eric

First I would like to thank my wife Pat for putting up with the terrible mess throughout this project as well as having to share a bathroom for the first time in 13-1/2 years. Second, thanks to all the great folks at http://www.johnbridge.com for all the advise they give us greenhorns. So many mistakes were avoided by reading the forum and learning from them. Answers to my questions were given freely - I owe so much to them all.

TEAR OUT: What a mess. I thought I would need to only pull the wall section where the new shower faucet assembly was going and the inner shower walls - HAH ! After tearing out the old surround, I found a real mess on the outer wall where tile had originally been before the previous owners installed the surround - another wall demo'd. Then, finding peeling plaster on a 3rd wall - well there went another wall down to the studs. Was glad now I did - studs and bottom stringer were rotted so bad I had to sandwich each stud between 2 new ones to support the ceiling joists in both the lower and upper sections of the house as well as replace the stringer. The old insulation was badly deteriorated, so was also removed.

The ceiling which also had peeling plaster was chipped back so only solid plaster remains to be floated and textured after the CBU is up.

Hanging Vanity brackets installed, area under vanity primed and painted, top of hot water baseboard primed and painted, tile starter board leveled and installed on east wall ready to begin tiling

Had forgotten to double check my level all around the room. Whew - marked common line all around and came out exact. Finished laying all the full tiles on the east wall and the first 13 full tiles on the north wall. Finally assembled my new wet saw and cut the first 13 pieces for the north wall to be laid tonight. Laid out, cut and fit the first piece of CBU for one of the shower walls to go up after most of the field tiles are laid and glued in the Proform niche.

Finished tiling about 80% of the north wall last night. Left a tribute to johnbridge.com inside the medicine cabinet cavity for posterity. Put up a starter board on the west wall and this morning put one up on the south wall.

Finished tiling upper right corner of north wall and set 4 tiles in lower left corner that had to be held with tape. Tiled nearly all that could be done on the west wall until I can get to my wetsaw outside in the daylight this weekend.

Added 4 taped tiles to north wall - north wall complete now until I can get to tile saw. Tiled most of south wall in shower area. Not many tiles I can put up now before saw cuts and putting in last 2 shower wall sections.

Finished tiling upper right corner of south wall. Taped several rows of tiles to center section to get correct spacing (left 2 columns of tiles out for mounting east shower wall) then tiled lower left section of south wall. Took measurements for 22 pieces to be cut on wet saw this weekend. Will need to spend much of weekend constructing last 2 wall sections and cutting tiles.

Due to space constraints between the edge of the shower pit and the edge of the window moulding, with thicknesses of CBU, tile, and thinset calculated in, the wall frame could be no more than 1-5/16" thick. Well, it was drag out the planer time and plane five 2x4 studs down to dimension.

As there is a slight slope to the concrete floor (very flat at least) and leveling was out of the question since the hot water baseboard unit is at the low end I had to engineer the wall in place. The angle against the wall was measured and cut on the baseplate. I cut the baseplate slightly long, pre-drilled holes in it on my drill press for anchor bolts, positioned it on the floor and marked the hole locations on the concrete. Dams were set using plumbers putty around each hole location on the floor and filled with water to cool the drill bits. The holes were then drilled in the concrete using a hammer drill until I had them large enough to accept the bolt heads. I used Rockcrete expansion concrete to fill the holes and secure the anchor bolts, attached the baseplate and made sure it was held firmly in the correct position while the Rockcrete hardened.

The next morning I marked and cut the bottom of the wall-side stud and pre-drilled five holes in it to accept log screws. The stud was then carefully aligned and checked for plum. I then chased the one of the holes through the CBU on the south wall and set in the first of five 6 inch long 1/4" log screws anchoring it to the stud beneath. I was then able to follow suit with the other 4 screws. Again this piece was left longer than needed.

The bottom of the outer stud was cut to the proper angle and levels were clamped to both the outer stud and top plate. These were then clamped together as well as clamping the top plate to the wall-side stud, adjusted for the precise height I wanted, checked for level and plum and all four pieces marked for final cutting.

All 4 pieces were then disassembled and cut. As the wall had to be very precise I carefully clamped each section, adjusted as necessary to make sure there was no lippage, pre-drilled all holes and screwed the frame together with 5 inch deck screws. Two additional studs were then cut, clamped, pre-drilled and screwed. 6mil sheeting was then added for vapor barrier and the wall set in place tightening all anchors.

The shower door frame was then clamped in position and a short wall constructed which goes above the frame connecting the east shower wall to the west wall.

With an hour and 20 minutes left before dinner I uncovered my wet saw and marked and cut 32 tiles which I had previously taken measurements for. At least there was a little light left outside after dinner so I got to give the saw a thorough cleaning without having to use a flashlight rofl.

Laid 30 pieces of tile only 4 of which were full tiles, most were pieces cut on Sunday. Will need to get the CBU on the new wall sections before I can do any more.

Tuesday night felt like a real bust. I had to drill 2 holes in a piece of tile for anchor screws to pass through for the short wall section. The first piece cracked as I finished drilling the second hole - went slower and applied less pressure on the 2nd try. Then I remembered I had been so tired the previous night that I just dumped my tools in my soaking bucket figuring I'd clean them the next day. WHAT A MISTAKE! Versabond definitely hardens underwater - big time. Took more time just to clean up my margin trowel than it usually takes to clean ALL my tools. Mixed a small amount of thinset in a cup and set the piece I had drilled. I wanted to Redgard the end of the wall section so it would be ready to mount Wednesday night. Grrrr - opened the new bucket of Redgard from HD and it was SOLID (taking it back to HD tonight). Well I spent the rest of the night thoroughly cleaning the rest of my tools and measuring for the remaining CBU cuts.

Screwed in the shower door header making sure it was level, added vapor barrier to inside and enclosed with CBU. Screwed in first CBU section to inside of east shower wall.

Saturday April 1st: Cut and installed the remaining CBU after work today. Cut and pre-fit the Schluter Rondec. Applied 2 coats of Redgard to a section behind one part the the door frame and cut the top of the door frame down a hair to fit. Hint on putting up very thin strips of CBU if you want to screw them in without them splitting - pre-drill and countersink for screws THEN cut them.

Sunday: Taped all new gaps. Cut several more tiles so was able to finish tiling the main walls to the ceiling leaving just the bottom row and inside of the niche. Put up the first strip of Rondec late today and started tiling with the accent color tiles. Held the Rondec in alignment it by sandwiching the lower section under my starter board and setting a clamp near the top so it doesn't move while I'm thinsetting/tiling it in as I go.

Finished tiling all full tiles on outside of east shower wall and started on the inside. Aligned and clamped remaining Rondec sections in place and locked them in with thinset. Measured for more tile cuts.

It was nice to have enough light when I got home last night to be able to cut a stack of tiles before getting back to tiling. Finished the outside of the east shower wall, tiled the top row of the header and most of the bullnose along the left side of the shower front wall. Added more tiles to the inside of the east shower wall. Re-test fit the door frame. Measured for another stack of cuts.

I had finished my last bag of Versabond tuesday night, so wednesday night I rushed home and cut as many tiles as I could before it got too dark to see. Cleaned my saw and headed off to HD to get more pookey and pick up grout charts there (Polyblend) and at Menards (TEC). Got home in time to relax a few minutes, then drilled holes for door frame anchors in some of the bullnose I had cut for the underside of the header.

Thursday night I finished tiling the shower walls as well as the bottom and top bullnose. The only tiling left on the walls now is the bottom row and the remaining inside of the Proform niche.

AT LAST ! I get to start laying out the floor !

For some reason, I'm getting some distortion with my pics, but at least I know the lines really are straight.

Nothing exciting to report. Had a family gathering this weekend, so only found enough time to grid my tile locations on the floor and measure/ mark tiles for cuts. I did also manage to pick up my grout on the way home Sunday night.

Last night I cut and dry-fit most of my floor tiles. Tonight my plan is to do the same with the remaining floor tiles as well as make some cuts under the door frame and ends of the baseboard heat housing to accommodate the height of tiles plus thinset.

The cutting went faster than I anticipated Tuesday night, so I moved ahead and tiled about half the floor.

Wednesday night: Finished tiling the floor. Took measurements for joining wall tiles and niche to be cut.

Cut 41 pieces last night to be laid next week after the floor is grouted. (Please excuse the bad pic) Cleaned all excess thinset from the grout lines and tile faces on the floor.

Saturday April 15: Got the floor grouted today. Got to use my new grout cleaning system.

Had a few hours Sunday before company arrived, so I sanded and cleaned the vanity for tiling/refinishing and added plywood strips to support the larger bullnose going around the 2 exposed sides. Cleaned, primed and painted (2 coats each) the remaining baseboard parts. Good ol' fast drying Krylon. Had it re-assembled before guests arrived.

Laid the bottom row of wall tiles last night outside of the shower and some of the niche tiles. Attached the suspended vanity and applied the first coat of Redgard.

After working until past midnight on Monday, I felt like I was in slow motion last night. All I managed to accomplish was measuring and marking the tiles for the vanity and the remaining ones for the niche along with another coat of Redgard on the vanity.

Wednesday night: Cut and test fit the tiles for the vanity top and niche. Stripped the wood parts for the medicine cabinet. Applied a 3rd coat of Redgard and stained the vanity.

While tiling the vanity last night, I was trying to come up with a way to keep the bullnose absolutely straight and in line with the top until the thinset was firm enough to hold it. I first tried to tape them to the tiles on top, but the tape could not keep them from sliding down a bit soooooo I merely taped the tops of the bullnose tight to boards right at the edge - assuring perfect alignment from all angles. Those 3x8 bullnose are surprisingly heavy.

The finished result shown with the sink ring test fitted and the niche fully tiled.

This weekend did not allow me a whole lot of time to work on my remodel. Friday night I put the first coat of poly on all the stained wood parts. I did however finally decide the I could not live with the color of the tile on the shower floor and opted to try a refinishing product. Part of Saturday after work was spent picking up supplies and arguing with the folks at Menards that YES Rust-Oleum's Tub and Tile Refinishing Kit COULD be tinted as per their website. They finally agreed to do it lol. The rest of Saturday was spent prepping the shower floor which entails doing about everything you are taught NOT to do to tile.

1) Scrub it well with bleach water and rinse. 2) Scour it with Comet cleanser using an abrasive pad and rinse. 3) Scrub it 3 times with Lime Away using an abrasive pad - letting the product sit for 5 minutes between scrubbings / rinse. 4) Sand it with wet/dry sand paper / rinse. 5) Let it dry thoroughly 6) Wipe it down with a tac cloth

Sunday I sanded the poly for a second coat and left to help a friend finish a deck and spray both sides of a 150ft fence. My big sprayer paid off again. By the time I finally got home I had just enough time before dinner to apply the 2nd poly coat, mask off the drain and walls and put the first coat on the shower floor. After dinner I prepared and put the 2nd coat on the floor. Since it takes a few days to thoroughly cure, I won't be finishing the shower tiles until later in the week.

Monday night was spent cutting the remaining 42 tile pieces (with just a few minor cuts left for final sizing in a few areas) and final sanding and poly coating all wood parts.

Finished tiling the area around the vanity Tuesday night. Disassembled the rest of the medicine cabinet and thoroughly cleaned everything. Thought I was going to have to repaint it, but it came out looking great except for the decorative cups around the bulb holders.

Wednesday night I had to go back for some more of the light bullnose. I had changed my design in some areas during the project and was short by one, plus wanted a couple of spares. Started on tiling the final section - the bottom of the shower pit making some quick cut adjustments as I went.

Laid my last 21 pieces of tile Thursday night.

Was afraid I would have to buy more thinset before I was finished, but made it. I held back 1lb of dry in the bag for reserve and had about 1/4lb of mix left when I finished.

Saturday after work I cleaned the floors and masked them off as well as the woodwork. Thoroughly cleaned all the tiles and grout/caulk lines with a wet terry cloth towel and margin trowel.

Grouted all day Sunday. Completed the north and east walls, the vanity and part of the south wall. The best phrase to describe grouting walls is PITA. Tooled off all the grout lines with a wooden dowel.

Took a step backwards Monday night. I decided I didn't like the light gray Silverado grout on the dark tiles, so I spent the night picking out another grout for the dark tiles (decided on DeLorean Gray) then sawing/digging out all the grout from the vanity.

Grouted the remaining areas that required a ladder Tuesday night. Got some good news from Lexco Tile & Stone, a regional wholesaler/supply house that they had my first choice of dark grout in stock in Milwaukee and could have it to me Wednesday. Soooo out with the DeLorean Gray and in with Lt Pewter !

I had been told by the place I got the other from it would take 2-3 weeks to get it so I WAS going to compromise. Am so glad now I won't have to.

Wednesday night: Lexco came through as promised today. Grouted a little more than half the dark tile with the Lt Pewter. I'm so glad I made the switch. It looks like a perfect match with the edging on the tiles.

Monday May 8: I had no time to work on it since last Wednesday. Spent the entire weekend fixing stopped up plumbing in the rest of the house.

Couldn't get a big enough power snake into the crawl space to git 'er done. After wasting all Sat after work in the crawl space I finally pulled my wife's terlit and shoved 100ft of 3/4" with a 3" cutter through it on Sunday.

Well, since the terlit hasn't had anything done to it in 13 plus years I figured may as well clean it up as new and replace all the guts.

Finally was able to get back to grouting tonight. Finished up the remaining dark tiles.

Finished grouting the west wall inside the shower Tuesday night as well as the remaining parts of the north wall pit/curb regions.

ALMOST finished grouting Wednesday night. Was short on my batch by about 10 sq ft, but want to redo a few areas on the floor anyway. So will try to finish it all tomorrow night.

Instead of taking still pics last night, I created a 22 min video while doing my awkward job of wall grouting. I just finished watching it - I think those of you who are pros and well experienced will get a few snickers of the way I do it, but had fun making the video anyway. Had to compress the file from a 204MB ASF file to a 5.4MB Real Media format to post it. wallgrouting.rm

Created a 2nd video using more lighting and at a better angle Thursday night wallgrout2.rm

Sunday May 14: Had some latex haze on most of the grout lines where I used the lighter grout (the dark grout was uniform and to spec), so spent what time I could find this weekend scrubbing with a 50/50 vinegar/water mix and brush, wiping down, neutralizing with 33% ammonia/water and drying with a terry cloth towel. Got most of it done before my arms about fell off

Monday night: I did manage to finish the grout cleaning last night and started on the sealing. Unfortunately, I have a bit of intestinal flue so can only get myself to work at it for short intervals before having to rest. Slow going but at least progress.

Tuesday night: Continued sealing. Finished the floor and toilet alcove as well as much of the outer walls and vanity.

Wednesday night: Same old stuff. Finished sealing the grout on all walls and surfaces outside the shower. Added a second coat to the vanity and all tiles around it.

Thursday night: Instead of sealing the grout in the shower, I decided to caulk everything outside the shower. Finished that and had enough time to install my new toilet - well all except for the supply line grrrrr.

I thought a 9" would be long enough It was an inch short.

Caulked, smoothed it with my finger, removed the tape and did a final "tooling" with my finger dipped in denatured alcohol:

Friday night: Finished the toilet. Installed the paper holder and towel rack behind the toilet.

Saturday: Didn't have much time to work on it, but caulked the niche and installed / wired the medicine cabinet.

Installed the remaining towel bars. Except for final trim and vanity doors, the outer portion of the bathroom is done and ready to use.

Thursday night: Installed the shower door framing. Misjudged the length and number of stainless screws needed, so will have to wait to pick more up so I can proceed further.

Saturday: Cut and installed the crown moulding. Cut and fit the window moulding.

Sunday: Cut and fit the door moulding. Stained the window and door moulding plus the door jamb and window frame. Installed most of the shower final hardware. Caulked the ceiling edge of the crown and the outside of the shower door frame.

Memorial Day: I went and bought a new oak door for the bathroom at Menards. Standard 24" door right ? Their 24" says it measures 23-13/16" so I figure, OK must be standard clearance. I knew the old door was a close fit and found out when I got the new one home that the old was indeed a true 24 inches. I figured 3/16" dif would be fine, so I cut the bottom to length, dragged out my Porter Cable router templates, routed for the hinges and proceeded to test hang the door to get exact center for the lockset. THERE WAS A 1/16" GAP BETWEEN THE DOOR AND THE STOP MOULDING !

I grabbed my tape measure and found out the door was actually 23-11/16" wide ! 1/8" less than it was supposed to be and 5/16" less than the original. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Off I ran back to Menards and returned it.

I went back to the door section and could not find a single one that measured more than 23-3/4". Headed over to HD and measured theirs. Amazingly it was a full 24".

At least still had enough time after dinner to cut the new one, fit it, and cut / inlet the lockset. Now I just need to sand and finish it.

I did get all the remaining caulking done (inside of shower door), 2 coats of poly on all the wood (other than the door of course) and nailed up the window and door trim.

THERE IS LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL !

Tuesday: We were inundated with heavy rains tonight so I decided to forget working outside on the entry door and concentrated on the shower door. With the exception of the door and a few minor details I declare this remodel FINISHED !

Closure! Friday night June 2nd I finally got the entry door installed. Took my first shower with the new 10" waterfall shower head - quite an experience if you've never tried one. I love it!