Domakihub How to Fit a Wet Room: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide
Plan, waterproof, and finish a walk-in wet room that lasts for decades.
Reviewed by Domakihub home & decor pros · 2026-06-23 · 6 min read
A wet room replaces the traditional shower tray and enclosure with a fully waterproofed, level-access space where water drains straight from a tiled floor — a smart upgrade for Greek homes, holiday rentals, and hotel suites where style and low maintenance matter. The video above walks you through the complete installation; the guide below breaks every stage into clear steps with the technical detail you need before work starts. Because wet rooms involve structural floor preparation, plumbing connections, and continuous tanking, some stages genuinely require a licensed plumber or tiler — this guide helps you understand what is involved and when to call a professional.
What Makes a Wet Room Different from a Shower Tray
A conventional shower tray contains water within a raised acrylic or stone-resin basin. A wet room removes that tray entirely: the subfloor is built up or cut down to create a gradient toward a linear or point drain, and every surface — floor, walls, sometimes the ceiling — is coated with a continuous waterproof tanking membrane before tiles go on. The result is a barrier-free floor that wheelchair users, elderly residents, and guests can step into without lifting a foot over a threshold.
In Greece the system suits both concrete slab construction (the majority of apartment and villa builds) and timber-joisted floors found in older island properties. Concrete slabs are the simpler substrate; timber floors need a specialised carrier tray or a wet-area cement board build-up to prevent movement that would crack the tanking membrane.
When You Need a Licensed Professional or a Building Permit
Moving a drain or waste pipe — which most wet room conversions require — is plumbing work that must be carried out by a licensed plumber (εγκαταστάτης υδραυλικός) under Greek Law 3982/2011. If the wet room conversion involves removing a load-bearing wall or altering the structural slab, a civil engineer's study and a building permit (οικοδομική άδεια) are mandatory before any work begins. Tanking itself is a skill-dependent task: an imperfect membrane is invisible once tiled over but will cause catastrophic damp damage, so most experienced tilers insist on doing it themselves or closely supervising it.
Electrical work in the wet zone — zone 0/1/2 under HD 384 / IEC 60364-7-701 — must be done by a licensed electrician; only IP65-rated or higher fittings are permitted within 0.6 m of the shower head. Ventilation via mechanical extract fan (at least 15 l/s) is also a building regulation requirement in enclosed wet rooms in Greece.
How to Fit a Wet Room: 5 Key Stages
- 1
Plan the layout and floor build-up
Decide where the drain will sit — central point drain or linear channel along one wall. Measure the fall required: the floor must slope at roughly 1:80 (about 1.25 cm per metre) toward the drain from every direction. On a concrete slab you achieve this with a sand-and-cement screed or a pre-formed wet-room former; on a timber floor you typically need a proprietary carrier tray (such as a Wedi Fundo or AKW TuffForm) that already has the gradient moulded in. At this stage confirm drain position with your plumber, because the waste pipe connection must be made before the floor is sealed. Sketch the tile layout too — full tiles at eye level and cut tiles near the floor look far better than the reverse.
- 2
Prepare the subfloor and install the drain
Strip out the existing shower tray, bath, or floor finish down to the structural substrate. On concrete, check for any cracked or hollow areas and repair with a flexible repair mortar; any movement beneath the tanking will eventually crack it. Fit the drain body and connect the waste pipe to the existing soil stack — this is the licensed-plumber stage if you are re-routing pipework. Bed a sand-and-cement screed to the correct gradient, or position and bond the carrier tray according to the manufacturer's instructions. Allow the screed to cure fully (typically 28 days for a sand-cement mix, 24 hours for fast-setting options) before continuing.
- 3
Tank every surface with a waterproof membrane
This is the most critical stage and the one where shortcuts cause the most damage. Apply a liquid tanking membrane (polyurethane or epoxy-modified acrylic) to the floor, all four walls to at least 200 mm above the highest water contact point, and into every internal corner and around the drain flange with embedded tanking tape or pre-formed corner pieces. Apply two or more coats, allowing each to dry between applications. Pay particular attention to pipe penetrations — each pipe must be sleeved through the membrane and sealed with a pipe collar kit. Once complete, flood-test the floor with 25 mm of water for 24 hours and check for any drop in level before tiling.
- 4
Tile the floor and walls
Use a flexible tile adhesive rated for wet rooms (C2S1 or C2S2 classification under EN 12004) rather than standard white cement adhesive, which can crack under the slight movement that even a concrete slab experiences with thermal change. Begin with the floor, working from the drain outward and maintaining the gradient — use a spirit level regularly. Choose tiles with a slip-resistance rating of R10 or higher (R11 for commercial properties and hotels under Greek accessibility guidelines). On walls, start from a datum line one tile height above the floor, work upward, then cut the bottom row last. Grout with a flexible epoxy grout, which resists mould and does not absorb water.
- 5
Fit the screen, fixtures, and ventilation
Even a fully open wet room benefits from a single fixed glass panel or a hinged screen to stop water reaching towels and the toilet area. Anchor screen fixings into the tiled wall using the correct drill bit (never standard masonry bits through tile) and appropriate rawlplugs rated for the substrate. Install the shower valve, handset or rain head, and any recessed niches — all plumbing connections at the valve must be made by your licensed plumber. Fit the mechanical extract fan (wired by a licensed electrician) with a humidity sensor so it runs automatically during and after showering. Finally, apply a silicone bead — colour-matched to the grout — along every junction where the wall meets the floor and around the screen base; this is the last line of defence against water ingress and needs replacing every five to seven years.
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FAQ
- Can a wet room be installed on a timber floor in an older Greek property?
- Yes, but it requires a proprietary wet-room former (carrier tray) rather than a sand-cement screed, because a rigid screed over timber will crack as the floor flexes. Brands such as Wedi, Schluter Kerdi, and AKW TuffForm make boards and trays engineered for this. A structural survey is advisable first to confirm the joists can carry the additional load of tiles and a former.
- How long does a wet room installation take?
- Allow 5 to 10 working days for a standard bathroom conversion: one day for strip-out and drain work, one to two days for the screed (plus curing time), one day for tanking (plus drying time), two to three days for tiling floor and walls, and one day for fixtures and finishing. If you are using a fast-setting screed and a liquid membrane with a 24-hour cure, the timeline compresses; if you use traditional sand-cement, factor in the full 28-day cure or use a dehumidifier.
- Do wet rooms add value to a property or holiday rental in Greece?
- Yes, particularly for premium holiday rentals and hotel-style apartments aimed at international guests. A well-finished wet room signals quality, is easier for guests to photograph for booking platforms, and eliminates the grout-and-seal maintenance of a tray enclosure. For primary residences, it adds accessible design value — important for ageing owners or future buyers with mobility needs.