Reattching ceramic soap dish
March 18, 2022 6:31 AM

The ceramic soap dish in my 1950s bathroom has come off the wall. We are planning a bathroom remodel, but want to reattach this to the wall in the interim. What is the best way to do that without impacting the remodel (if that were a concern)?

Bathroom is original to the house, and this soap dish looks to have been cemented to the wall, if that was the practice back then. The dish survived falling off the wall. However the back of the dish has deep square notches to accept the cement/mortar/mastic, and those are all filled in with the existing cement--and the wall, too, is cemented, so each is the perfect impression of the other.

Since we plan to redo this bathroom and retile anyway, I am focused just on a "good enough" solution.

Given the cement that's already there, should I just try to glue it back in place with a waterproof construction adhesive and then caulk the perimeter? Is there a better way to secure it?

I presume in that gluing back to the wall is not going to cause a problem with the reno later, but please let me know if I setting myself up for a headache.

This is not a load-bearing soap dish. The eyesore of the missing dish is more pressing than anything!
posted by Admiral Haddock to Home & Garden (5 answers total) 3 users marked this as a favorite
Just Gorilla Glu it back into place and move on with your day. You're going to end up sledgehammering it and all of the rest of your tiles off later anyway.
posted by DarlingBri at 6:43 AM on March 18, 2022


I would stick it back with construction adhesive and then run a bead of bathroom silicone around the outside after that dries.
posted by pipeski at 6:49 AM on March 18, 2022


I'd just use a bunch of super-glue.

Mind your fingers.
posted by pompomtom at 7:15 AM on March 18, 2022


If the interim is more than a few months I have repaired ceramic/cement and I have found that a two part epoxy is what will work without hassle. Glues require pressure to achieve full strength - which might be an issue for getting the actual mating surfaces to be in proper contact with the glue. Epoxy is mostly indifferent to a poor fit, a common issue with cement, and will hold up to the environmental conditions in a bathroom. Be certain to ensure the surface is clean clean and follow the specific epoxy instructions.
posted by zenon at 8:37 AM on March 18, 2022


This is what you want.
posted by kate4914 at 5:45 PM on March 18, 2022


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