Miami — Miami-Dade
A marble shower in a Miami condo or apartment faces humid air, salt and a building that sets its own rules. Ask which membrane goes behind the stone, and ask for a flood test before any tile is set. We visit your home first, then quote after measuring.
Marble is much heavier than porcelain, so in a tower each slab travels through a lobby, a hallway and an elevator. Brickell, Downtown Miami, Miami Beach and Aventura are dense with high-rise condos, and the route to your floor matters as much as the cut.
Many condo associations set work hours, require elevator reservations and ask for sound-control underlayment under hard floors. Get those rules in writing before you book, and ask whether the underlayment rule reaches a bathroom floor.
Air near Biscayne Bay and the ocean carries salt, and humidity stays high most of the year. A shower gets steam every day, so the membrane and the stone both work in wet conditions.
Marble is a calcium-based stone, and acids etch it. Vinegar and acid cleaners leave dull spots, and sealing guards against stains, not etching. Clean with a pH-neutral product. For marble on floors, vanities and walls outside the shower, see our page on marble installation in Miami.
For light marble, white mortar keeps the grout from showing through the stone.
Before the tile
ANSI A118.10 is the standard for waterproof membranes that sit under tile. Ask which membrane goes in, and whether a flood test will run before the stone is set.
Heavy slabs should not wait in a lobby. Book the elevator and the loading window with the building before the stone arrives, and keep the hallway clear for the move. Ask the association for its move-in rules in writing, and keep a copy with your contract.
Salt carried in from the bay and daily steam keep the wall damp. Wipe the stone after showers, and look at the grout and caulk lines each season.
Florida requires milestone structural inspections for condo buildings three stories or taller, a rule passed after the Surfside collapse. Ask the association whether your building's inspection is scheduled before you start.
The price follows the shower itself: its size, how many walls carry marble, and whether an older shower must be opened first. In a tower, slab weight and elevator time add labor. We quote after measuring your home, so send the floor plan along.
Start with the association. If it must approve the work, that step usually comes first and can set the start date. After it, the usual order is old tile out, substrate prepared, membrane installed, cure time if the membrane is liquid, a flood test, and only then the marble goes in.
It depends on the address. The City of Miami runs its own building department, and Miami Beach, Coral Gables, Doral and Aventura each have their own. Unincorporated areas such as Kendall go through Miami-Dade County. Florida's building code applies statewide, and local departments enforce it. Association approval is a separate step from the permit.
It can be, with the right care. Marble etches under acids, so skip vinegar and acid cleaners. A sealer helps with stains only. For a light marble, ask for white mortar so the grout does not show through, and keep a pH-neutral cleaner under the sink.
"We installed a full Calacatta marble walk-in shower in the master suite. AP Stone specified the ANSI waterproofing membrane, showed me the flood test before tiling, and the result is flawless. No leaks after two years."
Jennifer R.
Miami — Master Suite Shower
"They installed 60x120 porcelain slab panels in a curbless shower with a linear drain. The vein matching across the panels is perfect. Every tile is flat with no lippage whatsoever."
David M.
Miami — Curbless Walk-In Shower
"AP Stone redid our master shower after a failed installation by another contractor. They identified the failed waterproofing, removed everything, and rebuilt it correctly. The new shower has been perfect."
Patricia L.
Miami — Shower Rebuild
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