My wife had better be happy...

[Neil K Walk]

I finished her bathroom. Not having to hear "who left the toilet seat up AGAIN?!?" should not be the only reward.

In all honesty, it could've gone faster but in all it took 7 weeks from tearing up the carpet to installing the new vanity. I also painted four coats; she changed her mind on the wall color because it looked "too dark."









(continued...)

[Neil K Walk]

[Neil K Walk]

There was also a hiccup with some tiles not bonding with the mortar



Two, in fact.



After nearly getting into a fist fight at Lowe's over waiting in line to check out for an extra bag of mortar things turned out better the second time around. After cleaning off the mess about a dozen times I had to do it again after doing the grout. By then I felt like the project was taking on momentum and I had her help me lug her new vanity upstairs.

[Neil K Walk]

Things are never easy though. It's heart wrenching having to cut holes in such a solid piece of furniture.



After enlisting her help to lift up the quartz countertop and new mirror I was able to take my time on the plumbing. Having drawers underneath the plumbing turned out to be a rude surprise and a tight fit. On the bright side, working with new plumbing fixtures isn't disgusting.



Now her retreat is fully operational - even though like the second Death Star there's still some carpentry that needs to be completed.



I did my bathroom last year at this time. I had to build an enclave to fill the hole in the wall.

[12barBill]

Nice job Neil!!

[Dirk Hofman]

I mean...really, awesome job. Looks great. But wouldn't it have been easier just to put down the toilet set?

[Neil K Walk]

Originally Posted by Dirk Hofman

I mean...really, awesome job. Looks great. But wouldn't it have been easier just to put down the toilet set?

You reminded me: I am expecting a complaint. I had to change the floater in the toilet tank on her toilet's tank - and yet at random times it still turns on. I replaced every cutoff valve with new quarter turn valves and still...

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by Neil K Walk

You reminded me: I am expecting a complaint. I had to change the floater in the toilet tank on her toilet's tank - and yet at random times it still turns on. I replaced every cutoff valve with new quarter turn valves and still...

The cutoff valve has nothing to do with it.
If you have a flapper style fill valve, water could be very slowly seeping where the flapper is supposed to seal and when the water level in the tank drops enough, the fill valve kicks on.The flapper could be warped...doesn’t take much. After it’s flushed can you see water trickling down the insides of the bowl for more than 20 seconds or so?
You may need to replace the flapper or go to a different style of fill valve.
What brand of toilet is it?

[leew3]

Awesome job on this remodel. Also, an endorsement of Rokdog here-he's right on the money and knows his way around these repairs from a lifetime in the industry!

[AX17609]

Didn't she just get a new car, too?

[Dru Edwards]

What a great job, Neil! I'm sure she's very happy.

[JCave]

You don't know how much work a bathroom is until you've done one. Great job.

[Neil K Walk]

Originally Posted by AX17609

Didn't she just get a new car, too?

Actually, she just bought me a new car. I'm technically a homemaker.

Originally Posted by JCave

You don't know how much work a bathroom is until you've done one. Great job.

This is technically my third and the final bathroom remodel. I did a half bath downstairs a couple of years ago just to get my feet wet (basically I just replaced the vanity) and did a smaller full bath last year around this time. We went to one of those all in one interior design firms and was quoted $40K for the master bathroom and $10K for the smaller full bathroom. I haven't tabulated all the expenses but it probably cost half that spread out over the course of a year going the DIY route. In all honesty I did not do the tubs and surrounds. I know my limits. They cost $10K altogether and should be paid off sometime early next year.

Originally Posted by rokdog49

The cutoff valve has nothing to do with it.
If you have a flapper style fill valve, water could be very slowly seeping where the flapper is supposed to seal and when the water level in the tank drops enough, the fill valve kicks on.The flapper could be warped...doesn’t take much. After it’s flushed can you see water trickling down the insides of the bowl for more than 20 seconds or so?
You may need to replace the flapper or go to a different style of fill valve.
What brand of toilet is it?

Thanks, rokdog. I'll look into it. It's an American Standard, a brand that I have frankly fallen out of love with. I replaced bathroom #2's toilet with a Kohler and am much happier with it.

BTW, the next project is to install french doors in her home office. I was quoted $3K.

[Neil K Walk]

The old medicine cabinet had rusted pretty badly so I made a replacement alcove out of PVC boards and other non-wood materials trim.