Bathroom remodel advice - tub surround vs. ceramic tile

[thatguyjeff]

Tile can be repaired. Surrounds get replaced.

[Allecher]

In my 100 year old house in the deep south moisture is always a problem. My remodeler installed a rubber barrier, I think it was called a Schluter pan. I have seen a little bit of mildew on the grout, as expected, but grout is not part of the waterproofing anyway.

[Dewey_Finn]

@Broomstick

I think with surrounds there’s a problem of how do you securely anchor handholds - if you attach them solely to the surround you risk have the surround pull away from the wall. If you drill through the surround you then have to worry about sealing that point or else getting water leaks through the surround. So… not terribly compatible. I’m sure you could find some way to do it, but that doesn’t mean that it would be a good idea to do so.

I think for grab bars, it’s necessary (or at least preferable) to brace the wall behind the finish surface, such as with a 2x8 board perpendicular to the studs. Once that’s in place, you can drill through the finish surface (tile, vinyl or whatever) to secure the grab bars to this board. I suppose you can anchor the grab bars to the studs, but you’re not likely to have studs placed correctly, and it’s also not easy to locate them under the finished surface.