Advice for the Amateur Bathroom Remodeler

[welsummerchicks]

Not in the budget, do you have any actual suggestions - or reasons why I shouldn't do it? What sort of mistakes do people tend to make?

If my health doesn't hold out it may change, but at this point, I prefer to get better quality fixtures and do the things I can, for myself.

And as stated, I'll be getting a professional to move the plumbing over, so there's more room for the toilet.

In other words, I'll do wall board and tile and painting, hang shelves and fittings.

I think I can install the pedestal sink - the plumbing is already in place for that, in the desired place in the room.

 

[EweSheep]

green board never gave me any problems, we have that for our bathroom!

How about a wainscoating boards all around the bottom with a small chair rail all around it. I am sure you seen my bathroom pic somewhere in here on BYC threads.

I would love tile flooring but no to tile bathroom. Had one before I tore it off, POS if you ask me. Eventually they pop off. Surround tub would be the thing to do and less hassle.

If you paint the walls, BE SURE its waterproof or made for high humidity areas. Wished I did and now I've got brown stuff on the ceiling above the tub. Ugh!

 

[welsummerchicks]

that wainscoating/chair rail, I did in my bedroom, white wainscoating below, white chair rail, and chocolate brown above. It's my woman cave!

 

[EweSheep]

 

[welsummerchicks]

I kid you not. It's gorgeous. It's a large room and the chocolate makes it look really cozy. With a bunch of paintings on the walls with gold frames, the chocolate looks a knockout. The paintings are Bruegels and Tintoretto. and one Balinese temple rubbing.

There's a big dark cherry dresser that contrasts with the white lower wall, a huge antique trunk with black hinges and edging, and a very, very old dark red oriental rug on the floor. The living room is really coming together too. The walls are green (oh yes, and it ain't all that pastel-y a green) and the woodwork is all painted glossy white, and all the fittings in the room are either white or dark dark brown. Big old dark brown couch, a couple Klees paintings and framed conti drawings on the walls, and some prints I did in college.

I have in mind earth tones for that bathroom, the pedestal sink is biscuit - it's barely off white, and the mirror is the same dark brown as the couch. I actually think I'm going to do a 'fish' theme in the bathroom, LOL! Though it's going to be just ink drawings of...fish...little ones, with the names of the type of fish in bengali script. I'm doing some herb and plant and still lifes for the kitchen.

 

[swift4me]

I've done my own bathroom, and it seems to me you know a fair bit about what you want to do. I don't think that the tile would be so bad. If your walls are square and the fit of the new tub to the walls is good, I'd try the tile. Of course use wonderboard under the tile and greenboard everywhere else in the bathroom. If you've never laid out tile in a shower before, just take your time and make some sample runs for spacing and make sure of your angles. With good grout and sealer I can't see it being a problem. I remember being told to use tarpaper between the studs and the wonderboard and that tarpaper rested on the rim of the tub so any moisture would end up there instead of on the wood floor.

Beef up the floor joists and use screws instead of nails. Make sure you don't have dry rot or bugs in the joists before you button things up. For your difference in thickness of flooring, you night need to use spacers or combine two thickness of subfloor.

I just don't like the flexibility or sound of a plastic or fiberglass walled shower I guess. I just redid a bathroom here in a 200 year old farmhopuse and had to install a cabin shower with glass walls and a fiberglass pan. Because of the ancient floor planks, I couldn't install a tile shower because of wood movement relative to the wall.

Good luck.

Pete

 

[welsummerchicks]

Now that's interesting about the tar paper. I don't know if it would be any additional help under the cement board, which is supposed to be 'impervious to moisture'.

I was thinking to have cement board on both the walls and the floor - anywhere I tile. And if I don't use the shower surround, that means a lot of tile!!! The vendor says the 3-5 piece shower surround goes right against the stud walls and won't leak if caulked properly.

I'm also investigating one of those 'in floor heaters' for the winter.