I went ahead also with the tub and wall surround- easy installation, no evidence of leaks, easy to clean and it looks great. I agree about the glass shelf, not much use, but otherwise I'm very pleased with it.

i ordered this and its sitting here. What did everyone do if this is a reno? I have drywall, it needs to come out but I don't want to take it all out because there is side drywall and then drywall above that meets the ceiling. What did others do?

Hi, how did everyone cover the screws at the top and sides of the bath panels? Am I missing something here as I seem to be at a loss! Thanks for your help!!

I'm putting in a system in my home right now. I chose to mix light and dark gray panels and to use a Kohler base. The panels arrived with minor damage in one corner, and one bracket hole drilled out of place, but I was able to work around both. They fit the Kohler base fine but did need to be positioned very carefully (don't know if that's the case with other bases). The panels were all a bit warped, and I was installing in an old house, so I needed to drill-and-shim the open sides & tops every few inches, and ultimately had to run an extra screw through the bottom-middle of the back wall to keep it from bowing inwards, which then had to be covered up to make it look nice. So... not a trivial install. But they look great, feel sturdy, and the joints are all narrow & look even, so I'd be surprised if there's any water leakage. Much easier than tiling, and the look-and-feel is way better than other enclosures I looked at. So be prepared going in, but overall I'm happy with the way it's turned out.

Chick Chick - I used a utility knife to cut through the drywall tabe between the walls and the ceiling and then removed the drywall up to the ceiling. I replaced the drywall with blue waterproof board.

Simon Uden - I personally set up an old dull saw blade on my table saw and ripped a groove on the bottom edge of the inside of the blue board that was wide enough and deep enough to cover the lip of the panel and the screw head. Once the drywall was in place and painted I applied a continuous bead of caulk between the drywall and the top edge of the panel. I know that some would say that cutting this groove in the back of the drywall is unneccesary because the drywall will flex but I didnt want to risk cracking it and took the extra step.

Hope this helps all :)

Another point of interest, since this seems to be the longest MAAX Utile thead here:

Ordering this product from Lowes is probably not the way to go. Like another poster here I ordered it from the Lowes site to be delivered to my local store. Two days later, I received an email from Lowes saying my order had been cancelled. My demo had begun, and I'd been anticipating having the shower onsite in the 7-10 days, knowing I wouldn't need it for three weeks. I called Maax and they told me Lowes cancelled my order because it doesn't come from the Lowes warehouse but directly from Maax. Lowes orders from Maax and Maax ships it to Lowes. So even though it's listed not he Lowes site, you can't order there. (Ignore the big Order button) OK.

I went to Lowes, explained the issue and had a manager who suggested the product to me order it using their back end system, the one that looks like D-Base (a non GUI for you kids out there). Job done I thought.

I waited. They quickly shipped an extra glass shelf, which arrived, but the shower unit never did. I went to Lowes only to discover that Maax cancelled my order again. The person reordered it in front of me, where we could both look at the computer screen. As we flipped between screens (remember, this is D-base so it's kind of crude) The newly created order came up as cancelled within two minutes!

Later, another person tried to straighten it out with the same result. Order Cancelled.

At that point I gave up and luckily was able to get a warehoused Kohler Coreograph shower unit that is a bit wider and the walls will extend to the ceiling, so there won't be a gap of painted board to peel and get gross. The shower pan is built like a tank.

Maybe you can get this stuff, but Maax doesn't seem to understand how to ship their own product. This is a bit of a red flag to me, at least concerning their customer service.

Gordo thank you very much. I have never done a renovation at all and this was completely bewildering me! The video Max put out all of a sudden shows it complete and I was like what the heck do I do to cover it! In the end I jut got some pieces of white solid wood trip and nail gunned it into the wall, then caulked around everything in site! Ultimately I think it came out well. Thanks again!!

Any other updates or user experiences on this product? I'm thinking of it for a shower. Saw it in person and it's okay - didn't wow me with its realism - but I do love the idea of eliminating grout in the shower.

I would never recommend this system for a straight shower stall. The base is styrofoam underneath which pulls away from the walls even with the best caulking job. We didn’t notice it so much when we looked at it in the store since the sample was on a concrete floor. The base in ours leaked HORRIBLY. Our contractor installed it according to directions. MAXX sent their local installer who agreed it had been installed correctly. He said he was not impressed with this system and he is the local contractor MAXX uses. We wound up having to order marble walls and a SOLID base, pay for that and pay to have the MAXX system taken out and the new system installed. MAXX is a HUGE waste of money!! I would recommend going with marble or some other similar stone than wasting time and money on MAXX for a shower stall.

Your experience is certainly deterring me, @Jill George. So sorry you went through that. The caulk used was 100% silicone? I know it was a while ago and the MAAX installer said it was installed correctly but I guess I'm wondering if possibly an installation element was missed? :/ Styrofoam base doesn't sound good though. :( The product is certainly right for us budget-wise. I could never consider marble in our bathroom.

The first caulk was silicone. The second was a heavier caulk like is used for windows so they won’t leak. No install element was missed and this was confirmed by the MAXX contractor. Both contractors said the styrofoam base would not stand up to many years of use. If marble isn’t an option I’d research other options but I would stay away from MAXX. It is throwing money to the wind!

Thanks. I've really no money to throw to the wind. The search will continue.

Good luck!

We are in the midst of installing this beautiful unit now. Hubby has already done the “pre install”. Now he is just firming up everything. We added extra support under the base (any good contractor should do so). Looking forward to the finished results shortly.

There will always be mixed reviews...take them with a grain of salt.

Good luck to you.

Glad you are having a good experience!

Hi, Jill. Sorry about your experience, and also sorry for some of these arrogant, uneducated comments. I am a contractor myself and I agree fully with your contractor, if you have a "nice" house you should probably opt for the real tile that it deserves. Maax is a low quality big box store brand and just because people think it looks like real tile doesn't mean anything in terms of the quality or craftsmanship. Maax would also NEVER admit it was their fault unless they were 100% sure of it so I would also assume your contractor did a great job to specified specs if they were willing to admit it was a defective item. I would recommend looking for a reputable tiler and get them to install a system like kerdi with real tile. At the end of the day costs wouldn't be that different than utile if you skip the contractor. Tiles one of those trades where the good ones do it REALLY well and don't need babysitting, but make sure they have plenty of reviews. ALSO for people asking, MAAX literature insists you use the Utile shower base and NOT any other manufacturer with utile walls.

haroldemmersondesign: Thank you for you input. I thought the Maax system was a better quality than that, "low quality big box store brand." Seriously not considering the Maax system for my bathroom reno due to all the negative comments on this thread.

Honestly I’m really happy with mine- it was definitely not as simple as it a made to look but I thought quality was good. The complex part for me was covering the flange at the top where the screws go into the studs- I really with they provided this as part of the kit. But considering my unit is really old nothing was level; to tile would have been way more difficult And time consuming.

Ours is installed and working perfectly!! No leaks. No issues at all. Very simple installation process.

It looks FABULOUS and we are thrilled. Hubby installed himself and he works in construction.

We highly recommend this option for anyone looking for a beautiful shower on a budget. This shower was the perfect compliment for our basement renovation in our new home. It absolutely does not look or feel “cheap”. Its actually the opposite!

As previously stated, any product can have have mixed reviews. We made an informed decision and the results are beyond satisfactory.

Thanks @Harold Emmerson Design. It appears that most of the “successful“ comments are made with TUB SURROUNDS using the MAAX system. Ours was STRICTLY A SHOWER ENCLOSURE. Big difference. I would hope that a tub enclosure would render better results as the tub is sturdy and, theoretically, stationary. I’m happy people using the SHOWER ENCLOSURE are not having any problem with them. We had marble installed and love it. I wouldn’t wish what we had to go through both time and money-wise on anyone. My advice does not change..... I would NEVER recommend the MAXX SHOWER STALL PRODUCT.

Wrong Jill. Ours is a full shower with glass doors. It is PERFECT.

So HAPPY for you.

We need to replace the tile in our shower and were looking at Utile because we loved the color and real tile look, and wanted something more budget friendly that we could possibly do ourselves. Well, between the mixed reviews and the dimensions not quite matching up, we need another option. Can those of you who went another route or have some remodeling experience point me to some other options? Greatly appreciated as I just feel lost about the whole thing :-/

Again totally recommend. It's not super high end but it's really nice, clean and looks way better than any other insert, and gives a tiled bath a run for it's money. Great for an upper-end rental and a kid's bath. We are using it to replace our tub and surround in the main bath because it will look way better than the 20 year old builder-grade tiles, even though our house is not a budget house. I am that pleased with the three we've already installed (cottage, rentals). The ease of maintenance is worth it to me. Unless you look close you'd swear it was tiled.

While installing the Maax Utile shower our contractor used 2 different caulking products and both the clear and white turned color the next day.

Has anyone else experienced the same problem?

Jeff Conway

I know this is an old thread but I have a question about the install. Are there any issues locking the side panel into place when you have the tub stub out sticking out a few inches? It says to lift the panel 3" then push back against wall and drop to lock in, doesn't seem like that would be possible with a stub out. Thanks.

You do need some vertical space above the top of the side panels to maneuver. If the only way to install in your situation would be to slide the panel straight back, it likely won't work. The side panels have pegs that need to fit into the top of the V-slots in the back panel, and then slide down to tighten up the joint. I don't think I'd try to pre-assemble & slide the whole thing in together... they're pretty heavy.

And while I'm here: about 2 years on, full shower with glass door and kohler base, still looks like new, no leaks, no problems, easy to clean. Be prepared for the install to be a challenge, but still highly recommended.

Thanks for the info, so what would be typical install for a tub spout with this product then? Just install a drop ear then add a threaded pipe for the stub out after the panel is installed?

That is how I did it. I will tell you that I measured at least 6 times before I drilled the hole for the tub spout.

Is there a trim kit to transition from the edge of this utile wall to your existing wall? How /what did everyone else use to cover up the edge lip?

Johnnie,

If you scroll up a bit you can see how I covered up the lip by back cutting a piece of blue board and covering up the lip that way. I hope this helps.

Gordo

The entire thread has been very helpful to us. We are doing a bathroom reno and installing a curved American Standard bathtub with the UTILE system around. We didn’t get the MAAX bathtub. Quick questions - has anyone installed the UTILE system in any other bathtub brand? Did it work? Did you have to do something different to make it work? Their literature insist that we must use a MAAX bathtub. Thanks.

I also would like to know if anyone installed this on a non-MAAX brand bathtub. Due to a leak situation, we have to re-do our bathroom and are switching from the poorly installed tile to a hopefully more reliable plastic-type surround. We have an American Standard tub, I love our tub and don't want to replace it. I can't find any information as to whether I can get the MAAX surround to fit my existing tub. Thanks for your help.

I’m installing it on a Maax Rubix 60x30 tub. The dimension of the of the tub deck where the panels will sit is 59” x 29.5” and the flange is about 1.25” tall. I would assume as long as your tub deck fits these dimensions and is not smaller, it should fit. The panels just sit on the tub deck and lock together, it looks like the panels would account for a flange height up to 1.5”. Hope this helps.

If you read all of the reviews, you will notice that it's 50-50 of good vs bad. I just got 3 walls and the Back wall (60 inches) was warped in the middle. I was told to let it sit in the sun for 4-6 hours, but that didn't help?? The side walls had some scratches and one had a minor gauge. They said they would replace them or give a $200 discount, but the warranty would no longer be valid. To replace them would take about 3 weeks.

As for the grout lines being on center, some were lined up while others were not (they interchanged every other grout line which you can't simply shim to make them all lineup).

In summary, BUYER BEWARE as you're taking a 50-50 shot at getting one that has no issues as compared to a bunch of others with complaints like this one.

BUYER BEWARE!

If you read all of the reviews, you will notice that it's 50-50 of good vs bad. I just got 3 walls and the Back wall (60 inches) was warped in the middle. I was told to let it sit in the sun for 4-6 hours, but that didn't help?? The side walls had some scratches, and one had a minor gauge. They said they would replace them or give a $200 discount, but the warranty would no longer be valid. To replace them would take about 3 weeks.

As for the grout lines being on center, some were lined up while others were not (they interchanged every other grout line which you can't simply shim to make them all lineup).

Also, the Installation Video makes it look so easy with one guy putting the walls in and out, but you definitely need 2 people because they used Round Heads for the screws on the position pins instead of Flat Heads. You'll need to notch out these areas in the wood in order to make them fit.

In summary, if you want to take a 50-50 shot at getting one that has no issues as compared to a bunch of others with complaints like this one, don't say I didn't warn you.

Not worth the expense or frustration!

Just finished installing , great product if you don’t want the expense and labor of tile, but also not a beginners DIY project. My husband and I installed 48x32 shower kit, it took us 2 days. Things to note: I would not risk installing this with a different base, the system is designed to work together. You cannot cut the panels except for where your faucet and shower head will go. Follow instructions- your finished result will reflect how well you followed them. To finish the raw edge over the flange where you screw into studs, you can but Sheetrock up, and finish. We are poor sheetrockers so we finished with PVC (waterproof) trim, it was easy, and gave a waterproof finished edge. I would def recommend this product if you have some know how with house projects and a little ingenuity. We Did have to build up one wall behind the panel and do some shimming, having everything be square and true is what will make this project go smooth!!

@Sara Gronseth, where did you get the pvc trim?

Has anyone had luck installing a Utile bath surround with a different brand of tub? Maax highly recommends theit new town tub, which is outta stock everywhere.

I have a 1970s cast iron bathtub I really want to keep. It has a smaller lip than the 1.5" Maax system. I want to install the Maax Utile tub surround with this tub. If I caulk really well, will tend to still leak?

Question for Dennis - Wondering what Kohler base you used for your Maax install. Im being told 2 - 3 months to get one and I can't wait that long. Also as for the door, I assume any system would work. Did you use the Maax door system? Recommendations?

Base is a bellwether 32x60, I believe, with the wooden insert, and it fits fine. Vigo Elan sliding doors, but again, I think anything would work if installed correctly. Gave the whole thing a spring clean the other day; spray-and-wipe vs. scrubbing grout. I'll use Maxx again when I update the basement bathroom, whenever lumber prices return to Earth.

Jill George. you say the first sealing was done with silicone. Then followed ip with some other material later thats thicker. Silicone will stick to silicone but jot all other products stick to silicone. This is the first aspect of your job that suggests improper installation. Secondly Secondly, you said the base is styrafoam underneath and pulls away from the walls with even the best caulking job. Not sure exactly what you mean here but the pan is suppose dro be screwed to the studs, not just caulked. if screwed, the pan shouldnt move. Them you state how you didnt notice this in store on comcrete floors. You didnt mention if your installer ensured if your floor is level before installing the pan. This is critical to a good installation too. So imo, your observations about the product create more questions about the install than they do the product, regardless of what your installer or the apporved maax installer told you.

First layer of silicon caulk was thoroughly removed before other product was put in. Priduct was installed per Utile MAXX instructuons. Floor was level. I stand by my comments and opinion

We set up a shower 60x32 with 80 inch wall in the basement... BUT we did not plan the size of the 60x80 wall... witch could not go down by the stairs...! We kept the wall and decided to CUT the wall (we know it is not intended to be cut...) on the horizontal, exactly on the "printed joint". Please don't tell me it was not a good idea... I will live with the decision...

I'm looking for a solution to prevent water leaking behind the wall and to prevent deterioration of the inner part of the wall with water infiltration.

- I think I may put generous silicone caulking between the part of the wall + metal bracket drill in the back of the wall (1/4 inch - to unify it / to align the 2 part / to fix it to the 2x4 since their is no fixation intended except to the top of the wall.

- I could put polyethylene sheet behind the cut down to the shower base to bring any water down to evacuation hole.

- should I put a impermeabilisation paint on the wooden part of the wall ?

- other ideas / recommandations ?

We’ve had a nightmare of a story with our Utile purchase/instainstallation. Product #1: Purchased from Lowes a Utile tub surround. Upon unboxing we found all three panels so badly damaged they were unusable. We returned them to Lowes for set #2. AFTER the walls were installed we found cracks and scratches on all three walls! We found them after installation because the instructions tell you not to remove the protective cellophane until after install to keep it from being damaged during install. I called Maxx Utile company. They said we would have to uninstall the walls, return them to Lowes, and get a refund or replacement. It was a major hassle, but we did. Long story shirt, we end up with #3, a shower surround instead, which we actually liked better because it went higher up the wall. Panels were installed, everything seemed fine until further inspection revealed a small half-inch imperfection. It wasn’t really a crack, just a rough place in the finish. Fast forward 6 months later, that little imperfection has turned into a 30 inch crack spidering off into more cracks. We are at a loss to know what to do next. We’re disappointed, frustrated, and tired of dealing with it. We will NEVER buy another product like this from Lowes because of careless handling of the product, and we will NEVER buy another product from Maax Utile because they don’t stand behind their product. Those who have had success, I’m sincerely happy for you. Just wish we had your positive experience to share instead of negative. Please think twice before purchasing this product for your bathroom remodel.

Totally agree! Never purchase this product. Bad product and horrible customer service!!

Very hard to install, especially the shower door (Halo Door), No stickers on the pouches/parts to identify what they are, where they should be used, and difficult to tell from the pictures. Marking the parts would have been so helpful!!! Just a number on the part/pouch to coincide with the parts list.

The drilling template was a joke.

Have installed showers/doors before but never one with this degree of difficulty.

Now that it is finished it does look great. Hoping the quality is there,

Ordered from Menards and it arrived in a reasonable amount of time, no damage.

Mike