How to remodel full bath "on the cheap"
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How much are you spending on your master bath remodel?
Comments (19)$25K is the estimate my contractor has given me for a standard master bath remodel. I'm in LA area. I have a five-piece, 10'x14' bathroom. I've not started demo yet. My contractor said that the costs increase by adding luxury items, but that won't change the labor costs as much. For example, plumber's charge for installing a $2000 Kallista tub faucet will be about the same as installing a $300 Price Phister tub faucet. The total estimate for Kallista plumbing fixtures (for shower, tub, and 2 washbasins) came to over $9K. Some luxury items will bump up the labor costs - e.g., replacing my existing inoperable sky light with a remote-controlled, rain-sensor, UV-protected, operable sky light will add labor - and it looks like I will need to replace the sub panel for electrical. A $2K wall-mounted, Toto toilet would be more costly to install than a $700 conventional toilet. Some luxury items are controlled by code. For example, in the shower, I can have water coming out of only one fixture at a time (the carwash shower approach is not an option in an area where water conservation is an issue, unless it's completed after inspection.) No chandelier over the tub unless ceiling is raised to 11'. Steam shower requires ceiling tile; optional, otherwise. A big Jacuzzi tub on a platform with lots of tile work would not be standard. There's also the cost of maintenance to consider. For me, the budget challenge is in deciding which luxury items I really want, since it would be impractical to add them later (floor heating, towel warmer, linear drain, chromotherapy, ceiling tile, electric mirror with inset TV, tub spout in the ceiling). I would need to hire a housekeeper to keep this bathroom looking pristine....See MoreConverting landry room/1/2 bath to a full bath? Cost?
Comments (4)I'm in the Bay Area as well and had similar work done as part of a larger remodel. Off the kitchen I had a laundry room with a door to a small half bath (toilet + pedestal sink), and in the adjoining garage I had a furnace and water heater. I bumped the laundry room into the garage, taking up some of the concrete slab, replaced the furnace with a smaller one (added a 2nd furnace for the 2nd floor in the attic upstairs), removed the water heater and added a tankless heater outside. With the additional length gained by the laundry room in the garage, I was able to create a full bath from the half, adding a shower. Hope that all makes sense - I can post the before/after plans if that would help. Here are some numbers from my initial bid: Remove toilet 185.22 Remove 40 gallon water 185.22 Remove 6" basement slab w/pneumatic tool 350.28 Concrete sawing, slab, 447.36 Ceramic tile w/board in shower @$4/SF 80 SF 3,324.00 New water resistant sheetrock in shower 135.20 Ceramic tile floor w/board @ $4/SF 25 SF 876.25 Ceramic shower stall pan @ $4/SF 12 SF 405.00 Water heater was $1600 in materials, not sure about the labor. Vanity was $1000 and counter/sink was $1000. Wall-mounted faucet was around $150. Toilet was around $400 (wall-hung). Shower fixtures were around $200. I had the walls blocked for grab bars and added 2 of them. Window in the bath was around $150, new exterior door from laundry room was around $300. I don't have framing/drywall/insulation/electrical broken out for just the shower but those would need to be added in. Plus the cost of the plumber who ran all new copper pipes and the gas line to the tankless water heater. And other costs that were rolled into the bigger job. Permits required, obviously, which adds to the cost and time. You can do your own demolition and economize on the finish materials, but no doubt want to do a quality job on the framing, drywall, plumbing and tile work. Hope that helps....See MoreCheap Home Remodel to sell
Comments (20)Just my 2¢... Most of the answer to this depends on your home and your market, thus you really should talk to a realtor rather than us. I feel that many of the comments are making supported assumptions about your skill, but also making unsupported assumptions about buyers. I would argue that many home buyers can't distinguish quality all that well, to support this claim I give you shiplap. Additionally, many buyers want an updated home but don't necessarily need those updates to be high quality. Many home buyers, especially first time buyers, would rather have an updated bathroom with a bit of lippage than an outdated professionally finished bathroom. Things like a nice backsplash, clean or new baseboards, updated light fixtures, etc. can all be easy and cheap projects that pay off. Other things like updated bathrooms, kitchens, floors, etc. may help sell a house much faster and can offer a big payoff in liquidity even when they are a small return on investment. There are a lot of good and helpful resources that can help you through some inexpensive projects that will pay dividends for many home owners. This doesn't mean you should start tackling remodeling projects, and they will pay off. You really should talk to a realtor first and see the specifics of your area....See MoreConverting a half bath into 3/4 by making adjoining full bath smaller
Comments (4)For really good advice, post an actual floor plan with dimensions of the two spaces exactly how they relate to each other....See More
clairemulloo
5 years agoclairemulloo
5 years agopricklypearcactus
5 years agoI bought a nice 60" double vanity with marble top from Home Depot and they offered a service to deliver to the room of my choice. It was a very heavy fully assembled vanity and that was well worth the extra money to have two sturdy delivery men carry it up .
Home Depot Water Creation Madison 60in Vanity - $1299I also purchased a nice Toto toilet from Home Depot. In the past I've also purchased them from other online stores or from a local plumbing supply. I would typically prefer to purchase from smaller local plumbing supply but the one in town that supplies Toto sold me a 1.6gpf and then gave me a 1.28gpf. When I complained and asked for the toilet I requested / purchased they lied to me and told me Toto wasn't making them anymore. Home Depot let me purchase online and pick up in local store. And I ended up with the correct toilet. Very easy.
Home Depot TOTO Drake Toilet - $263
I would definitely install a new tub rather than considering painting / refinishing an existing tub. I prefer a sturdy cast iron tub, but they are heavy. So that might be another one you'd want to have delivered (if possible). Or you can opt for an acrylic tub which would be much easier to move yourself.
Make absolutely certain that whoever is installing tile is properly waterproofing behind the tile. Tile and grout are not waterproof on their own and you don't want to spend the money only to have a disastrous mold problem in a few years.
Shop around for tile. Hit up a bunch of local tile stores and get cost per sqft for tile you like. Some tile is incredibly expensive and other tile is very reasonably priced. Just keep yourself to a budget and I'm sure you can design a lovely bathroom and source all the materials yourself.
clairemulloo
5 years ago
enduring
5 years ago
writersblock (9b/10a)