When Moving Into Your Dream Home Hits Some Bumps
Several months ago, we bought a house that we considered to be our dream home. It appeared all the bathrooms had been recently updated. So while there were repairs and work to be done, the bathrooms looked ok. Almost immediately problems began. My husband went to take a shower on the first day and my son ran up from the basement yelling, “Stop!” Water was coming through the floor of the shower which was the ceiling above my son‘s bed. No worries, we got the home warranty. We had the repair man come out and he determined that it was a crappy installation of the shower pan and not a broken pipe. The home warranty covers broken pipes but not crappy installation. 
First, we were just going to fix the shower pan which meant the walls also had to be redone and the best quote was $2,000. Ugh, that is lot of money to recreate a bathroom that I don’t like. So, since there were a few things I didn’t like about the bathroom anyway, we decided on a full master bath remodel, which is new for me. It took four months of going upstairs and using the kids’ bathrooms before we could afford to start. In this post, I want to share with you what to expect, good reasons to to hire a contractor and helpful hints along the way. Even though this isn’t a diy job for me, there are lots of things in this post that can also help you if you are diying your bath. 🛀 For bath remodeling ideas, you can check out my Pinterest board Username SDavis245 and the board is Bathroom Update. I have spent years filling this board with ideas for the one day when we remodeled a bathroom.
First, we were just going to fix the shower pan which meant the walls also had to be redone and the best quote was $2,000. Ugh, that is lot of money to recreate a bathroom that I don’t like. So, since there were a few things I didn’t like about the bathroom anyway, we decided on a full master bath remodel, which is new for me. It took four months of going upstairs and using the kids’ bathrooms before we could afford to start. In this post, I want to share with you what to expect, good reasons to to hire a contractor and helpful hints along the way. Even though this isn’t a diy job for me, there are lots of things in this post that can also help you if you are diying your bath. 🛀 For bath remodeling ideas, you can check out my Pinterest board Username SDavis245 and the board is Bathroom Update. I have spent years filling this board with ideas for the one day when we remodeled a bathroom.
Time: 3 Days Cost: $900 Difficulty: Advanced
Here is the shower that from a distance looks ok. When buying a house, look closely at the tile work.
Here are some pictures of what I should have paid more attention to when looking at the house. Very sloppy tile work. If you see tiny flaws on the surface, think of it as an iceberg and that there are likely bigger problems below the surface.
When Dave, our contractor came to the house, I had a list of things that I hoped to achieve with the remodel. Also, using a professional gives you insight into places you might not know exist. He recommended a tile design showroom that I loved. ❤️ He gave me amounts for floor tile, shower floor tile, and shower wall tiles. The above picture shows my choices, subway tile for the shower walls, light gray/grey for the floors (12 by 24 inches laid in a brick pattern) 2 by 2 in of same tile fore shower floor and the pretty hexagon will go in the shower niche. When you pick out your tile, you will also need to tell them how you would like it laid out. Straight, brick and herringbone are three different ways to lay the tile. The floor tile is sometimes available in 12 by 12s or 12 by 24. Two very different looks in my opinion. When I went into the design center, I screen shotted a few of my favorite tile floors and bathrooms from Pinterest to show the design consultant. In the design showroom there are tiles that are special order and tiles that are stock tiles. If you don’t have time to wait for special ordered tile, you will want to look at in stock choices. After I selected my tiles, my design consultant checked on the amounts on hand. If they seem low supply, you might want to have some back up tile choices. Prices varied, the subway tile I fell in love with was $7.99 a square foot but the design consultant showed me one that was almost identical for $3.99 a square foot. When you walk in there are a lot of choices, and I was a bit overwhelmed trying to find tiles that matched my screenshot. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack. But once I showed my design consultant, she would glance at the picture and immediately walk to the right tile and pull it out.
Demo day arrives. I removed anything that I could before the workers arrived, towel bars, shelves, toilet paper holders and outlet covers. Make a list of what the workers are to save. Do you want to reuse the current vanity and faucets? Shower fixtures? 🚿 Doors? Have a place where they can store these until needed. You will also need space to store new things going in such as, Sheetrock, 2 by 4’s, new fixtures.
This was the end of day one. one big item on my wishlist was enclosing the toilet in a water closet and creating a larger shower than the current one. Given the dimensions of my bath, the only way to do this was make the bath larger. Two walls of the bathroom backed to our master bedroom closet and our office. Neither of those rooms could afford to have any space taken from them. I realized that one wall backed to a fairly large hall closet. I decided we needed a bigger bath more than a hall closet.
The opening in the wall with the yellow broom handle is where there used to be a wall to the hall closet. The other photo is after the shower was completely removed. Those holes in the floor, were from the previous homeowner and he had various pieces of Sheetrock screwed in to build it up. 
Be sure to cover these holes if possible during the demo process. Below, I explain why.
Be sure to cover these holes if possible during the demo process. Below, I explain why.
After looking at tubs at several places online, I decided to order it from Houzz. I had never used them before and wasn’t sure what to expect. It also offered free delivery. I ordered it Friday night and on Monday they called to schedule delivery for Tuesday.
It said any damages needed to be noted within 5 days. I opened the box but it is super wrapped so I am waiting for assistance in checking it out. It is huge!
The top left photo shows one of several holes in the floor. The top right is a sink vent where the previous owner cut a stud and buried it in a wall. Not sure how to describe that but I am pretty sure professionals don't do that . 🤔 The bottom left is why you should cover these holes. One morning, we heard a loud crash and the cat came out looking totally disheveled and his tail was huge. My husband said the cat had fallen into one of the holes in the floor. I told the cat that I think he just used up one of his lives. Little did we know. My son went to his room which is below the master bathroom later that day to find a large square of Sheetrock and a board laying on his bed. In the bottom right, you can look through the floor and see his pillow below. He had been sleeping in another room because of the construction thank goodness. The reason the door wasn’t shut to the bathroom was because the door and door frame were entirely removed to get the vanity out. So, now you are up to date on the bathroom remodel that started 3 days ago. Three days since demo day and a week since we met with Dave and the tile design center. I have no idea how long this remodel will take but stay tuned for more.
On the left is the set up we began with. I used a free app on my iPhone to lay it out. On the right is one option that I am currently considering.
And here are two more options. In summary my remodel wishlist was 1. Have a bigger shower 2. Have a curbless shower with linear drain 3. Create a water closet for toilet 4. Replace gray tub and toilet with white ones 5. Have a chair height or comfort height toilet 6. If budget allows, move entrance to closet from master bedroom to within the master bathroom.
This post is part 1. I hope part 2 is filled with tales of the installation and pretty after pictures. 
At this point, I do not have a lot of info on dollars spent. The only things I know for sure are the tub and tub filler. Part 2 will focus more on costs incurred. I would love to hear what other Hometalkers learned during bath remodels.
At this point, I do not have a lot of info on dollars spent. The only things I know for sure are the tub and tub filler. Part 2 will focus more on costs incurred. I would love to hear what other Hometalkers learned during bath remodels.
My final tip is prior to demo day, move your bath items and anything needed from master bedroom and closet to another area of the house. Foolishly, I moved all my bath items and bedroom items to our master bedroom closet. With workers constantly carrying out tile, fixtures and trash , i couldn’t get to my closet easily. So remember, during the demo process you lose access to your master bath, bedroom and closet.
Today‘s find was all of these studs were cut through on a load bearing wall supporting the second story floor joists. In my opinion, it was done so that they could add medicine cabinets. 
This will be corrected... I am seriously considering having my contractor pull down a few suspicious areas where Sheetrock was put up in unfinished areas. The other walls are open but then there are these random pieces of Sheetrock and it just screams, “Why? What will we find hiding behind it?”
This will be corrected... I am seriously considering having my contractor pull down a few suspicious areas where Sheetrock was put up in unfinished areas. The other walls are open but then there are these random pieces of Sheetrock and it just screams, “Why? What will we find hiding behind it?”
Since the tub was on site we brought it in to finalize layouts. The bathroom is small and the tub is 63 inches. Many times I have wished I ordered a smaller tub but we will see. It will be tight but it is hard to know until the walls go in. I can hardly wait to see the end result. But my advice for ordering tubs, if you know you have a small bathroom, make sure you order a smaller scale tub.
Materials used for this project:
- Freestanding Bathtub (Houzz)
- Tub Filler (Houzz)
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