Bathroom Remodel

[shoot-straight]

hey guys. I have come to believe you guys are some of the best do it yourselfers out there. Haven't really been one, but trying to do more and more.

We have a terrible bathroom. Want to redo the tile mostly. It's rather large, has a 4' shower,double vanity, and big whirlpool tub. Want replace the vanity, tile the shower and keep the tub (but install a proper service panel). Here are the biggies:

1. the demo of the cheap porcelain tile, and the 1/2 fir that is screwed into my 3/4 subfloor. Would love to take up both at the same time, not likely.

2. Laying tile on the floor is not a big deal, but I want to use the deitra in floor heating system. Looks pretty slick. I have To demo the tile around and under the tub lip. Reinstalling tile will be a pain there.

3. Proper waterproofing and laying of tile in the shower. Looks like pre made pans and stuff help a lot.

Will have a friends roommate come and do the plumbing stuff, electrician to hook up the heat.

Advice and comnents appreciated.

Brett

 

[semipro]

If you're willing to pay the price the Schluter-Ditra system works really well for under-tile in both open areas and the shower. They also make a foam panel system that can be used to construct seats, walls, and other features that can then be tiled.
I really like idea of curbless tile showers and it sounds like it might work in your bathroom. Good article here on one way to do it without having to cut into your floor joists. http://www.finehomebuilding.com/2015/10/14/curbless-shower-build-up-not-down

 

[shoot-straight]

If you're willing to pay the price the Schluter-Ditra system works really well for under-tile in both open areas and the shower. They also make a foam panel system that can be used to construct seats, walls, and other features that can then be tiled.
I really like idea of curbless tile showers and it sounds like it might work in your bathroom. Good article here on one way to do it without having to cut into your floor joists. http://www.finehomebuilding.com/2015/10/14/curbless-shower-build-up-not-down

we will be doing a curb/threshhold system with a simple center drain.

yep, i will likely be going with the complete shower system- including prefab pan.

 

[semipro]

we will be doing a curb/threshhold system with a simple center drain.

yep, i will likely be going with the complete shower system- including prefab pan.

The last shower I did was a prefab acrylic pan (Sterling maybe?) but I considered using the Schluter system for the pan. Ours was installed over a concrete slab so the idea of foam below the shower floor was attractive.

 

[sportbikerider78]

Having a custom pan made is a 1 day job. If you want a custom pan, just do it. It is worth if if the space would look much better with it.

The heating systems you can buy on amazon work great and are a fraction of the cost. This is the one I have and I love it. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005DMOTHK/?tag=hearthamazon-20
When it is being installed...keep it hooked up to this. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0118NGRJK/?tag=hearthamazon-20

It will alert you if you nicked the wire with your trowel. Don't want to get the job done and then have a bad system..or a short. Make sure you insulate the subfloor from underneath if you can. Helps direct heat up.

Custom cut granite is not that expensive for things like the top of a pan. Go visit a good mom and pop countertop place. I got a seat, and 2 curbs cut for about $200. There is a very very good chance they can cut what you need with scraps they have around the yard.

 

[AlbergSteve]

I just completed a whole house reno in August and used Ditraheat in both bathrooms as well as Kerdi board and membrane under the tile in the showers - it is the best product I've seen in a long time and DIY friendly. I've been 25 years in construction, and the Ditraheat is the only way to go for the floor warming.

 

[shoot-straight]

I just completed a whole house reno in August and used Ditraheat in both bathrooms as well as Kerdi board and membrane under the tile in the showers - it is the best product I've seen in a long time and DIY friendly. I've been 25 years in construction, and the Ditraheat is the only way to go for the floor warming.

That's great to hear.

 

[jetsam]

When the Schluter guy does demos, he cuts up a piece of that Kerdiboard and makes a box with it. He uses it for a cooler and a stepstool all day. It's remarkably tough foamboard (so if you need a custom size/shape cooler that can be tiled, look no further.)

Hmmm... why doesn't MY shower have a cooler in it?

 

[sportbikerider78]

When the Schluter guy does demos, he cuts up a piece of that Kerdiboard and makes a box with it. He uses it for a cooler and a stepstool all day. It's remarkably tough foamboard (so if you need a custom size/shape cooler that can be tiled, look no further.)

Hmmm... why doesn't MY shower have a cooler in it?

I've watched videos of them fabricating kneewalls and such. I opted for 2x4 and stud systems. I just don't believe foam glued to a wall via thinset can rival in rigidity that of a screwed to the wall and floor, wall.
I still prefer durock and taping joints then waterproofing over it.

 

[AlbergSteve]

Taped gypsum board showers is why I had such a lucrative 25 years in construction renovating those same leaking showers, the last one I worked on cost the owner over $50k. Unless you're playing full contact racquet ball in the shower, I guessing the Kerdi board will hold up just fine.
The board is attached with stainless screws and washers and then the joints and screws are "taped" with Kerdi membrane. Even the valve and nipple come with rubber gasketed membrane. Then, the tile guy insisted on Kerdi membrane sheets over the whole wall.

This is the untaped wall with pre-made niche.

 

[jetsam]

That funky black line in the membrane is subfloor electric heat. Comfy!

I want to do a custom size/shape kerdi shower with Kohler showertiles and a dedicated tankless water heater someday. So far it's remained on the "after I win the lottery (which I do not play)" list.

 

[sportbikerider78]

Taped gypsum board showers is why I had such a lucrative 25 years in construction renovating those same leaking showers, the last one I worked on cost the owner over $50k. Unless you're playing full contact racquet ball in the shower, I guessing the Kerdi board will hold up just fine.
The board is attached with stainless screws and washers and then the joints and screws are "taped" with Kerdi membrane. Even the valve and nipple come with rubber gasketed membrane. Then, the tile guy insisted on Kerdi membrane sheets over the whole wall.

View attachment 221371
This is the untaped wall with pre-made niche.

What do you mean by gypsum? Just sheetrock? So stupid. That is what my shower was made from. Gave me a $5k negotiating point in buying the home.

 

[AlbergSteve]

Yep, sheetrock, drywall, gypsum wall board....contractors used it for years to save $10 on a shower install, even when there were water/moisture/mold resistant products available. Don't see it too much anymore unless it's a DIY. That project I spoke of was a $2 mil plus home that had been "professionally" reno'd about 10 years ago. We were called because there was a tiny water stain on a hallway ceiling below the upstairs shower. When we opened up the shower walls, there were no studs left on two exterior walls - under one of those walls was a 3 ply engineered beam that had the top third rotted off and the ends of the joists that butted into the beam had rotted off. Needless to say the owner was not amused.

 

[jetsam]

They're still using it today. Watch the pro entrance at HD/Lowes/Menards, and you'll see an endless parade of guys hauling "waterproof" gypsum board out with their shower pans. The thinking seems to be that if the manufacturer writes "mold" somewhere on the label, the gypsum will somehow not melt when it gets wet. Some of them tile directly onto it.

"It'll Hold Until The Check Clears!"

 

[semipro]

In the install I'm currently doing I'm using concrete backer board, screwed and taped with grout, then multiple coats of RedGard. The Schluter stuff was just too expensive.