Bath remodel #2

Michelle E
by Michelle E
Just wanted to share my last remodeling adventure- the guest bath. The guest bath was already planned out a couple years before- around an antique claw foot tub my husband landed for free. It involved expanding the bathroom as the tub was too long to fit. My sister passed away unexpectedly so my mom and niece are moving in...which means this has been a rush job ever since. It was gutted down to studs at the time, so lots left to be finished. At least I had already accumulated a majority of the materials I would need to complete and the claw foot tub was already sand blasted and painted. I normally take my time getting projects finished as I shop for the best deals/sales/clearance and pick up free or inexpensive used items when possible. Having a deadline is not something I am used to, and when you add in that I was working 55-60 hr weeks and had to clear out 2 rooms for them to move into...and given 4 weeks to finish...OMG! I started by asking for help from my sons and friends....but they were also very busy. Slowly it was coming together, a friend rerouted plumbing for me, middle son put in floor and duroc and started putting up drywall. But it was not progressing fast enough. I was thinking I would never make deadline and made my biggest mistake ever...I hired someone from CL. They showed up late at 8 pm...husband and wife team- with their 3 kids who camped on my sofas. They were supposed to finish the drywall, move 2 ceiling lights and install the chandelier. At 4 am we finally told them to go and come back tomorrow- I was down to 4 hrs of sleep after 12 hr day and had another 12 hrs the next. The guy tripped the breaker so I could not see...so my second biggest mistake- I paid before I could see what they did. A toddler could have done a better job mudding seams (and they did not do 4 of the corners) and the electrical was all messed up- I had no lights in my office and bare wires hanging out of walls. I called to find out when they were coming back- they refused to come back and was not going to refund. Fortunately, my youngest son came yesterday and redid all the seams and put in rest of drywall. He suggested calling a family friend to fix the electrical- who showed up and stayed til 1 am getting it right (contractor capped off some wires in wall and routed switches wrong). Oldest son started tiling- but on 3rd tile he cut- saw broke. Thankfully a friend who was handy rewired it and it now works. So now down to sanding seams, painting and finishing tile...then the fixtures can go in. Here is some before and during photos. I will follow up with the completed photos this weekend.
Before....hard to get good shots because of the way the bathroom is situated. This was the second remodel in this bath. The first one done 10 yrs ago - new vanity and sink, paintable wallpaer and vinyl tile.
Tub cracked and caused water damage.
Tear out...you can see the mold from water damage.
Another photo of tear out...nice crooked stud.
Contractor work ...really?
Another shot of his work...notice wiring hanging out
Could not even cover tape
undone corner- one of 4
After my youngest son fixed drywall- this I can work with
another shot after son finished
Here you can see some of the tile installed.
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  • Michelle E Michelle E on Apr 11, 2014
    OK...just took a few photos. Since last photos, the room is now in paint. The tile is grouted, toilet in and the fixtures not yet installed. Excuse the mess...trying to keep everything in that room so it does not get mixed up with the stuff for kitchen remodel.
  • Sandra S Sandra S on Apr 15, 2014
    So sorry about the loss of your sister, & how wonderful you are to open your home to your Mom & niece. We also got ripped off by a contractor. He had done electrical & handyman projects for some of my real estate clients, & everyone had been very pleased with him. He told us about all the remodelling jobs he had done, & we made the mistake of believing & trusting him. Warning: do NOT use AllPro Electric/Jon Walton from the Oklahoma City area. Good luck on your project, keep posting those updates, please.
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