Bathtub Surround Fun

This is what was hiding under the beautiful (Note Sarcasm) white/gold swirl laminate that use to surround the tub/shower. While I was happy to see the laminate go. I wasn't sure what to do with the mess left behind.

I decided to just go with a cheap tub/shower surround that I found at Lowes. The bathtub/Shower surround I used only cost $59. It was 5 pieces/non interlocking. I thought this would give me some flexibility because I was pretty sure the walls were anything but plumb. I was right about the walls and I was right about the kit. However, having to caulk every seam and all around the surround was not much fun.

One of the cons noted in the reviews of the product was that the shelves were flimsy. People had solved this issue with spray fill foam but cautioned not to over do it. Well I took their advice on  using the foam but failed to NOT OVER DO IT.  The shelves actually looked nice and sturdy when I installed the surround, but the foam KEPT EXPANDING causing the top of the shelves to bulge up making them useless.

I thought I was going to have to rip everything down, but finally the plastic memory of the shelving won out over the expanding foam and the shelves flattened out well enough to make them useable.

I would also warn that this project took several days and not just an afternoon because of all the gluing, caulking and a stubborn seam I had to apply pressure to overnight to get to lay flat.  I also spent more on Glue and Caulking then I did on the enclosure itself. Go-Figure.

Old Time Sharpie Disposal

The original medicine cabinet had the slot for disposing of old razor blades. And of course when we removed it we found a pile of them in the wall. Judging by the size of the pile it wasn't used for very long. I can't imagine what this pile would have looked like if they had used it from the time the house was built in the 1940's.

Closet / Corner Make-Over

From This

To This

To The Finished Product

We debated on whether to keep the small built in closet that was left after removing the walk in portion. Finally we decided it had to go. I had to patch the walls and ceiling. Luckily I was able to buy the ceiling tile I needed by the square. I only wasted two tiles in my learning of installing/patching false ceilings. I just used left over dry-wall and paneling to fix the walls.

You have to wonder what were they thinking with that GREEN? One other interesting note -- the paneling you see peeking out from underneath is the original wall covering and it was made of corrugated cardboard.

The blue walls pictured here are really darker than shown. My camera phone does not always render the truest of colors.

Bathroom Window - Before / After

BEFORE

The bathroom window looked horrible so we gave it a new look with some fresh paint, new trim and privacy panels. The privacy panels are just crackled plastic cut and held into place with good ole caulking.  Looks pretty good with the new Tub/Shower Surround.

AFTER

Feeling Blue

Tony looked high and low looking for just the right shade of blue to go in Alex's bedroom. He was trying to match it up with one of the shades of blue that matched the bedding for Alex's crib. And here it is in all it's blueness. Just the first coat but looking good.

Quick and Dirty - Level Floor

The small bedroom's floor dipped by about an inch in the middle. There was no way we would be able to lay the laminate flooring with that much of a difference. I found several articles on the web on how to level a floor. They ranged from ripping up the floor and fixing the joist to using shims or shingles. To be honest I am in full support of Fixing the Real Problem and go the taking up the flooring and addressing the sagging issue by fixing the joist. However time and money was not going to let us go that route.

Using the straight edge of one of the pieces of OSB we were going to use for a subfloor as our guide we filled in the dips with some of the old flooring we had tore up. We simply kept moving our guide across the floor and filled the voids with the old square tiles. We then laid the OSB down in sections and tweaked it a little more till we were satisfied.

We ended up with a nice solid and fairly level floor to work with. COOL

Revised Punch List May 1

Living Room - DONE 

Bedroom

• Trim Closet
• Install Closet Door Curtain
• Door Trim
• Replace Attic Access Panel
• Spackle and Paint Nail Holes

Bathroom

• Buy and Hang Shower Curtains
• Hang Bathroom Towel Bar, Toilet Paper Holder, etc.
• Touch Up Paint, etc.
• Install Hook Latch lock
• Spackle and Paint Nail Holes
• Partition for Hot Water Tank
• Replace Electrical Outlet and Cover
• Door Transition to Small Bdrm

Small Bedroom - DONE 

Kitchen

• Fix Stove
• Install Vinyl Flooring
• Re-Panel Laundry Center Walls
• Install Backsplash
• Paint Walls
• Patch Ceiling
• In Progress - Paint/Refinish Cabinets
• Patch Walls and Corners
• Remove Scallop edge from wooden valence
• Replace Laminate on Countertops
• Clean Dryer Vent
• Remove/Replace Old Range Hood
• Trim Porch Door
• Trim Bedroom Door
• In Progress - Partition for Laundry Center
• Door Transition to LVRM
• Door Transition to BDRM
• Door Transition to Porch
• Baseboard Trim
• Paint Ceiling
• Patch Floor

Sun Porch

• Remove Old Cabinets
• Fix Ceiling
• Clean Windows, Walls and Floor
• Fix Screen Door
• Paint Floor
• Lighting
• Window Treatments ????

Curb Appeal

• Fix Concrete Step
• Paint Rod iron Black
• Paint Concrete Stoop Pad and Steps
• Front Flower Beds  (Edging, Mulch, Plants)
• Edge Driveway
• Add Gravel
• House Number (Stoop Gabel, Mailbox)
• Touch Up Front Windows (Clean/Paint)
• On going - Mow/Trim Lawn