Hi folks - I haven't lurked or contributed to this group for a while,
but I thought I'd ask for advice on this point.

It would be easier to draw a diagram, but basically we are planning to
change out bathroom. What I want to do is replace the old bath,
washbasin and toilet, but not just replace them in situ as we've done
before, but I want to add one of those units that look a bit like a
narrow version of a kitchen base unit and worktop, that the basin fits
into, and the toilet will back onto (with the cistern concealed in the
unit). Hope that makes sense.

Anyway - currently, if you imagine looking L-R at the configuration,
towards the wall in front of you, we have the bath on the left (taps/
plug end against the wall), then in the middle the washbasin, then the
toilet on the right. I want to keep more or less the same layout L-R,
but with some slight changes (we've considered other options but for
various reasons none of them would work very well - it's only a small
bathroom).

As I said, we want to put a unit behind the basin and toilet. The unit
will stick out a bit from the wall, and the basin will half be set
into the unti with the front of the basin sticking out. The toilet
will of course back onto the unit as above.

There is currently some space between the foot of the bath and the
wall 'behind' you as you look towards the wall ahead.

What we want to do is move the bath backwards toward the 'back' wall,
leaving a gap at the 'top' end of the bath. Then I want to build a
stud wall behind the bath, tile it and have a mixer shower (or even a
shower head on the stud wall, with pipework behind). The idea is to
bring the bath end more or less level with the 'unit'. Why? because we
want to fit a hinged glass screen, which we could open outwards. This
wouldn't be possible if we left the bath where it is, hence the plan
to move it away from the wall.

Hope all that makes sense.

Now, what I mainly need advice on is the building/positioning of the
stud wall. I need to find out:

- how best to position the studwork, allowing for board to cover it
and tiles? i.e. how much clearance to be allowed between studwork and
bath?
- best materials to cover it with, bearing in mind need to tile over
it (plasterboard? MDF? etc.)

I'd also be interested in advice on how to prevent leaks around the
edge of the bath, something we've suffered from in the past. Ideally
I'd like to get a bath with an 'upstand' around the 2 or 3 wall edges,
but I don't know if these exist. Failing that, maybe it's better to
chase it into the wall, and then tile down to it? Or not? I'm fed up
with those plastic strips that don't always work properly and look a
bit naff, IMO, and would prefer to have a more 'permanent' solution.

Any advice would be very welcome.

Thanks in advance

Flummoxed