Bathrooms · Services
Porcelain slab shower walls in New Jersey
A porcelain slab is one thin, very large panel that can cover a whole shower wall. Three walls can mean three or four pieces instead of a hundred tiles. The result is a wall with almost no grout and a veining pattern that runs without interruption. We have set porcelain slab shower walls in New Jersey homes. The material is easy to like; the installation is where it goes right or wrong.
Why people choose slabs, and where they fit.
Fewer joints, one continuous surface, and porcelain's low upkeep.
Almost no grout means fewer joints to clean and fewer places for water to sit. Marble-look veining can run across the wall, and from one wall to the next when the panels are planned that way. And it is porcelain: it does not need sealing and it does not etch the way natural marble does.
Slabs are a good fit for shower walls, tub surrounds and a full-height wall behind a vanity. Our post on why homeowners are choosing XL porcelain slabs covers the material in more detail.
They are not the answer everywhere. When a full panel is more than the room or the house allows, large-format tile gives a similar look with pieces that are easier to bring in, and our regular tile installation covers everything smaller.
Where slabs make sense, and where they do not
- Good fit: shower walls, tub surrounds, a full-height wall behind a vanity.
- Shower floor: usually not one slab. The floor needs slope to the drain, so we use smaller tile there, or a linear drain with a single-slope floor.
- Older houses with tight stairs: sometimes the panel does not fit the route into the bathroom. We check that before you buy.
- Walls that are far out of plumb: they are corrected first, or the slab will show it.
What a slab installation requires.
There is no second chance on a piece that size, so the work is in the preparation.
- A flat substrate. A small tile can follow a wavy wall. A slab cannot: it bridges the low spots and leaves voids behind it. The framing is checked and corrected, and the board is flat, before the slab comes into the room.
- Waterproofing behind it. A slab is not waterproofing. Every shower we build gets the Schluter system behind the surface, slab or tile.
- Full mortar coverage. The mortar is troweled on the wall and on the back of the panel, in straight lines in one direction, so the air can escape. We use Schluter ALL-SET mortar.
- More than one person and the right handling. Panels are carried and placed with suction-cup frames. A slab is thin and breaks if it is carried flat or flexed.
- A path into the house. The panel has to make it through the door, up the stairs and around the corner. We measure the route at the visit.
- Cuts planned in advance. The openings for the valve, the shower head and the niche are cut with diamond tools before the panel goes on the wall.
What porcelain slab shower walls cost.
One written labor price after a free visit. We do not quote slab walls from a range on a web page.
Slab walls sit above the same shower in standard tile in labor because there is more work in them: flatter walls, careful handling, cuts that cannot be redone and more hands on every panel. The number of panels, the cuts, the niche, the route into the house and the condition of the walls move the number.
For the labor ranges of a regular shower, a hall bath and a primary suite, see what a bathroom remodel costs in New Jersey. Your slab shower is priced from there, in writing, once we have seen the room.
Our price is labor only. You buy the slabs and the rest of the materials from a product list we give you: Schluter membrane and drain, board, ALL-SET mortar, grout and trim. Order one spare panel when the budget allows; a matching piece is hard to find later.
What is not in our price
- Materials, including the slabs.
- Permit fees.
- Anything found behind the walls once demolition starts. It is priced in writing before any work continues.
What you get for the labor
- Our own crews.
- The Schluter waterproofing system in every shower, set with ALL-SET mortar.
- A written 1-year warranty on our labor.
- Weekly photo updates and a final walkthrough.
Two bathrooms we finished.
Both of these are large-format tile, the closest relative of a slab wall, on the same flat walls and the same Schluter system.
Franklin Lakes, NJ · August 2025
Marble-look primary with an oak double vanity
A beige builder-grade bath turned spa-like without moving a wall: walk-in shower with a bench, linear drain, large-format marble-look porcelain, a 61-inch oak vanity and gold accents.
Stewartsville, NJ · July 2026
Curbless walk-in shower with a pebble floor
No curb, a fixed glass panel, a natural pebble floor, grab bars and large-format tile under a skylight, with a green double vanity and matching linen cabinet.
- 4.9 stars from 51 reviews
- Bathrooms
- 200+ remodeled
- Showers
- Every one built on the Schluter waterproofing system
- Certified
- NARI Certified Kitchen & Bath Remodeler (CKBR)
- Registered
- NJ HIC reg. #13VH10766600
How it works.
The same four steps on every job. Payments follow progress. See the ways to pay.
Free 30-minute visit
We measure the room, look at what is behind the problem spots, and listen to what bugs you about it.
A written scope
You get the scope in writing with a labor price broken out by phase, plus the product list you will buy from.
One point of contact
One person runs your job from start to finish. When your town requires a permit, we file it and schedule the inspections.
Final walkthrough
We walk the finished room together and fix anything on the list before the last payment.
Porcelain slab questions.
Are porcelain slab shower walls waterproof?
Is there any grout at all?
Can slabs go over my existing tile?
Will a slab fit into my bathroom?
Porcelain slab or natural marble slab?
What does it cost?
Is there a warranty?
Who does the work?
Book a visit for slab shower walls.
We check the walls and measure the route into the bathroom, and you get one written labor price for the whole scope.
Registered and insured, NJ HIC reg. #13VH10766600. Towns we work in: South Orange, Basking Ridge, Summit, Essex County, Livingston. All service areas.
Got it. We will call you.
Expect a call or text from (973) 577-9383 within one business day to set up your visit.