Bathroom Remodel Photos

Ok, so I’ve finally found a few minutes to post some photos from our bathroom remodel. When we moved into the house we knew we would be re-doing the bathroom. Besides the fact that it could use some cosmetic changes (original 70s avocado green tub and tile), the tile on the floor was cracked (and when we removed part of it we found particle board underneath – not the best material to use), the tile on the walls around the tub came up to about shoulder-level and the drywall just above the tiles had obviously been repaired from water damage by previous residents, and there were little fissures running through the bottom of the sink. So, we removed the toilet and vanity and got all the demo done – removing the tiles and wood down to the sub floor and the tiles and drywall on the walls around the tub.

Demo:

Although we’ve been really happy with how the bathroom has turned out, we have had some issues with one part of the remodel: The last part of the job, after the contractors were done remodeling, was to have the avocado green tub re-glazed. Because he didn’t have the tools or materials to do the glazing, our contractor hired a third party company to do the glazing. The day after our contractors finished tiling, the man came to glaze the tub and when he left he told me that I should remove the paper and tape that was surrounding the entire tub after letting it all dry for 24 hours. The next day when I removed the tape, I was disappointed to find that instead of glazing to the edge of the tub and then caulking around the edges, he had caulked first and then glazed about a ½ inch up the face of the wall tiles and out onto the floor tiles all around the tub. Also, when I removed the tape from around the drain it pulled up little sections of the glaze and left spots of the original green tub showing through. I called our contractor and he called the glazing company. They sent the same person out after that weekend, and he told me that he would fix the spots around the drain, but that the edges of the tub looked good. After calling my contractor, my contractor calling the company, and the company calling the man at my house, he said he would do what I wanted and fix it around the edges of the tub. So after an hour or two, he came downstairs and asked me to come see if I was satisfied, and I went up to find that it did look better, but not much. He had removed the glaze from the tiles, which was very good, but when he put the caulk on he must have just smeared it on with his finger because it was not even close to a straight line. I felt really bad asking him to fix it again, but at the same time I wasn’t about to pay that much money to have someone do a job and then get something that did not even look close to professionally done. I told him that it should be a straight line of caulk, and he told me that he couldn’t do it perfectly, and that he was going to quite his job after this. I felt bad, but I told him that it needed to be done right, and he said ok and started to work on it again. I went downstairs and called my contractor again, and while I was on the phone I turned around to see the man driving away. My contractor said that since the glazing was no longer on the tiles and it was just the caulking that needed to be applied correctly he would come back and fix it. So, a couple days later my contractor came and he started to look at the tub and noticed a few spots around the edges and a pretty big ring all around the drain where the glaze looked a just slightly darker shade of white than the other areas. He rubbed it with his finger, and it came off – apparently instead of re-glazing the areas, the man had just covered the spots up with caulk. So, the contractor called the glazing company once again and told them that they either needed to send out someone more experienced to fix the job or refund the money so we could have someone else do it right. They are sending their manager from Buffalo early next week, and he is supposed to strip it all down and start from scratch. (And they mentioned that the other worker who had worked on our tub had only worked for them for 3 weeks, and that he had quit his job, which was better for them because they would have had to fire him if he hadn’t quit). So, I’m grateful for our contractor and that he has handled all of this very well for us to insure that we are pleased with the entire job in the end. And I’m hopeful that this other tub glazer who is coming next week will get the job done right the first time – because the inside of the tub looked really great where it was re-glazed, so I think if the edges are done correctly, it will end up being a really nice job.

Tub Glazing Issues:

(But hopefully we'll have some improved tub photos later this week).

So, anyways, the remodel included some rough plumbing: changing the tub fixture from three handles to one handle, moving the shower head up higher (so Michael wouldn’t bump his head), and moving around some pipes under the sink so it would fit with the new vanity. Then they tiled the floor with 12 inch tiles on the diagonal, the walls above the tub with 6 inch tiles and a decorative runner tile across the walls, and cutting out an alcove in the wall for shampoo and soap and tiling it with matching 2 inch tiles. The vanity and sink were replaced, and a backsplash was made with the same decorative tiles from the shower walls. Then the new tub and sink fixtures and drains were installed and the toilet was put back in place. It really turned out so well – we were incredibly pleased with our contractor – Frontline Remodeling – and would recommend them to anyone. Then I painted the room and installed a new light fixture, a towel rack, toilet paper holder, a hand towel ring, and another towel hook. And after trying a few different kinds of tile drill bits, we got the rounded shower curtain installed (it looks so nice, and really does make the shower feel a lot larger), and put up a really pretty new shower curtain. After returning one medicine cabinet/mirror because it was too large, and a second one because I got it out of the box and the mirror was shattered, I finally got a mirror today that I’m hoping we’ll be able to install in the next day or so. So, the only things left for us to do are install the mirror, put a couple of little door-stops on the hinges of the door, and put in a GFI outlet (because none of the bathroom or kitchen outlets in the house had GFIs when we moved in, so that will be another good thing to cross off our list). Then it will be completely finished! Here are the long-awaited ‘before’ and ‘after’ photos:

Bathroom Remodel: