Sizing the construction job up, they planned the steps together and started by reinforcing the sub-floor below where the pan (shower floor) would be located. They cut and nailed in some 2 x 4s to reinforce the strength, then they installed the lower half of the two-piece drain. They could have used ABS plastic, but decided on the cast iron drain, instead.



They then laid down the plywood sub-floor around the drain. After that, they added some 2 x 4s around the perimeter to create a dam. They understood that there were two different types of pans: the kind with the dam and the kind without the dam, but decided to build the dam type. The next step was to mix the Portland cement with water and sand until it had the consistency of mud. From there they applied it to the floor and smoothed it out to slope it at the rate of 1/4" per foot away from the drain. That way, the water would run effortlessly to the drain. They then left for a couple of days to give the cement time to cure.



When they returned, it was time to lay the membrane down. The water impermeable membrane would insure that the water never leaked out and damaged anything around the shower. They laid out the one-piece membrane across the first layer of concrete and cut it to size, being careful not to puncture it in the process. Suddenly, they realized didn't know anything about installing the shower membrane, or whether the weep holes should be left open or closed. Then, their girlfriends walked in and pointed out that they could have hired a contractor to install it in half the time. So they called up Jake's dad, the contractor, and asked him to come fix the mess of a shower they had created.