Plumber question (SE)

S Ebels

What's the advantage of acrylic vs fiberglass when considering a tub/shower enclosure? These would be one piece units. Any preferred brands or are they all basically the same. Son in law wants to know.

Steve(not a plumber)Ebels

Mike T., Swampeast MO

Acrylic is harder, less porous and more colorfast than "fiberglass". While you can't use abrasive cleaners with either, the acrylic supposedly doesn't get dirty/filmy as rapidly and is easier to clean. Might not make a big difference in basic (not incredibly bright) white, but nearly everyone recommends acrylic with dark or bright colors.

eric_2

STEVE

Acrylic is a "baked" on hard as nails finish the has a lot more sheen to it. It's a much nicer finish than fiberglass and is a must use if you're going to be using a steam system. Most acrylic are enclosed with a cap to keep steam in. Fibergalss is a sprayed on finish that's not as thick or shiny as acrylic. Check Kohler or Maxx units on the web.
Price is quite a bit higher on acrylic than fiberglass. If you need any more info, feel free to drop me a line.

Bob Gagnon plumbing and heating

i have had

problems with acrylic, but not with fiberglass, Aker makes a good unit, the thickest i have seen. bob

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hr

Not all created equal

nice acrylic tubs and showers have a thick acrylic layer added to the glass backer. Looks like a nice clear coat paint job on a custom car.

The price of the unit usually dictates the thickness of the acrylic layer. Cheap ones you can hardly tell there is an acrylic layer

By far acrylic is a superior finish. A bit harder to repair, should you damage or crack one, however

hot rod

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EJW

Tubs

Aquaglass is another good one.

S Ebels

Lasko?

Poor, Good, Better, Best?

Dingo

Lasco...?

Good...
In my opinion

Dingo

ScottMP

Steve

I vote Aker acrylic also.

Kohler has cheapened their product over the years.

Scott

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jackchips_2

Sorry to

hear that. When remodeling my own home or for any customers who didn't question price it was always Kohler.

How bad have they become, Scott and is it the whole line?

Is all the money going into their golf club? :-((

Actually, as a golfer it probably should be :-))

S Ebels

As usual..........

Ther sages of The Wall have freely dispensed their collective wisdom once more.

Thanks guys!!

ScottMP

Jack

Back in the day, when I started in the trade ( no horse jokes Mark ! ), the best of the best used Kohler. I carried that thru to my business. When my guys started to complain about Kohler I figured they just did'nt have enough experience.

I have found their fiberglass and acrylic lines to not be as good as they where. They came out with a butt seam for the two peice units thats was a joke and looked like a black line down the shower. Toilets do not flush as well as other lines. I think the bean counters have taken over and they are trying to be more compeditive.

To bad.

Scott

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