I have a bathtub installed with shower already and am finishing the walls and do not have to the time or the money to put in tile. Can I just paint the dry wall with several coats of waterproof paint or a shellac? I previously tried using a cheap, fake-tile-board glued to the dry wall that leaked within a couple weeks so we ripped it out. In our downstairs bathroom, we've used fibreglass sheets that come in 4x8 ft but is so difficult to cut and work with, we don't want to use it again.

what I thought of originally was to paint the walls a color or design and then once its dry, paint over it with several coats of clear waterproof paint. Or shall I just get a waterproof paint in the color that I want? How many coats should I paint?

This is not a great idea. Even greenboard as opposed to drywall needs more than waterproof paint. Your fake stuff leaked because it was not properly caulked on all seams.

Some times u just got to pay
Get r done:)

There are some very inexpensive tiles and finishes out there. If you have a Home Depot or Loews near you, take a look at everything they have to offer. Make notes on what is affordable. Take a look at this site link I am including here. I have done a search for you and some articles popped up. If the articles don't fit the bill, type in other search topics.

Search at DoItYourself.com (http://www.doityourself.com/search?FSF_search=installing+a+leakproof+shower+wa ll&searchin=info)

As ballengerb1 points out, no matter what you do the most important aspect is making sure it is sealed tight. If it isn't, you will continue to have problems in whatever installation you choose to do.

Okay, I scrapped the waterproof paint idea and used the fiberglass sheets and will caulk it especially well. Thanks for all your advice. ~yaella

okay, i scrapped the waterproof paint idea and went ahead and used the fiberglass sheets and will caulk it especially well. thanks for all your advice. ~yaella

Ummm...

They make corner beading material -- It still has to be caulked, but it's definitely better than relying solely on a caulked joint.

I also hope you are buying a good bathroom caulk and not just painters caulk. Some of the best caulk has Microban which fights mildew too.

I have bought two kinds of bathroom caulk, one that is 100% silicone and then another kind which I'm not sure what it's made of. I did buy a couple of those white plastic pieces for the joint where the edges of the fiberglass sheet would fit into. And I squeezed silicone gel along the whole length of the joint piece before I slid the fiberglass sheet into it. I was going to put more of the other kind of caulk on top of that. Is this sounding like it might work? Or should I only use the silicone caulk? Thanks for all your help!

I'd go with the siicone since you didn't name the other caulk. That sounds fine for the seams but do a good caulk on all the edges and corners. This is where most failures take place.