Cheshire Bathroom Fitters | Knutsford | Sandbach | Holmes Chapel | Middlewich

A customer recently accepted a quote for a new shower and asked if she could choose the wall panels herself. A perfectly reasonable request – but when I went looking for a simple brochure to send her, there wasn’t one. Just supplier websites with hundreds of products, prices everywhere and very little help deciding what’s actually right.

So I made my own. There’s now a free buying guide that explains the difference between the two panel brands I fit, plus a colour brochure for each one, so you can browse every finish at home with a cup of tea and no sales pressure.

Why only two brands?

There are lots of wall panel brands out there. The main two I fit are – Megaboard and Multipanel – (and occasionally Bushboard) because between them they cover the two main types of panel, budget-friendly PVC and solid laminate, and I’ve fitted both for years. Knowing a product inside out means no surprises on fitting day and a better finish for you. It’s the same reason I only fit bathrooms I supply.

Megaboard or Multipanel: the short version

Both are waterproof panels that replace tiles in a shower, with no grout to clean. They look similar on the wall, but they’re made very differently:

• Megaboard is a 10mm PVC panel with a lightweight honeycomb core. The boards are a generous 1000mm wide by 2400mm tall, so there are very few joins. It’s the budget-friendly choice and ideal for ensuites, guest bathrooms and quick refreshes.
• Multipanel is an 11mm laminate panel on a solid, exterior-grade MDF core, made in Edinburgh. Its Hydrolock tongue-and-groove joint gives a near-seamless finish, and it comes with a 30-year manufacturer guarantee. It costs several times more per panel, but it’s the one I’d point you towards for a main bathroom you’re planning to keep for many years.

Thinking about grab rails or a shower seat?

This is the question I’d most like people to ask before their panels go up. Both types of panel can take a grab rail, as long as it’s fixed right through the panel into the solid wall or backing behind it. The difference is the panel itself: Megaboard’s hollow core needs a rail with a wide fixing plate, and heavier items like a fold-down seat need solid backing planned in first. Multipanel is a solid, rigid board that spreads the load much better.

Even if you don’t need a rail today, it’s worth deciding where one might go in future. It’s far easier to plan a fixing point now than to add one later.

Download the guides

• Shower wall panels buying guide – a two-page side-by-side comparison of Megaboard and Multipanel (PDF)
• Megaboard colour guide – 55 finishes, from white marble to tile effect (PDF)
• Multipanel colour guide – 93 finishes across six collections, including tile and wood effects (PDF)

Every finish has a number. When you’ve found one you like, just call or text me on 07734 703414 with the number – or use the contact page – and I’ll take it from there.

My view

The best recommendation comes from having all of the facts in front of you, knowing what the budget is, and making sure what you choose works for you now and in the future. These guides are there to give you the facts – I’m always happy to talk through the rest.

Cheshire Bathroom Fitters supplies and fits bathrooms across Middlewich, Northwich, Sandbach, Knutsford, Holmes Chapel and Winsford. Product details are correct at the time of writing; manufacturers may update their ranges and specifications.

Walk into any bathroom showroom and you’ll see toilets ranging from under £100 to well over £1,000. To the
untrained eye, they can look almost identical. So what’s actually different — and is it worth paying more?

It’s Not All Branding

Some of the price gap is simply the name on the box — well-known bathroom brands charge more because of
reputation, design, and marketing. But not all of it. There are real, practical differences that affect how well a
toilet works and how long it lasts.

1. The Ceramic Quality

Cheaper toilets are often made from thinner ceramic with a less refined glaze. Over time, a poor glaze can
develop tiny pits, which makes the surface harder to clean and more prone to staining and limescale build-up.
Better-quality ceramic has a smoother, denser glaze that stays easier to keep clean for years — which matters far
more than it sounds, especially day to day.

2. The Flush Mechanism

This is where you notice the biggest differences. Budget toilets often have a simple flush that can struggle to
clear the bowl properly, sometimes needing a second flush (which wastes water and defeats the point of a
‘water-saving’ model). Better toilets use improved bowl design and flush technology to clear everything in one
go, more quietly, and using less water. The internal workings — the valve, the flush mechanism inside the
cistern — are also usually better made, so they’re less likely to run, drip, or need fixing within the first couple of
years.

3. The Seat

A cheap plastic seat can discolour, crack, or loosen within a year or two. A good quality seat — ideally softclose, so it doesn’t slam — will last much longer and is one of the easiest upgrades to notice and appreciate
every single day.

4. Fittings and Fixings

Better toilets tend to come with sturdier fixing bolts, better-quality overflow and inlet valves, and sometimes
concealed or hidden fixings for a neater look. These small parts are the ones most likely to fail or corrode over
time on a cheaper model.

5. The Warranty

Reputable brands typically back their toilets with longer guarantees — sometimes 10, 15, or even 25 years on
the ceramic. That’s the manufacturer telling you how confident they are in their own product. Budget ranges
often only offer a year or two.

So, Is It Worth Paying More?

Not always — and you don’t need to buy the most expensive toilet in the showroom. But going for a wellknown, reasonably priced branded toilet over the cheapest own-brand option is usually money well spent. You
get a better flush that actually works, a glaze that stays cleaner for longer, fittings that don’t need replacing after
a couple of years, and proper backup if anything does go wrong.

That’s exactly why, at Cheshire Bathroom Fitters, we only supply and fit reputable branded goods that are
reasonably priced. It means you get a toilet that works properly from day one and keeps working for years —
without paying over the odds for a name alone.

Wet rooms have been having a moment for a while now. They look great in magazines, they photograph beautifully, and there’s a general perception that they’re the premium, modern choice. We get asked about them regularly.

The honest answer — and we’d rather give you an honest answer than just agree with whatever you’ve seen on Pinterest — is that for most homes and most customers, a shower tray is actually the better option. Here’s why.

First, let’s talk about wet rooms properly

A wet room is essentially a fully waterproofed shower area with no tray or enclosure — the floor itself is graded to drain, and the whole area is tanked so water can’t get anywhere it shouldn’t. Done properly, it’s a genuinely impressive installation. Done badly, it’s one of the most expensive bathroom mistakes you can make.

There are two main types:

Tiled wet rooms — the most common, and the version most people picture. The floor and walls are tiled throughout, with a central or linear drain. They look excellent when first installed. The practical reality over time is that grout lines on the floor collect dirt, and the better the slip rating on the floor tile — which you absolutely need for safety — the more texture the tile has, and the more effectively that texture traps grime. Keeping a tiled wet room floor genuinely clean requires more effort than most people anticipate.

Vinyl wet rooms — these use a continuous sheet of specialist vinyl flooring, similar to Altro, which has a gritty texture for grip. You’ll often see this type in assisted living environments. Over time, the same problem applies — the texture that provides grip also collects dirt and requires chemical cleaning to maintain properly. We don’t fit vinyl wet room systems, so if that’s what you’re after we’re not the right company — but it’s worth understanding the difference before you decide.

The preparation nobody talks about

The bigger issue with wet rooms isn’t the surface — it’s everything underneath it. A properly installed wet room requires significant preparation: the floor needs to be built up and graded correctly to ensure water drains away rather than pooling, and the entire wet area needs to be comprehensively tanked before a single tile goes on.

There are plenty of shortcuts available at every stage of this process, and none of them should be taken. A wet room where the tanking has been done properly is a long-term installation that will perform well for years. A wet room where corners have been cut looks exactly the same on day one — and starts causing serious problems within a few years as water finds its way into places it shouldn’t be.

If you want a wet room, be prepared to pay for all of the preparation you’ll never see once it’s finished. That’s where the money goes, and it’s money well spent. But it does mean that a properly installed wet room is a more expensive option than most people expect.

So when does a wet room actually make sense?

There are situations where a wet room is genuinely the right choice. The most clear-cut case is accessibility — if stepping up into a shower tray is difficult or going to become difficult, a level-access wet room solves that problem properly. For customers thinking about their bathroom in terms of the next twenty years rather than just right now, that’s a real consideration worth having.

Beyond accessibility, it comes down to personal preference. If a customer specifically wants a wet room and understands what’s involved, we’ll fit it — and we’ll fit it properly, without shortcuts. But if someone asks us for our honest advice and they can comfortably step up 30mm into a shower tray, that’s what we’ll recommend.

Why shower trays are underrated

A shower tray is a simpler installation with less that can go wrong. There’s no complex floor grading, the tanking is straightforward, and the enclosure sits cleanly on top of the tray with a proper seal. Maintenance is easier — the tray itself is smooth and simple to keep clean.

They’re also considerably more versatile visually than people often assume. Slate effect trays, for example, come in a wide range of colours and finishes and look genuinely premium in the right setting. An ultra-low profile tray — just 25-30mm high — gives you almost the same visual effect as a wet room floor, with a fraction of the preparation complexity and cost.

The perception that a shower tray is somehow the budget or compromise option really isn’t accurate. A well-chosen tray in a well-designed shower enclosure looks excellent and performs better over the long term than a wet room in most domestic settings.

The straightforward version

If you’re asking us for a recommendation — and many customers do — here’s our honest position. Wet rooms are genuinely worth it where accessibility is a factor, or where a customer has a strong preference for them and understands the cost involved in doing them properly. In most other situations, a quality shower tray with a frameless or semi-frameless enclosure gives you a better everyday experience, easier maintenance, and a lower overall cost.

Trends come and go. A bathroom that’s practical, well-built and easy to live with never goes out of style.

Not sure which is right for your home?

Give Martin a call on 07734 703414 for a free, no-obligation chat and visit. We cover Middlewich, Sandbach, Northwich, Knutsford, Holmes Chapel and Winsford, and we’ll always give you an honest recommendation based on your property and your situation — not just what sounds impressive.

Cheshire Bathroom Fitters — based in Middlewich, working across Cheshire for over 20 years.

 

We were recently working on a job in Middlewich — renovating an ensuite and refitting a small cloakroom at the same time. The cloakroom was a straightforward scope: new toilet, new vanity and basin, and a redecoration of the walls and ceiling.

While we were sanding the walls back, the customer came in and asked what we were doing. Fair question — to most people, if you’re redecorating, you just paint over what’s already there.

Why we sand first

This cloakroom had been decorated several times over the years. Each coat of paint had gone straight over the last, and the result was what you’d expect — a mottled, slightly uneven surface where years of layers had built up unevenly. You can paint over that, and it’ll look fine from a distance. But under a fresh coat of paint in a newly refitted room, every bump and variation shows.

Sanding the walls back flattens all of that out. It gives you a smooth, even surface that the new paint can go onto cleanly. The difference in the finished result is immediately noticeable — the walls look properly done rather than just freshly painted.

It’s the same reason good decorators sand between coats rather than just applying the next one straight over. The preparation is what determines the finish.

It’s a small thing — but it matters

A cloakroom refit is a relatively small job. New toilet, new vanity, fresh decoration — it shouldn’t take long and it doesn’t cost a fortune. But that’s exactly why the details matter. A small room gets looked at closely. There’s nowhere for a poor finish to hide.

Taking the time to sand the walls before painting costs maybe an extra twenty minutes. The difference it makes to how the finished room looks is disproportionate to the time involved. It’s just one of those things we do as a matter of course — whether it’s a full bathroom renovation or a small cloakroom tidy-up.

Same job, same standards. Every time.

Thinking about a bathroom refresh in Cheshire?

If you’re in Middlewich, Sandbach, Northwich, Knutsford, Holmes Chapel or Winsford, give Martin a call on 07734 703414 for a free, no-obligation quote.

Cheshire Bathroom Fitters — based in Middlewich, working across Cheshire for over 20 years.