What happens during a shower rough-in?
With the wall open, we set the valve body at the height you'll actually use it, run hot and cold to it, run the riser up to wherever the head is going, and set the drain and trap arm at the right slope for the new floor. Then it gets tested and left for the tile crew.
Valve height and depth matter most, and nobody thinks about them. Set the valve body too deep and the trim plate won’t reach the tile; too shallow and the escutcheon stands proud of the wall. We set it against the finished thickness — backer board, thinset, tile — not against the studs.
Which shower valve should I pick?
Pressure-balance covers most bathrooms and is the code minimum for scald protection. Beyond that you're paying for temperature precision and for running more than one outlet at a time.
| Valve type |
What it does |
Worth it when |
| Pressure-balance |
Holds temperature steady when a toilet flushes. One handle, one outlet |
Almost always. This is the default and the code minimum |
| Thermostatic |
Set an exact temperature and get it every time, independent of volume |
You want the same shower every morning, or someone in the house is temperature-sensitive |
| Thermostatic with volume control |
Separate handles for heat and flow |
You're running a head and a handheld and want both dialed independently |
| Diverter or multi-outlet |
Splits one supply between head, handheld, and body sprays |
Multiple outlets — but the supply has to be able to feed them. Ask us first |
That last row is where people get disappointed. A rain head plus three body sprays wants more flow than a half-inch supply will give, and running them together gets you four weak outlets. If that’s the shower you want, we size the supply at rough-in, the only time it’s easy.
Can you move the shower drain?
Yes, and on a slab house it's the single biggest line item in the job. The drain and its trap sit in the concrete. Moving them means cutting the slab, digging out, re-plumbing the trap arm at proper slope, then patching the concrete back before anything gets built on it.
Worth knowing while the layout is still a drawing. Keeping the drain where it is, even a foot off ideal, can be the difference between a straightforward remodel and one with a jackhammer in it. We’ll tell you which category your plan falls into before you commit.
How does this get sequenced around the tile crew?
In order: demo, our rough-in, inspection if the job is permitted, pan and waterproofing, water test, tile, then our trim-out. The water test is the checkpoint worth insisting on: the pan gets plugged, filled and left to sit, and tile goes on over something proven. Skipping it is how a new shower leaks in year two.
A whole bathroom coming apart at once is remodel work, and the sequencing gets tighter because the vanity and toilet are moving too. A shower that only needs the valve replaced doesn't need any of this — that's shower repair.
Does a shower remodel need a permit in Red Oak?
Replacing a valve in place generally doesn't. Once you're relocating supply lines or the drain, or breaking slab to do it, you're in permitted and inspected territory, and the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners requires a licensed plumber for that work. A Responsible Master Plumber license is what lets us pull it in our own name and meet the inspector.