traditionally save on materials. The standard is considered to be a thickness of 5-7 mm, but the more it is, the less dangerous deforming loads will be. When pressed, acrylic can bend, but without hitches and too much deformation.

• Material type. If the budget allows, it is better to give preference to cast acrylic. ABS plastic can be used where it is planned to change the bath soon enough and you only need to temporarily close the problem areas.

• The presence of defects. Bursts, damage, scratches, deformations - a sign of violation of production technology or storage rules. In any of these cases, the discovered flaws can significantly affect the service life and characteristics of the product. Small irregularities are permissible except on the edges.

• Size matching. If the liner is selected independently, it is worthwhile to pre-measure all the individual parts inside and outside the bowl of the bath. The shape of the inner pallet must also be taken into account - it can be rounded or with rectangular edges.

The process of installing the liner in the bath yourself is not particularly difficult if you have the necessary tools at hand. But it is better to entrust the installation to professionals, otherwise in the process of work an expensive tab may be accidentally damaged. The insert installation process can be divided into the following steps.

• Bath preparation. Its surface is cleaned of contaminants, the finish is removed from the board (you can skip if there is a free edge of at least 10 mm). All traces of sealants, cement, other construction compounds must be carefully removed. The bowl itself is treated with acidic compounds, degreased with baking soda. Next, you need to dry the coating and remove all traces of household chemicals. This method allows you to do without a complete removal of enamel with a grinding wheel.

• Dismantling drain valves. It is worth considering that the drain and overflow, most likely, will have to be bought anew, taking into account the changed dimensions and wall thickness. When installing the product, the master siphon is often included.

• Preparing the liner. First, he tries on a bath for marking. It is important to make sure that all elements fit snugly together. Technological holes are outlined (they need to be cut independently), edges protruding beyond the sides are cut off. The insert is quite dimensional, it is better to load and unload it from the bath after trying it together.

• Cutting technological holes. It is necessary to file off the edges and cut rounded holes in the bottom and on one of the sides for installing drain valves. Circular cutting is performed using special crowns. It is recommended to use special blades and file for plastic, less damaging acrylic. But in general, the sides can be cut even with a standard hacksaw for metal.

• Application of sealant and foam. The acrylic insert is fixed using a special mounting foam with a two-component structure. Conventional building compounds for these purposes are not suitable.In addition, the drain and overflow holes must be carefully treated with silicone sealant in a circle in several layers - this is necessary so that water does not penetrate between the walls of the bathtub and liner. Foam is applied with a grill along the bottom, sides, edges of the bowl, with a step between strips of about 10 cm.

• Insert installation. It is produced quickly until polyurethane foam has polymerized - there is about 15 minutes to do everything. It is important to place the insert evenly, docking the technological holes, and press it firmly to the bathtub over the entire area. Then a siphon and overflow are mounted, the bathtub is filled with water to provide the necessary pressure on the surface of the material. The polymerization period of the foam is individual - you can find out it from the information on the package.

• Sealing joints. While the liner and the bath are glued together with foam, you can do the sealing of the resulting seams around the perimeter. To do this, a silicone-based sealant with a transparent or matte white structure is used. Further, the perimeter of the bath is decorated with a decorative border.

Opinions of customers about the inserts in the bath can be called quite controversial. Undoubtedly, all consumers note the striking external changes in the appearance of its bowl. It looks quite aesthetically pleasing, the insert completely covers all previous damage and makes the plumbing fixture truly updated. But the joy often turns out to be short-lived and the reasons for this are a violation of installation technology, poor product quality and even non-compliance with operating rules.

Among the positive aspects, the warm surface of the acrylic coating is noted - it is much more comfortable than cold metal. In addition, at the price of an insert, it costs about half the cost of a new bath, less time-consuming to install, allows you to do all the work within 1 day. This method of restoration of old bathtubs allows you to avoid peeling paint from the surface and generally looks quite attractive. Maintenance of such a coating is also simplified as much as possible and boils down to cleaning with soft compositions without abrasive particles in the form of a detergent or liquid soap.

There are many drawbacks to bath inserts. It is noted that they slippery and not too safeespecially for the elderly. With poor-quality installation between the sides of the old bathtub and a new liner, a gap is formed, leaving the feeling that a person is sitting "in the basin." In addition, if water will systematically fall between layers of 2 different materials, it will inevitably begin to “bloom”, exhaling an unpleasant odor.

See how to install an acrylic liner in a bathtub in the next video.