Tub-to-Shower Conversion in Kendall West, FL - What It Costs and How Long It Takes
A tub-to-shower conversion in Kendall West typically runs $3,500-$10,000 and takes 3-5 working days from demo to final inspection. Most homeowners in 33193 call us because their 1990s-2000s-era fiberglass tub surround has cracked, leaked, or simply aged out after two decades of daily use. If you’re ready to talk specifics, call (844) 665-0162 - we offer free on-site estimates and can usually schedule within a few days.
How We Handle a Tub-to-Shower Conversion Step by Step
We’ve done enough of these in Kendall West’s CBS tract homes to know where the surprises hide. Here’s the actual sequence, with what you’re deciding at each point.
Day 1: Demo and discovery. We remove the tub, surround, and any water-damaged drywall or cement board behind it. In the post-Andrew homes here, we often find the original builder-grade greenboard (not cement board) behind 1990s fiberglass surrounds, and it’s usually failed at the flange. We inspect the subfloor, the drain line condition, and whether your existing valve is a standard rough-in or an oddball size that needs reworking. This is when we confirm whether the project stays at the lower end of our estimate or needs more extensive repair. You’ll decide: keep the existing footprint, or expand the shower footprint into adjacent space?
Day 1-2: Plumbing rough-in and any structural prep. If you’re keeping the drain where it is, we may only need a new P-trap and drain body sized for a shower (2-inch, versus the tub’s 1.5-inch). If you’re relocating the drain or switching to a linear drain for a curbless entry, we’re cutting concrete slab. In Kendall West, that means dealing with that shallow water table - 18-24 inches down - so we dewater carefully and seal fast. You’ll decide: standard center drain, offset drain, or linear? And: curb or curbless? Curbless looks cleaner but needs more fall and often a recessed pan or Schluter-Kerdi system.
Day 2-3: Pan installation and waterproofing. We set either a prefabricated acrylic or cultured marble pan, or we build a traditional mud pan with vinyl liner or liquid membrane. The mud pan takes longer but lets us dial in exact dimensions for non-standard spaces - and some of these 1990s builder baths in Kendall West are 54-inch or odd 59-inch rough openings that don’t fit stock pans. Waterproofing is either a sheet membrane (NobleSeal, Schluter) or a liquid-applied system (RedGard, Hydro Ban). You’ll decide: the pan system and the waterproofing method. We explain the warranty differences - sheet membranes typically carry longer manufacturer coverage when installed to spec.
Day 3-4: Wall board, tile or surround, and fixture set. Cement board or foam board goes up, then your finish surface. Most Kendall West homeowners choose large-format porcelain tile (easier maintenance, fewer grout lines) or a solid-surface panel system like Swanstone or Kohler Choreograph for speed and zero grout. We set the valve, showerhead, and any handheld or body-spray rough-ins. You’ll decide: tile layout, grout color, and fixture finish. We stock Moen and Kohler trim in brushed nickel, chrome, and matte black; special-order finishes add a week.
Day 4-5: Glass, final plumbing, and inspection. Frameless glass gets templated after tile is set - typically a 7-10 day lead for fabrication. If you’re doing a curtain rod to save cost, we install it now. Final plumbing connections, flood test, cleanup, and the Miami-Dade plumbing inspection. Most tub-to-shower conversions in Kendall West require a permit because we’re altering the drainage; we pull it and schedule the inspection as part of our scope. You’ll decide: glass style and any storage niches or bench additions.
The Choices That Actually Change Your Shower
Every option below moves the price or the maintenance burden. We don’t default you to one tier - you choose based on how long you’ll stay in the home and how you use the space.
- Shower pan: prefab acrylic versus mud-set tile. Acrylic or cultured marble pans run $400-$900 installed and go in fast, but they’re limited to standard sizes and can flex or crack over time if the subfloor isn’t perfect. Mud pans with tile finish cost more in labor ($1,200-$2,800) but fit any dimension and, done right, last the life of the house. In Kendall West’s slab-on-grade homes with minimal floor bounce, mud pans perform exceptionally well.
- Wall finish: fiberglass surround, solid-surface panels, or tile. Fiberglass is cheapest and fastest - $800-$1,500 - but looks it and scratches. Solid-surface panels (Swanstone, Kohler Choreograph, or Silestone shower walls) run $1,800-$4,000 and eliminate grout entirely. Tile gives you the most design range; large-format porcelain with epoxy grout hits $2,500-$5,500 but needs re-grouting eventually in our hard water.
- Drain position: keep existing, relocate, or go linear. Keeping the drain saves $800-$1,500 in slab work. Relocating adds concrete cutting, new plumbing, and inspection complexity. Linear drains look sharp and enable curbless design, but the drain body alone runs $300-$800 before installation.
- Curb versus curbless. A standard 4-6 inch curb is included in most base pricing. Curbless requires either slab recessing or a ramped pan system, adding $1,200-$2,500. Worth it for aging-in-place plans or that clean European look, but not necessary for most resale value.
- Valve and fixture grade. Builder-grade Moen or Delta pressure-balance valves start around $180. Thermostatic valves (temperature holds steady when someone flushes a toilet) run $400-$700 for the rough-in alone. For fixtures, Kohler’s higher lines and Moen’s Smart Shower options add cost but hold up to Kendall West’s mineral-heavy municipal water better than bargain brands.
- Glass enclosure: framed, semi-frameless, or frameless. Framed sliders are $600-$1,200. Semi-frameless hits $1,000-$1,800. True frameless with 3/8-inch glass and minimal hardware runs $1,800-$3,500. The heavier glass resists the racking that framed doors suffer in homes with settling slab foundations - relevant in some of the 1990s fill-slab areas near the Everglades edge.
What Tub-to-Shower Conversion Costs in Kendall West, FL
| Component | Low Range | High Range |
|---|---|---|
| Basic conversion (keep drain, acrylic pan, surround, standard valve) | $3,500 | $5,500 |
| Mid-range (relocate drain, mud pan, tile walls, semi-frameless glass) | $5,500 | $8,000 |
| Full custom (curbless, linear drain, large-format tile, frameless glass, thermostatic valve, niche/bench) | $8,000 | $10,000 |
Five factors push you up or down this range. First, keeping the existing drain location saves the most money - relocating plumbing in a Kendall West slab home means concrete cutting and re-pouring. Second, the condition of what’s behind the tub: greenboard failure, termite damage in the sill plate (rare but real in our climate), or corroded cast-iron drain lines all add repair cost. Third, material grade: Silestone or Caesarstone shower walls cost more than acrylic but eliminate grout maintenance; the trade-off is upfront cost versus lifetime upkeep. Fourth, whether we need to alter structure: widening the opening, removing a partial wall, or reinforcing for a heavy glass panel. Fifth, permit and inspection scope: Miami-Dade requires permits for drain alterations, and the inspection schedule can add a day or two to the calendar.
Our written estimates include demo, disposal, all materials, labor, permit fees, and the final inspection coordination. What typically isn’t included: bathroom vanity replacement (that’s a separate scope), repairs to adjacent rooms if water damage extended beyond the tub surround, or specialty finishes like natural stone that need ongoing sealing.
Why Kendall West Homes Make This Job Specific
Kendall West’s housing story is unique in Miami-Dade, and it shapes every tub-to-shower conversion we do here. After Hurricane Andrew wiped the slate clean in 1992, this area was rebuilt fast under the nation’s strictest High Velocity Hurricane Zone codes. The result is a remarkably uniform stock of 1993-2008 CBS homes on slab foundations, almost all with the same 5-foot tub alcoves, the same 1.5-inch tub drains, and the same builder-grade fiberglass surrounds now hitting end-of-life simultaneously.
That uniformity is actually helpful. We know the original plumbing layouts for the major builders who dominated these tracts - Lennar, Centex, D.R. Horton - and we stock the drain fittings and valve rough-in dimensions that match. But the HVHZ permitting environment means any drain relocation triggers full Miami-Dade plumbing inspection, and the county’s inspection backlog can stretch a day or two longer than Broward or Palm Beach. We build that into our scheduling.
The bigger local factor is what’s under your slab. Kendall West sits on porous oolitic limestone with the water table just 18-24 inches down. Cutting concrete for drain relocation means managing groundwater intrusion in real time - we use sump pumping and rapid-set concrete, not shortcuts. And because much of 33193 sits in FEMA Special Flood Hazard Zones, any remodel that pushes your home’s cumulative improvement value past 50% of assessed value triggers base-flood-elevation compliance review. For a straightforward tub-to-shower conversion staying within the existing footprint, this rarely applies. But if you’re expanding the bathroom footprint or combining this with other work as part of a full Bathroom Remodeling in Kendall West, we run the numbers early to avoid surprises.
We also see more HOA design-review requirements here than in older, less planned areas. Many Kendall West subdivisions have active associations with pre-approved material palettes - we submit our finish samples as part of the pre-construction packet so you’re not scrambling for approval mid-project.
Serving Kendall West, FL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Kendall West area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
Frequently Asked - Tub-to-Shower Conversion in Kendall West
Most conversions take 3-5 working days of on-site work, plus a 7-10 day lead time for frameless glass fabrication if you choose that option. Miami-Dade permit approval typically adds 3-5 business days before we can start, and the final plumbing inspection usually happens within 48 hours of our request. Call (844) 665-0162 and we can check current permit turnaround times.
Yes, if we’re altering the drain line, which is nearly always the case when converting from tub to shower. Miami-Dade requires a plumbing permit for drain modifications, and the work must pass inspection before we close walls. We pull the permit, schedule inspections, and ensure code compliance - including the HVHZ-specific requirements that apply throughout Kendall West.
Often, yes. If your tub drain is centered and we’re installing a standard 48×36 or 60×32 shower pan with a center drain, we can frequently use the existing drain location with a new P-trap and shower drain body. This keeps you at the lower end of the $3,500-$10,000 range. We’ll confirm drain alignment and pipe condition during our free on-site estimate.
Staying within the existing tub alcove typically lands in the $3,500-$6,500 range. Expanding into adjacent space - removing a closet, widening into a bedroom, or creating a walk-in wet room - pushes toward $7,500-$10,000+ depending on structural, plumbing, and waterproofing complexity. The concrete cutting for drain relocation in our slab-on-grade homes is the main cost driver.
We warranty our workmanship for one year. Material warranties vary by product: acrylic pans typically carry 10-30 years, tile installations with proper waterproofing are rated for the life of the home, and glass enclosures carry 3-5 year hardware warranties. We register all manufacturer warranties in your name so you’re covered even if you sell. For exact coverage on your chosen materials, ask during your estimate - we’ll show you the specific warranty documents.
Ready to Convert Your Tub to a Shower in Kendall West?
Call (844) 665-0162 for a free, on-site estimate. We’ll measure your space, check your existing plumbing and slab conditions, and walk you through the options that fit your budget and how you actually use the bathroom. No pressure, no generic pitch - just specific numbers for your specific home in Kendall West. Our Bathroom Remodeling crew handles everything in-house, and if you’re also looking at exterior work, many homeowners pair a bathroom update with Metal Roofing in Kendall West or Tile Roofing in Kendall West as part of a coordinated home refresh.
Written by Raymond Estevez, Owner at Groundwork Construction Co., serving Kendall West and South Florida.