What Walk-In Shower Remodeling in Lehigh Acres Really Costs and How Long It Takes
A walk-in shower remodel in Lehigh Acres typically runs between $9,000 and $28,000, with most jobs finishing in 2 to 3 weeks from demo to final grout seal. That range covers everything from a straightforward shower replacement using existing plumbing rough-ins to a full custom build-out with relocated drains, curbless entry, built-in benches, and niche framing. Call us at (844) 638-7249 for a free on-site estimate that includes a line-by-line scope of work, not a vague ballpark number.
How We Build Walk-In Showers in Lehigh Acres - The Real Sequence
Homeowners who have been through a remodel before (or had one go sideways) tell us the same thing: they want to know what actually happens once the crew shows up. Here is the five-stage sequence we follow on walk-in shower projects in Lehigh Acres, from the initial walkthrough to the final caulk bead.
Stage 1: On-Site Evaluation and Written Estimate (Day 1-3)
We come to your home, inspect the existing shower or tub footprint, and check what lurks behind the walls. In Lehigh Acres we pay special attention to moisture intrusion in older CBS homes - the 1960s-era builds often have original drywall or mud-set tile beds sitting directly on slab, and after forty-plus wet seasons with a high water table, we frequently find sub-surface damage that changes the scope. You get a fixed-price written estimate within 72 hours. The number on that estimate is the number you pay, period.
Stage 2: Material Selections and Permitting (Week 1)
Once you approve the estimate, you choose your tile, fixtures, shower base or mud-pan configuration, glass enclosure style, and niche placement. We submit the permit application to Lee County the same week. Lehigh Acres sits in unincorporated Lee County, so all trade permits - plumbing, electrical, structural - route through the county building department, and we pull every one. No shortcuts, no “we’ll handle it later” promises that leave you exposed when you sell the house.
Stage 3: Demo and Rough-In Inspection (Days 4-7)
Demolition takes one to two days depending on whether we are removing a fiberglass insert or chipping out a mud-set tile base. We protect floors with ram board, zip-wall the work area, and run HEPA dust extraction. Once the old material is out, our plumber sets the new drain and valve rough-ins. On many Lehigh Acres homes built during the 2003-2008 boom, we find PEX plumbing that has never been touched - those are straightforward days. On 1960s originals with cast-iron drain stacks, the rough-in takes longer. The county inspector signs off on the rough plumbing before we close the walls.
Stage 4: Waterproofing, Tile, and Grout (Days 8-14)
The shower pan or sloped mortar bed goes in first, followed by a full waterproofing membrane system - we use sheet membrane or liquid-applied systems depending on the substrate, and every installation ties into a clamping-ring drain assembly with a flood test before tile touches the wall. Wall tile, niche detailing, bench construction, and floor tile follow. Most Lehigh Acres jobs use porcelain or ceramic large-format tile for the walls because it holds up to Florida humidity without sealing drama. Grout cures for 48 hours minimum before we silicone all change-of-plane joints.
Stage 5: Glass Enclosure, Fixture Trim, and Final Walkthrough (Days 15-21)
Frameless or semi-frameless glass panels get measured and fabricated during the tile phase and installed once the tile is cured. Shower valves, trim kits, showerheads, and hand-sprays go in on the same visit. We then do a water-on test with you present so you see exactly how everything performs. Final county inspection closes the permit. Before we leave, we walk the whole job with you and hand you a care sheet for the tile, grout, and glass.
The Choices That Actually Shape Your Walk-In Shower
The difference between a $9,000 shower replacement and a $28,000 custom walk-in comes down to four or five decisions. Here are the ones that move the number:
- Curbless vs. curb entry. A curbless, zero-threshold shower requires cutting the slab to recess the pan or building up the bathroom floor - structurally invasive work that adds $3,000 to $6,000 compared to a standard curb-entry pan. It is the single biggest price driver on most Lehigh Acres remodels, and for good reason: it delivers true accessibility for aging-in-place households, which describes a large share of our customers here.
- Pre-fab pan vs. custom mortar bed. A solid-surface or acrylic shower base is the budget-friendly option at under $1,000 in materials. A custom-sloped mortar bed with tile finish costs more - $2,000 to $4,500 installed - but gives you unlimited size flexibility and a seamless look that fits older Lehigh Acres bathrooms where floorplans were never square to begin with.
- Ceramic vs. porcelain vs. natural stone tile. Porcelain costs $6 to $15 per square foot for the tile alone; ceramic runs $3 to $8. Natural stone - travertine, marble, slate - reaches $18 to $40 per square foot and requires ongoing sealing in Florida humidity. Most Lehigh Acres homeowners choose large-format porcelain for the best ratio of durability, water resistance, and price.
- Frameless glass vs. semi-frameless vs. curtain. A custom frameless glass enclosure from a local glazier runs $1,800 to $4,000 depending on panel count and hardware finish. Semi-frameless cuts that roughly in half. A simple shower curtain rod costs $40 and serves the purpose perfectly well if the budget is tight and you want to phase the project.
- Plumbing fixture grade. A single-function pressure-balance valve and showerhead from a reliable mid-grade brand like Delta or Moen is $300 to $600. A thermostatic valve with diverter, rainfall head, and body sprays climbs past $2,500 in hardware alone and nearly always requires upsizing the water supply lines, which adds rough-in labor.
What a Walk-In Shower Remodel Costs in Lehigh Acres, FL
Plan on $9,000 to $28,000 for a walk-in shower remodel in Lehigh Acres. The lower third of that range gets you a straight shower-pan replacement with mid-grade tile, a standard valve, and no structural changes - common in the 2000s tract-build bathrooms where the footprint is already set up for a shower. The upper third gets you a fully custom build-out with curbless entry, relocated drain, niche framing, custom glass, and high-end tile and fixtures. Labor accounts for about 55 to 65 percent of the total in this market, with materials and permit fees making up the rest.
Every written estimate from us breaks out demolition, rough-in plumbing, waterproofing, tile labor and materials, glass enclosure, fixture trim, and the permit line item. That way you see exactly what you are paying for and can adjust priorities without guesswork. What is typically not included unless we flag it during the walkthrough: mold remediation behind failed shower pans, slab-leveling if we open the floor and find a void, and whole-bathroom flooring or drywall work outside the shower footprint. If we find something mid-job, we stop, show you, and quote the additional scope before we proceed - no change orders slip through without your approval.
Our financing includes 0% for 18 months and $1,000 off projects over $10,000, which puts a custom walk-in shower within reach for most Lehigh Acres homeowners. Call (844) 638-7249 to schedule the free estimate and we will give you a fixed number on the spot, not a range.
What Lehigh Acres Homes Specifically Demand From a Shower Remodel
Lehigh Acres was platted in the 1950s and 60s as tens of thousands of lots across flat pine flatwoods - far more than were ever built out - which left a patchwork of decades-vacant lots scattered across the grid. The homes that did go up fall into two camps: compact CBS block homes from the 1960s and 70s with original cast-iron plumbing and bathrooms that were never designed for walk-in showers, and a huge wave of tract-built CBS homes from the 2003-2008 boom that went through foreclosure and sat with deferred maintenance for years. We work on both constantly.
On the older homes, the biggest variable we see is the condition of the cast-iron drain stack and the concrete slab itself. Lehigh Acres sits on a naturally high seasonal water table with no canal drainage network like Cape Coral, so summer rain ponds - and over five decades that moisture wicks up through slabs and into bottom plates and mud-set shower pans. We regularly open a 1960s-era shower and find the drain flange rusted through and the slab underneath spalled. That triggers a concrete repair before the new pan goes down, and we budget for it in the estimate because we expect it here. On the 2000s-era homes, the issue is usually builder-grade fiberglass inserts that were never properly flashed at the wall junction - we pull them and find black mold behind the flange more often than not. Our 730-Day Done Right Promise covers every inch of the new work, so when we find those surprises we fix them properly the first time.
Permitting runs through Lee County, not a municipal building department, and walk-in shower remodels that involve drain relocation, new circuits for steam units, or structural slab cutting all require trade-specific permits with sequenced inspections. Our team handles that entire process - you never chase an inspector or track a permit number. The county likes to see engineered flood-test documentation on curbless showers, particularly since the post-Hurricane Ian rebuilding surge put a spotlight on waterproofing failures across the area. We provide that documentation as standard practice.
If your shower remodel is part of a larger Bathroom Remodeling in Lehigh Acres project, the sequencing gets more involved - we coordinate the shower rough-in with flooring, vanity, and lighting so the whole room comes together without backtracking. Some homeowners in Lehigh Acres also pair a bathroom update with exterior work; our Bathroom Remodeling crew has seen an uptick in full-home renovations where a Roof Replacement & Installation in Lehigh Acres or even a Metal Roofing in Lehigh Acres is happening on the same property, especially on post-Ian rebuilds where the entire envelope needs attention at once. When you are already managing a whole-home scope, having one contractor who can run the shower remodel, the roof, and the exterior siding means you are not juggling three different crews with three different schedules.
Serving Lehigh Acres, FL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Lehigh Acres 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 Walk-In Shower Remodeling Questions in Lehigh Acres
Most walk-in shower remodels in Lehigh Acres take 14 to 21 days from demolition to final inspection. A straightforward shower-pan replacement with no plumbing relocation can finish in under two weeks. A custom curbless build-out with drain relocation, niche construction, and frameless glass pushes closer to three weeks, plus a few extra days for county inspection scheduling. The tile installation itself is the longest single phase - large-format tile goes faster, while mosaic or natural stone takes longer. We give you a day-by-day schedule at the start so you know exactly when water will be off and when the bathroom is usable again.
Yes. Lee County requires a plumbing permit for any shower remodel that touches the drain, valve, or supply lines - which is effectively every shower remodel we do. If the project involves slab cutting for a curbless entry or drain relocation, a building permit is also required. We pull all permits before work starts, schedule the inspections, and close out the permit once the job passes. Unpermitted shower work is a liability when you sell the home; buyers and home inspectors in Lehigh Acres are increasingly savvy about flagging unpermitted bathroom additions and remodels.
Often yes, if the existing drain location works for the new shower footprint and the valve height is code-compliant. In many Lehigh Acres homes - especially the 2003-2008 tract builds - the original tub or shower drain sits at a standard 12 to 14 inches off the back wall, and a replacement walk-in shower can reuse that rough-in position with minimal adjustment. On 1960s slab homes, however, the original drain is sometimes centered in a small footprint that does not work for a wider walk-in, and relocating it means cutting the slab. We assess that in the free estimate and give you a hard number either way.
Every walk-in shower we build in Lehigh Acres is covered by our 730-Day Done Right Promise: if something is not installed correctly, we fix it at no charge for two full years. That covers tile bond failures, grout cracking, pan leaks, valve malfunctions, and glass hardware issues traceable to workmanship. Fixture and material manufacturer warranties extend separately - most porcelain tile carries a lifetime warranty, while valves and trim from brands like Kohler and Delta typically run limited lifetime. We walk you through exactly what is covered under each warranty at the final walkthrough so there are no gray areas.
It will not, unless we both agree in writing that the scope needs to change. Our written estimate is fixed-price: the number on page one is what you pay. The only reason the scope would change is if we open the wall or floor and find damage that was impossible to see during the walkthrough - a rusted-out cast-iron drain, mold behind a failed shower pan, or slab deterioration - and in that case we stop immediately, show you the issue, quote the additional work separately, and get your approval before we proceed. You will never receive a surprise bill at the end of the job. Call (844) 638-7249 to get your fixed estimate scheduled - it is free and takes about an hour on site.
Written by Derek Hollenbeck, Owner at Groundwork Construction Co., serving Lehigh Acres with walk-in shower remodels and full bathroom renovations.