Drains & Grates

The drain is the part of a shower nobody thinks about until it is wrong. It decides how the floor has to fall, how the tiles get cut, and whether the finished shower looks deliberate or improvised.

The range covers linear stainless grates in 800mm and 1000mm, tile-insert grates, centre wastes and the shower bases they suit.

Linear grate or centre waste

A linear grate is a long channel, usually set against one wall or across the entry. The floor falls in one direction only, which means the tiles can be laid in full sheets without a four-way cut around a centre point. It is what makes a large-format tiled shower floor possible.

A tile insert grate is a linear channel with a recessed tray on top that you tile into, so the drain almost disappears into the floor. It is the tidiest option and the one that suits a patterned or veined tile, because the pattern runs unbroken across it.

A centre waste sits in the middle and the floor falls to it from all four sides. It is the traditional arrangement and it works fine with small tiles or mosaics, which can follow the fall. With a large tile it means a lot of cutting.

Whichever you choose, this is a decision for the waterproofer and the tiler, not the last week of the job — the fall is set when the bed goes down.

Moulded alternatives are in Shower Bases and Tile Trays, and the rest of the shower range is in Showers. Ordered through Builders Warehouse Online.