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Home > We have to "emergency renovate" the bathroom. :(((

We have to "emergency renovate" the bathroom. :(((

October 25th, 2013 at 04:45 pm

We have been having massive problem with our bathroom. When first tiles fell off the wall, I thought that we could just replace the tiles. However, the concrete below got completely crumbled down to nothing.

After massive research of what is going on, it turns out that whoever did the bathroom, did not use waterproof materials (Mortar, topseal, whatever) and the entire wall behind it crumbled completely due to constant water exposure.)

DH was working on it for days non-stop. We sent our toddler to grandparents, and instead of relaxing for once, all time is being taken up by frantic attempt to fix this issue TEMPORARILY.
We've been eating out and picking up take-out for a week now, with no time to spare for even grocery shopping and cooking.

Few more days of work and it will hopefully be patched up enough to buy us few months before we have to rip out all walls and gut it completely.

We are just not ready to do this now. That involves probably a month of living some place else (we only have one tiny bathroom) and HUGE expense.

Plus, finding good contractor is a massive challenge.
And, if we are ripping out all walls, might as well do floors (we have cheapest possible tile from previous tenants) and replace all fixtures, and put in full size tub one can soak in, and bathroom cabinets... If the bathroom is out of commission and everything is getting ripped out, we are better off doing it at the same time.
So in the next few month we have to look at stone, tile, ideas, contractors, hardware...
And the challenge of coming up with design ideas is that we have a true NYC bathroom. No window, tiny probably 5feet by 8 or 9 feet big. So when I google for "small bathroom ideas" their "small" is what I consider huge...

Plus, we need to come up with the MONEY to do this. I am afraid to even guess how much this will end up costing. 20K probably

9 Responses to “We have to "emergency renovate" the bathroom. :(((”

  1. Xtreme Thunder Says:
    1382718436

    Double post, ugh!

  2. Xtreme Thunder Says:
    1382718566

    Your husband appears to be handy, can you do some work yourselves? Demolition is a great place for contractors to hide costs. Demolition is simple and fun, and an easy way to save money. Unless you know a contractor, most of the time you can get the materials yourself for less than a contractor will charge you. If the contractor receives a deal, most likely you won't see those savings. We have the same issue, 1 small bathroom, so down time needs to be minimized. Do you have relatives near by that would allow you to shower? You can schedule work so that toilet is last out and first in. Depending on your taste, your budget for the bathroom can look real nice well under your budget. If your up for it, you could play General Contractor, a little short term stress is worth $10K easily in the long run. Labor, electrical and plumbing are budget eaters! Network and put word out if you do social networking. Good luck!

  3. Nika Says:
    1382718884

    Whenever I ask on local community forum I get either "my husband is a great contractor" (hardly and objective review) or this guy is great, tell him I referred you. That makes me think the poster wants to get something for recommending that guy and thus not trust the advice.

    My husband was not handy. He is smart. He had no idea what any of those things even were, but he did massive amount of research, hanging out on construction forums, watching videos, and figured a lot of things out.

  4. CB in the City Says:
    1382722547

    Oy!

  5. baselle Says:
    1382724543

    Oy is right. If you are not as lucky as me (contractor across the street), I'd try Angie's List first for the contractor. At least you will get a flavor.

  6. Kiki Says:
    1382726481

    Sorry for the headache but I re did my moms bathroom several years ago (ok, about ten years now.) and it was only out of commission for 4 days. The contractor made sure everything was lined up ready to install. Demo took about an hour and by Friday she was soaking in her tub. So, it may not take as long as you think, (and it should NOT take a month).

    We are looking at redoing her kitchen (original 1950's post WWI era kitchen) and the contractor is the same one. Should take about 10 days or so.

  7. TashaC. Says:
    1382735437

    good luck. I didn't know about needing waterproof materials but it makes sense. I don't know what NYC prices are like, in GA I would expect a total small bathroom remodel to be about $10k. But I imagine your labor is a lot more with NYC unions, and carting trash and materials through the building. I hope it goes quickly for you!

  8. scfr Says:
    1382743975

    Do you know anyone who works in real estate who might be able to recommend a good contractor?

  9. Carol Says:
    1382745192

    If it was builder error (understatement),might you have a homeowner's insurance claim?

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