Designing Kitchens and Bathrooms - greenboard ok for shower?

i just gutted my shower. tile work was too sloppy. behind the tile was regular drywall. of course it was moldy. when i rebuild, can i use greenboard or do i need concrete backerboard?

thanks for the advice.

Go with the concrete backer board. Green sheetrock is simply moisture resistant. It is fine for the rest of the walls in the bathroom, where it won't be subjected to anything more than a slight amount of moisture. But, behind ceramic tiles, you need the concrete backer board. Some amount of water will leach through the grout of the tile, and the concrete board will be pretty much impervious to this.

of the two choices you mention, cement backer board is definately the better.

while cement backer board is a good choice, it is not waterproof--just is not subject to the same rot as other materials. there is a new (to the US) product that is waterproof and wieghs next to nothing compared to cementboeard. It is called a Wedi Building Panel and is available from GSTA in California at 916.387.8500 or donm@gstallc.com

it is so light it can be shipped UPS, and is diy friendly.

Before you use the cement board make sure you put up some kind of moisture barrier between it and the wall studs.