# !st serious DIY Bathroom remodel- wish me luck!



## jwedel (Jan 28, 2013)

*1st serious DIY Bathroom remodel- wish me luck!*

My wife and I have decided to re-model a small "guest" bathroom at the end of the house. The walls were OK, but the original peachy tile from 1963 just wasn't going to jive with our tastes. We have began the demo process, which is taking much longer than expected, since I was expect tiles to pop off rather easily, not like busting up 2" thick mud cement behind the tiles.























We have completed about 1/2 of the demo, since we will still be ripping out the rest of the peachy tile, including the peach vanity.
After some hardware updating and replacing rotted studs, we are hoping to install corrugated tin along the bottom where we are ripping off the tile. 







One question I have- What should we install behind the tin? I didn't know if it would be wise to put in drywall, tile backerboard, or what?
Thanks in advance! I'll try to take pics and keep this updated.:thumbup:


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## Fantastic (Feb 21, 2011)

If it were me, I'd put in green board drywall... It's great for damp areas and will give your tin some support. I don't think you need anything fancy. 

PS. I like the tin idea


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

I like the paper free drywall for any wet areas.

You could also use a strip of cement board across the bottom if you are ever worried about overflow and moisture drawing from the bottom up.


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## jwedel (Jan 28, 2013)

Finally had a free weekend to get a few things done. Got the rest of the one side demolition finished , replaced some studs & insulation, then got sheetrock put up. FYI- an air chisel makes all the difference in the world when tearing out this stuff























As I type this, my wife in there painting the upper part of the walls we have finished. We're hoping to have this completely finished by this coming weekend, since all of the family is coming over for Christmas, so wish us luck.
Stay tuned, I'll try to keep this updated as we go along this week.


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## ghutch (Oct 3, 2013)

"which is taking much longer than expected"

I find that true of every step of the way for my whole house renovation.

Betty Draper would have loved the bathroom you tore out.

I like what you've done, especially the wall color. What is it?


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## Fantastic (Feb 21, 2011)

You're getting to the home stretch!!! Keep moving at a good pace and you'll be done before you know it.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

That drywall needed to be about 1/2" up off the floor. Reasons being, the floor is almost never flat or level, and it keeps any water that gets on the floor from wicking up the wall.
A whole lot easier if you take the time to remove the door casings, and that medicine chest so you do no have to try and work around it.
Would have been easier to finish if you had of had the tapered seam at the top not the bottom.
All live and learn mistakes we've all made.


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## jwedel (Jan 28, 2013)

Thanks for the input joecaption, really do appreciate it, since this is my 1st experience with most of this stuff.

UPDATE
Been staying pretty busy and have gotten a lot done.
I had my brother over the other night and we tackled taking out the other wall and the sink/cabinet.








I didn't know what we would find under the cabinet, but it was just the wood sub-floor, which was about 2 1/2" below the current level of the floor tiles.








We layed down some 2x4's in the hole, then layed down a piece of 1/2" plywood, which brought it up pretty darn close to make the new tiles fit level. I got the tiles glued down this evening, and I'll give them some grout once it's ready and keep going along.


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

Looking good so far.


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## jwedel (Jan 28, 2013)

Alright, this job has gone much slower than I expected, so I didn't get it done by Christmas, but I did get close! 
Here is the updated scene.
















As you can see, we got the tin put up, and I'm really impressed with how it turned out. Luckily I had my younger brother over one night and he helped me with it, since it takes about 4 hands to hold everything just right before you can get a couple screws in.
All that is left is installing the sink, getting a new toilet, plus the wood trim around the top, bottom, & corners.
Maybe I can make some good progress in the next week or so :thumbup:


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## md2lgyk (Jan 6, 2009)

Fantastic said:


> If it were me, I'd put in green board drywall... It's great for damp areas and will give your tin some support. I don't think you need anything fancy.
> 
> PS. I like the tin idea


Green board is horrible for damp areas. It's not even legal here any more.


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## jwedel (Jan 28, 2013)

md2lgyk said:


> Green board is horrible for damp areas. It's not even legal here any more.


So what should I have used? Even the folks at the little hardware store in town said I should use green board. :huh:


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

Green board is fine. Don't take the negative comments the wrong way. Green board isn't "banned" or "illegal". It's just that it doesn't really have a good use. It doesn't have enough water resistance to stand up to "damp" areas, so what's the point? In other words, it's about the same as regular drywall. Which is fine. If you need waterproofing, use something else. Supposedly Green board has some water resistance but what use is it? They recommend it for "limited" "wet" areas like bathroom walls and kitchen backsplashes. Well, the thing is, those areas should never get wet behind the tiles to begin with. If water is getting to the drywall, something is wrong. So there really isn't a good use for Green board.

Having said that, using it in your application should be fine. Assuming you don't think it will get wet 

Speaking of which, I might have missed it, but is there anything stopping splashed water from getting over the top of the corrugated metal?


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

jwedel said:


> I didn't know what we would find under the cabinet, but it was just the wood sub-floor, which was about 2 1/2" below the current level of the floor tiles.


And that is why you should always lay tile underneath a vanity. You never know when you'll want to change it out, or even put in a pedestal.


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

I like the wall color too. In general, I think darker colors look good in bathrooms, despite the normal advice that darker colors make rooms seem smaller, and therefore aren't so good for small rooms. For most bathrooms I think you should be going for cozy, not spacious (although some are designed to look better as spacious.)

I was looking for a darkish color for my office. I wanted something a little bold this time, and was even thinking of a lime-ish green at one point. That probably would have been a mistake, but people were all recommending these pale, grayish greens, which were exactly the subtle types of colors I usually love and use (not green per se, but pale/gray versions of colors.)

I ended up with BM Avocado, and I love it.
http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/avocado

As opposed to these, which I normally would go with:
http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/greenhowmoss
or
http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/fernwoodgreen


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## jwedel (Jan 28, 2013)

jeffnc said:


> Speaking of which, I might have missed it, but is there anything stopping splashed water from getting over the top of the corrugated metal?


I'm going to trim the top and bottom of the tin with darker stained 2x4's.

I think the avocado is a close match to what we did.

I did get a new toilet for Christamas...sorta. Got several Lowe's gift cards and added them all up and bought a new toilet.
Got everything installed and it went easy, except I need a new supply line, since the old one was too short to re-use


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## md2lgyk (Jan 6, 2009)

jeffnc said:


> Green board is fine. Don't take the negative comments the wrong way. Green board isn't "banned" or "illegal".


Technically, I suppose you are correct. It isn't "illegal" in the sense that it's a crime to use it and you'll be arrested if you do. However, it is not code compliant here, and you will not pass inspection if it is used.


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

md2lgyk said:


> Technically, I suppose you are correct. It isn't "illegal" in the sense that it's a crime to use it and you'll be arrested if you do. However, it is not code compliant here, and you will not pass inspection if it is used.


Are you telling me you can't use it on your bathroom walls? Because I find that very hard to believe. Cannot use it behind tile in your shower - yes, that is not code compliant. However there's no reason it can't be used in walls anywhere in your house that is not a "wet area". I'm not sure what you mean by "damp area", but if green board can't be used in your bathroom, that's basically like saying drywall can't be used in your bathroom.

If you are saying otherwise, I'd be interested in seeing the documentation for that.


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## Fantastic (Feb 21, 2011)

Green board: A type of gypsum board that has a greater resistance to moisture than regular (white) gypsum board and is used in bathrooms and other wet areas.

Next

GreenBoard is drywall with a water repellant covering on one side. it is used in bathrooms, and around kitchen sinks. 

By certain codes, you use this green board in damp wet areas, like around a sink or bath/shower. It is dyed green so you know the water repellant has been added.

However, where bathroom tile is used in a shower stall, cement board is to be used. Cement baord is water proof, to a certain extent. In a bath and/or shower, the cement board is used to eliminate water ingress into the wall, therby preventing mold and mildew. The really good contractors also use a water proof membrane along with the cement board.

Not sure where I went wrong in saying green board is good to use in the OPs renovation?? It's not in a shower it's just his walls in the bathroom. 

There should never be water or moisture getting to any drywall but let's face it... It can happen. 

Caulk your trim after you install it and even your corners.... Seal it all up nice and tight.

Looks great by the way!!! You're doing a good job!!!


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## jwedel (Jan 28, 2013)

Finally got some time to do some work here.







Got the sink finished. Hopefully I can get a few things done this week with decent weather.


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## 123pugsy (Oct 6, 2012)

Hate to say it but I have to.

You should pull off the tin and install the base first with the tin coming down on top of the base.


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

You could also use a clear silicone to fill the spaces between the metal and the base - will be difficult to get a nice clean looking job though. It could be taped off, with the tape on top of the base, and another piece following the curve of the metal - I supposed that's how I'd do it.

Another option would be filling it with something solid (think Bondo style) and then painting it.


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## jwedel (Jan 28, 2013)

123pugsy said:


> Hate to say it but I have to.
> 
> You should pull off the tin and install the base first with the tin coming down on top of the base.


Ideally, you are correct. However, I am doing it in this manner because there is about a 2" wide "ditch" around the floor where we pulled out the old tile that went below the floor level. The ~1/2" depth of the tin and the 1.5" from the 2x4 BARELY have enough to cover the edge. I wish it wasn't like this, but it's what I'm dealing with. I haven't decided what I'm going to use to fill in the gaps just yet. I thought about spray foam with caulk on top of it.


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## Jb1234 (Aug 18, 2012)

I would have used a 4x4 and then back cut it for depth and then run the corrugated onto the top of it. It's a short run so it wouldn't be expensive.


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