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Complete bathroom renovation

This post highlights a complete bathroom renovation, providing a modern, functional, and attractive space. The work included tearing down the existing walls and fixtures, as well as completely re-tiling and painting. The main feature of the renovation was a brand-new walk-in shower with glass walls and a rain shower head. Additionally, a new vanity, toilet, and fixtures were installed. This renovation allowed for more space and flexibility in the bathroom and was both cost-effective and appealing.

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Renovating a bathroom is no easy task. This is a rather laborious process. Our task is to clean the bathroom completely, down to the bare walls for renovation: replace all ceramic tiles, check and replace rotten or worn-out floors, install new plumbing fixtures.

Dismantling of plumbing. Preparing the bathroom for renovation

Of course, not all bathrooms require repairs in the same amount, but in this article we will consider repairs in general. In the photo below you can see where the renovation was started.

Dismantling plumbing
The beginning of the renovation. Part of the tile has already been chipped

Required tools:

Special key for sinks
Pipe cutting knife

Stages of dismantling a bathroom

During the renovation of this bathroom, the tiles were completely removed from the walls. It happens that there is no particular need to change the tile completely, however, the row around the bathtub must be removed in order to freely pull it out. Also carefully remove the panel or screen covering the tub..

Turn off cold and hot water before removing taps.

Unscrew the drain pipe from the bath. It happens that the bathtub is held on special fasteners that need to be unscrewed. If the bathroom legs are attached to the floor, they must also be unscrewed..

The procedure is similar with a sink. Unscrew the liners, if there are pipes, cut them off with a pipe knife. It is very convenient to use, as it is small and allows you not to touch other pipes during operation. Attach it to the pipe and twist around to cut it off. Unscrew the brackets from the wall that hold the sink.

If you have a combined bathroom and you intend to change it, remove the toilet too. Drain all the water from the barrel. Unscrew the hose filling the water in the barrel, detach the barrel from the toilet itself. Unscrew the toilet itself from the floor and take it out.

Knock off the tiles with a chisel and hammer or nail puller.

Stages of dismantling a bathroom

Sanitizing the bathroom to prevent mold

The bathroom is the wettest room in the apartment and therefore requires careful maintenance and ventilation. Ventilation problems can lead to nuisances such as mold on walls and ceilings. If you do not catch yourself in time and take action, it will spread throughout the walls, posing a threat to your health..

Stages of dismantling a bathroom

How to deal with it? First, check the ventilation and fix any problems. Good ventilation is the key to clean walls and a healthy atmosphere. Then, you need to clean up the area affected by mold. If necessary, remove all layers of trim down to the bricks. After stripping, treat the wall with an antiseptic solution. Now they are sold in great numbers. Plaster the wall. It is also recommended to treat the wall with a mold protection before laying the tiles. This will prevent it from spreading again..

Bathroom renovation

Replacing old, worn out pipes

Old pipes in the bathroom and toilet pose a threat of sudden flooding not only in your apartment, but also in your neighbors’ apartment. Steel pipes become overgrown with rust and lime, which leads to their rapid failure. Today you can choose from plastic, metal-plastic and copper pipes.

Plastic pipes are quite durable, inexpensive and easy to install. Plastic pipes are chosen because they do not corrode, scale does not settle inside. Plastic pipes cost the same as steel ones, many times cheaper to install and repair. The disadvantage of these pipes is their instability to chlorinated water, they do not withstand high temperatures and high pressure.

The most popular metal-plastic pipes due to their flexibility, reliability and corrosion resistance. The pipe consists of an aluminum pipe covered with polyethylene layers outside and inside. Rust and lime do not stay on the plastic, and, therefore, the pipe remains clean for a long time and does not flow. Such pipes have a number of positive qualities: they are easy to install, they can withstand high temperatures, the pipes do not need to be welded, they are connected using screw fittings. These pipes can also be used in sewerage and heating systems. The main thing to remember is that during operation there should be free access to the pipe joints..

Copper pipes are considered to be the most durable and reliable. They are used in sewerage, heating and gas systems. They are resistant to chlorine, and due to the antibacterial properties of copper, the growth of bacteria inside the pipes is excluded. When installing the pipes, you can brick them up or leave open access to them. A matter of taste and aesthetics.

When changing pipes, do not forget to shut off the water, cut off the old pipes and install new ones along the “route” of the old ones, using special fasteners and fittings. Try to avoid many joints, as these are potential leaks. It is advisable to simultaneously change the water supply system throughout the apartment.

Bath selection

Today the choice of baths is quite wide, there are many of them and for every taste. Main types: acrylic, cast iron, steel.

Cast iron baths are in great demand due to their durability and strength. The disadvantage of such a bath is that it is very heavy, and it will be a big problem for those living on the upper floors to drag it in. The significant weight of such bathtubs ensures their stability, it will not move away from the wall, the tiles can be laid close to it. The enamel coating of cast iron bathtubs is more glossy than steel, but requires proper care.

When buying, pay attention to the integrity of the coating, chips are not acceptable, the enamel should be even, without smudges. The shape of a cast-iron bath can only be rectangular. An intricate bathtub can be found among acrylic or steel.

The acrylic bathtub is also popular. The quality of the bath and its price depend on the quality of acrylic and the number of layers of reinforcement. Many people prefer acrylic due to its low weight. The choice of colors is quite varied. Do not be afraid that the bath will lose its original appearance, as it is given to the bath at the manufacturing stage. The advantage of acrylic bathtubs is their high heat capacity – water cools down by a degree in half an hour. The cheapest of the bathtubs is steel, it weighs about 30 kg and is much stronger than acrylic. It is important to consider the thickness of the walls of the bath, it should not bend under you. The disadvantage of such baths is their high heat transfer, as well as the noise produced by the water entering the bath..

Bath installation

Installing a bathtub requires no less care and attention than connecting pipes or tiling. If the bathroom is quite large, the bathtub can be installed in the middle of the bathroom or with the end against one of the walls (as in the photo below). In this case, the bathroom walls are completely clad.

Bathroom renovation

If the bath is placed in a corner, the walls where the bath is located can be tiled up to the side of the bath.

Measure your bathroom to guide you when buying a new bathtub. When buying a bathtub, pay attention to the fact that the kit includes legs, otherwise you will have to lay out the support yourself from bricks and cover it with ceramic tiles.

Using the measurements taken in advance, check that the size of the siphon of the overflow system of the purchased bath corresponds to the distance from the drain hole of the bath to the sewer pipe.

At home, you will need to assemble all the parts together, legs, siphon, if any, handles. Use silicone when attaching the siphon to avoid further leaks. Apply it to the sealing washers, remove excess with a cloth.

If you install the bathtub traditionally, in a corner, push it as tightly as possible against the wall. Take a full bath of water and seal the gaps between the wall and the bath. In this case, you can be sure that with further use, the seams will not disperse under the weight of water and your weight. Then cover the seam with decorative tiles or plastic trim..

Once the bath is installed, check that it is correctly installed using a level. Adjust the position of the bathtub if necessary using the feet. Secure the legs.

Connect the siphon through a special elbow and branch to the sewer pipe. Remember to seal the joints with gaskets. The drain must be flush with the drain point.

Check the drainage system for leaks, odor from the drain.

After installation, the bath must be grounded. You can, of course, use a regular wire, attaching it to a metal communications system, or use industrial grounding.

Many people, after installing the bath, put a screen that covers the bath. You should buy it in advance to adjust the height of the bath to fit the screen. Cover the space between the bathroom and the floor with a plasterboard frame, on which the tiles are laid. Make sure to have access to pipes in case of repair.

Tiling

Required tools:

Tile tongs
Construction level
Tile cutter
Scraper for spreading mortar with a flat and serrated surface

Training

It is advisable to tackle the tiles before installing the bath and sink. This will allow you to avoid many inconveniences when laying tiles. Before tiling, make a plan to help you get rid of unnecessary tile cutting. Ideally, I would like not to lay out the wall with whole tiles, but, unfortunately, you cannot do without cutting. Measure the wall area carefully. This is required to purchase tiles. It is recommended to buy it for several more pieces, since during operation it may be necessary to replace the damaged or chipped one. Think about how to start. It will be quite unpleasant if you start laying with a whole tile, and by the end you find that there is a thin strip of the wall, for which you need to cut off a part of the tile 1-2 cm wide.If you cannot lay out the wall with a whole tile, use one of the recommended options:

  1. Choose a corner that is more visible. Laying begins with it. The trimmed tile is thus in an invisible corner. But provided that its width is at least half of the whole tile.
  2. If it turns out that the width of the cut tile is less than half, then they start from the center of the wall, so that the center falls on the seam or in the middle of the tile.

Before laying the tiles, treat the walls of the bathroom and toilet with a special antiseptic solution to prevent fungus. At the same time, it will provide better adhesion of the tile to the wall. Do not regret, apply two or three coats. Please note that the walls must be clean, dry and level. Make sure your walls are level – this will make further work much easier. If this is not the case, it is recommended to use wall leveling compounds..

For the convenience of tiling, use a flat wooden strip. Lay several tiles, as they should be located on the wall (taking into account the seams), mark the divisions of the location of the tiles on the rail. Now there are many tools for this operation, but if you are not professionally styling, you can use the tools at hand.

Facing works

Decide on the lower level of the masonry. This will be the beginning. Some experts advise laying tiles in small areas. It is easier to apply glue or cement to such an area, it is easier to control the correct laying and align the “moving” tiles. It can be adjusted by narrowing or widening the grouting joints. Having marked the beginning, temporarily screw the rail to the wall and make sure with the help of a level that the rail is attached absolutely evenly (photo 1). ?

Facing works

After marking the center of the wall and using your scale bar, mark the vertical rows on the wall. You will be guided by them, moving up the wall (photo 2).

Glue application

When working with adhesives, carefully follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Any neglect (incorrect flow rate, premature transition to the next operation) can lead to unpleasant results. For example, a large amount of glue can erode tiles over time due to the high stress generated by the glue. Many adhesives are sold ready-made, some in the form of a powder that requires dilution with water. The speed, bond strength and purpose depend on the adhesive component of the composition:

  • For floor tiles
  • For interior wall decoration, etc..

You should be aware that there are three periods of glue hardening:

  • Loss of mobility. At this time, you can lay the tiles and adjust their position..
  • Ready for operation. During this period, you can start grouting, after about 24 hours.
  • Complete hardening. Usually comes in a few days.

Using the notched surface of a scraper, apply the adhesive to the wall.

Facing works

Lay the first tile in the right corner, form horizontal and vertical rows, from which you will move further. If your tile doesn’t have built-in dividers, use the dedicated tile dividers.

Use a sponge to remove any glue that has come out so that it does not get caught in the grouting joints. To make the tile more firmly attached to the wall, slightly move it to the left and right. Make sure all tiles are perfectly horizontal.

Facing works

Having finished laying the main wall area, it is necessary to prepare the tiles for facing the remaining bottlenecks. Measure the desired width on the tile, carefully cut off the unnecessary part with a tile cutter. The wall where the door is located is tiled last. Start at the corner and work your way towards the door, then tile the space above the door, then finish the rest of the tiles..

It is worth noting that the bottom row of tiles, which is closer to the floor, should be laid after the floor tiles have been laid to hide the unevenness of the cut floor tiles, as they are less pruned due to their greater hardness..

Laying tiles around pipes

This job requires a lot of patience and accuracy. If it is impossible to remove the pipe, then cut out a semicircle with a radius equal to half the diameter of the pipe on two suitable halves of the tiles with special pliers. If the pipe is removed, then a circle with a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the pipe is applied to the tile: mark the center of the circle on the upper and side edges, draw lines, the point of intersection of the line will be the center of the circle. Cut the tile in the center of the circle, then use the tongs to cut the circle.

Grouting

The final touch in tile laying is grouting. This is done using special solutions of a suitable color and only a day after laying the tiles. Before grouting, remove any adhesive from the joints. Using a special rubber trowel, spread the grout over the tile, moving diagonally across the tile. This will help the grout fill the joints better. Use a sponge to remove excess grout from the surface. After the mortar has hardened, final cleaning and polishing can be done with a cloth and a hard sponge..

Grouting

Use the correct color of sanitary silicone sealant to decorate the joints between the bathroom and the wall, door and wall. It will ensure the tightness of the seams and the spread of fungus.

Installation of a sink, toilet

There are several ways to install a sink in a bathroom: mounting on brackets, mounting on a pedestal or on a cabinet.

It is very common to choose a sink on a pedestal, as the pedestal hides the drain pipes and enhances the appearance of the sink. When buying a sink, don’t forget to have a faucet that fits the sink. Install the faucet just before installing the sink, since after installing the faucet it will be problematic:

Installation of a sink, toilet Mark the position of the sink along with the pedestal on the wall. Screw the sink to the wall or hang it on special brackets (holders).
Installation of a sink, toilet Slide the pedestal under the sink and connect the hot and cold water pipes.
Installation of a sink, toilet Connect the siphon to the drain.
Installation of a sink, toilet Carefully seal the joint between the sink and the pedestal with silicone sealant.

After laying the tiles on the walls and on the floor, coat the base of the pedestal and the place where the sink touches the wall with sealant.

Make sure the wiring fits to the faucets, the sink and pedestal are firmly in place, temporarily re-installing the entire structure until finishing work.

Bracket-mounted washbasins take up little space and are more suitable for smaller bathrooms. Install the sink at a height of about 60-70 cm.

Installation of a sink, toilet

If desired and for aesthetic purposes, the water liner can be hidden behind drywall and tiled:

  • Mark the position of the sink on the wall and where the sink holders are to be attached.
  • Screw the holders.
  • Connect the faucet and piping to the sink and hang the sink on the holders.
  • Screw the sink to the wall.
  • In especially small bathrooms, corner sinks are recommended, which are installed in the same way as conventional sinks.

Installing the toilet

After installing the bath, the sink remains in the queue of the toilet, of course, if your bathroom is combined with a toilet. But often, when repairing a bathroom, they also repair a toilet..

The toilet is placed on a solid stone base. Naturally, the final position depends on the location of the sewage system and the water supply to the toilet.

It is recommended to install the toilet after tiling the floor. If it is necessary to install it before tiling the floor, the toilet is placed on tiles the width of the tiles.

Insert the toilet bowl outlet into the sewer pipe. Install the barrel on the toilet itself.

Mark the places where the toilet will be attached to the floor. Drill bolt holes.

Installing the toilet

Put the toilet in place, fasten with bolts, connect to the sewer pipe using a coupling. Don’t forget to check if the toilet is level with a level.

Screw on the barrel and connect the cold water line. Check the tightness of the connections.

If you did not rush to lay the tiles, picked up the pattern to taste, installed the plumbing correctly, so as not to face leaks in the future and not darken your life, the bathroom will become one of your favorite places in the apartment and delight for a long time.

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Comments: 2
  1. Isla

    What are the most important factors to consider before embarking on a complete bathroom renovation?

    Reply
  2. Zoey Bennett

    Can you provide some tips for a successful complete bathroom renovation?

    Reply
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