Questions on installing Glass tiles in a shower

I am gutting my 32 year old small bathroom, enlarging my 30X32 inch shower by breaking out the back of a Closet that backs up to the shower, making it 30X44. I have a few questions I hope you can help with.

1. What do I do for a pan. The present one is copper but even if I can save it it will be too small.
2. I bought glass tiles for the whole shower walls and ceiling what to I use to put it up with (? White thinset). I will use either durock or hardybacker (whichever you think is better)
3. I am looking for a black tile for the floor of the shower, but can only find a glass tile. Would that work or would it be dangerous and slippery
4. I am putting a bench across the back of the shower in the new added space. How high should the seat be, and what should I make it out of to be safe and support the weight. I want it open underneath if possible since the show is so small, but will do what you wonderful people suggest. I also want to put a niche in the wall for Shampoo etc. I have looked at the thread on that, but don't quite understand the best way to do this.
5. The bathroom itself is very small only 6X6 with a pocket door. I am taking all the present tiles down, and wonder where the pocket door wall is if I should use 3/4 plywood since I do want to tile part of that wall. Should I sheet rock over the plywood since I want part tile and part painted wall (a very small part painted on a very small room lol.
6. I also am using an IKEA sink which I love as it is a porceline 31" wide and only 16" deep trough sink with full shelf behind, but want to know if anyone has a suggestion for their base cabinet to make it more waterproof since I believe it may be a melamine foiled particle board. I might want to have someone make me a base, but then my costs go up.
I may have a few more questions to ask, but for now I hope you can help me with these. THANKS IN ADVANCE!

1. What do I do for a pan. The present one is copper but even if I can save it it will be too small.

You can't save the pan, do a new one. Take a look at the Schluter Systems KERDI showers kits.http://www.schlutersystems.com

2. I bought glass tiles for the whole shower walls and ceiling what to I use to put it up with (? White thinset).

When using glass tile it is best to go by the recommendations of the tile manufacturer when choosing a proper adhesive, they will have a list of products they recommend.

I will use either durock or hardybacker (whichever you think is better

One is as good as the other. Hardibacker is probably better for small glass mosaic tiles.

3. I am looking for a black tile for the floor of the shower, but can only find a glass tile. Would that work or would it be dangerous and slippery

Glass would absolutely be a safety issue for a shower floor, I wouldn't use it there. There are black tiles available. I am using some on a job now. Use nothing bigger than 3" tile for the sloped shower floor.

4. I am putting a bench across the back of the shower

Too much span can allow deflection. How big is the shower? Look at the metal "Better Bench". http://www.innoviscorp.com

I also want to put a niche in the wall for Shampoo etc. I have looked at the thread on that, but don't quite understand the best way to do this.

Use a pre-made niche. The above website also offers a great niche product. There are many others also.

5. The bathroom itself is very small only 6X6 with a pocket door. I am taking all the present tiles down, and wonder where the pocket door wall is if I should use 3/4 plywood since I do want to tile part of that wall.

Drywall (only) is all that is required for tiling over a pocket door cavity. Use MR (moisture resistant) drywall.

6. I also am using an IKEA sink which I love as it is a porceline 31" wide and only 16" deep trough sink with full shelf behind, but want to know if anyone has a suggestion for their base cabinet to make it more waterproof since I believe it may be a melamine foiled particle board.

Those particle board bases can be bad news. You can use a liquid waterproofing for the top if you intend to tile the vanity top. There is more to it than what has been mentioned so far.

I may have a few more questions to ask, but for now I hope you can help me with these. THANKS IN ADVANCE!

Ask away! Someone knowledgeable is always here daily.

[Edited by Bud Cline Tile on Sun, Dec 6, 2009 at 9:26 am CST]

Here's another option, for shower base's.
[www.noblecompany.com] there are 3 different methods here alone. Full bed, thin bed, and the new base.

I might add the Noble version of the shower base product may be a little easier to work with from a novice standpoint. The Schluter Shower Base System requires their proprietary drain assembly and even though I use them all the time I can tell you they cause a little frustration and guesswork getting them installed properly. On the other hand, the Noble system uses a shower drain you can get at any hardware store and the cost is around 75% less than the Schluter proprietary drain assembly.

Noble also offers a full line of niches for easy installation.

Noble also has a variety of metal strainer finishes for their drains. The cheapo drains from bigbox stores will have a ring of white pvc around the drain strainer. Not only will the Noble drains not have that cheapening look, but they also have drains with a square strainer grate.