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Schluter Bathroom Remodeling: The Los Angeles Owner’s Guide
Schluter bathroom remodeling in Los Angeles typically costs $10,620 – $33,040 installed, depending on whether you’re replacing a failed waterproofing layer, rebuilding a shower pan, or doing a full tear-out to the studs. We stock Schluter-KERDI membrane, KERDI-BOARD, DITRA, and the associated profiles, corners, and mixing valves on our trucks, so most failing Schluter systems get diagnosed and priced the same day. Where most Los Angeles homeowners first notice trouble is tile grout darkening at the shower floor edge, a musty smell that won’t clear, or water staining on the ceiling below a second-floor bathroom.
If you’re reading this, you probably already know something’s wrong. The question is whether it’s a $500 repair or a $15,000 rebuild. Here’s how to tell the difference before anyone touches a hammer.
Which Schluter Models This Applies To
We work with the full Schluter shower system lineup: KERDI-SHOWER-KIT (the pre-sloped tray with integrated drain), KERDI-BOARD shower walls, KERDI membrane over mud beds, and DITRA-HEAT under floor tile. The compatibility point that trips up most Los Angeles homeowners is this: KERDI membrane is not interchangeable with DITRA, even though both look like orange fabric with a grid pattern. KERDI is waterproofing for walls and shower pans; DITRA is uncoupling and waterproofing for floors. Using DITRA on a shower wall is how you get a $12,000 mold problem inside a wall cavity in Silver Lake.
Check the edge of your membrane. KERDI says “KERDI” in a repeating grid pattern; DITRA says “DITRA” and has a different grid pitch. If the membrane is older than about 2019 and shows white or light-gray fabric instead of the current orange, it’s likely an earlier-generation product and should be evaluated by a pro, not patched. We source OEM Schluter from authorized Los Angeles distributors. We’ll quote aftermarket corners or profiles only where the manufacturer’s spec allows it, and we’ll tell you the difference in writing before you pay anything.
Styles & brands we work with
Signs Your Schluter Bathroom Remodeling Is Failing
- Grout stays dark at the shower pan edges. Water is wicking up through the tile layer because the KERDI seam wasn’t lapped the required 2 inches, or a corner wasn’t sealed. The water’s not draining out; it’s sitting in the mortar bed.
- Musty smell that returns within days of cleaning. Mold is growing in the substrate behind the tile or under the pan. Sanitizing the tile surface does nothing. The wet layer has to come out.
- Loose or hollow-sounding floor tile outside the shower. DITRA or DITRA-HEAT was installed over a slab without the proper mortar, or the subfloor flexed beyond spec. Tile cracking at the doorway is the classic Los Angeles sign of slab movement.
- Water stains on the ceiling below an upstairs bathroom. This is a full waterproofing failure. The leak gets past the pan, travels the plywood, and finds the lowest exit. By the time the paint bubbles, the subfloor is already swelling.
- Shower drain emits a sewage odor after rain. The Schluter drain assembly’s bonding flange wasn’t sealed to the tray, or the weep holes are blocked. Depending on your Los Angeles neighborhood’s drainage, this can pull sewer gas back up through a cracked seal.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterReplacement Cost & What’s Included
For a Schluter system repair in Los Angeles, expect $5,310 – $14,160 for a shower pan replacement and KERDI re-waterproofing, and $10,620 – $33,040 for a full bathroom remodel that includes new KERDI-BOARD walls, a new DITRA-HEAT floor, and tile. The spread depends on shower size, whether we’re removing tile only or opening walls, and whether a second-floor bathroom requires ceiling work below.
| Scope | Installed Price Range (Los Angeles) |
|---|---|
| KERDI shower pan replacement only | $5,310 – $14,160 |
| Full Schluter shower rebuild (walls, pan, drain) | $10,620 – $33,040 |
| DITRA-HEAT floor waterproofing under tile | $2,360 – $7,670 (adds to shower scope) |
| Tub-to-Schluter-shower conversion | $4,130 – $11,800 |
Every number above is a written, line-item quote before demo starts. No change orders at the door. The 365-Day Done Right Promise covers the full install: if the Schluter system leaks or the tile fails within that year, we return and correct it at no charge. That’s the Garrison Standard, in writing, in your hand before we cut into anything.
DIY or Call Us?
You can safely check a few things yourself: confirm the membrane type by reading the grid text, check whether the KERDI seams show a continuous lap along the corners, and look for loose tile that indicates substrate movement. What you should not do is cut into a KERDI seam and try to patch it with silicone or a hardware-store membrane. A bad patch over a failed lap just hides the leak behind a new surface, and by the time mold shows up in a hallway grout line, you’re doing a full tear-out.
Schluter waterproofing only works when the substrate, the mortar, and the lap sequence are right. We do this sequence every week across Los Angeles; it’s not a weekend job. Call (903) 568-7222 and we’ll send Curtis Lane out to look, tell you straight what’s failing, and give you a written price.
FAQs
A properly installed Schluter KERDI system lasts 30+ years in Los Angeles. What shortens that life here is not the membrane; it’s the building. Earthquakes shift framing, slabs crack, and older Los Angeles homes move enough to break the tile bond long before the waterproofing fails.
A failed KERDI seam at a corner can sometimes be repaired if the water exposure is caught early and the adjacent substrate is dry, but a saturated mud bed or a pan that’s lost its slope cannot be patched. We’ll tell you which one you have before quoting anything. Call (903) 568-7222 for a straight diagnosis.
A shower pan replacement with KERDI re-waterproofing takes 3 – 5 working days in Los Angeles, including flood-testing. A full Schluter bathroom remodel runs 2 – 4 weeks depending on tile selection and whether we’re moving plumbing. We sequence demo-to-drywall so your bathroom isn’t torn apart any longer than necessary.
Yes. Our trucks carry KERDI membrane rolls, KERDI-BOARD panels, inside and outside corners, mixing valves, KERDI-DRAIN assemblies, DITRA, and DITRA-HEAT mats, plus the unmodified thinset Schluter specs require. We also keep commonly needed complementary parts: Kohler and Moen trim, KraftMaid and Wellborn vanity hardware, and Cambria and Silestone thresholds. Most Schluter repairs in Los Angeles start the day we diagnose them. Call (903) 568-7222 and we’ll put a written price in your hand before any work begins.
Written by Curtis Lane, Owner, Bradford Remodeling at Bradford Remodeling, serving Los Angeles and nearby areas.
