When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Really on the fence with this one. Should I revamp some items and keep the tiling, or just pony up and gut reno? The sellers opted to keep it - for good reason. The colors are back in style, unlike the other purple and black tiled vintage bathrooms that look horrible. The condition of the tile is pretty good. The window is new, and so is the curtain and custom window treatment. There are chunky green ceramic knobs everywhere around the tub, and tower holders, etc.
The house, and town, are both historic, with original gas lamps lining the streets. So there is a certain charm to have a mix of vintage and new things. However, I will be living here for awhile, and there may be periods of regret that I will be investing in a revamped bathroom only to turn around in 5 years to gut it....and the water pressure isnt great. There are signs of minor piping corrosion in the untouched pipes in the basement. I was told to replace some original piping over the course of renovations during ownership, and this is the last bathroom to not be updated.
Option A:
Keep all tiling
Install big green ceramic rain showerhead
Remove medicine cabinet mirror and replace with an oversized mirror with some type of nice detail
Rip out sink and install 2in1 cabinet vanity. Perhaps a vintage green wood cab, with white stone top; or the inverse, green stone on white wood
Replace wall lamps with maybe green gooseneck lamps; something new but period in style
Remove flimsy shelves for a nicer wood cupboard
DIY - $3k-$4kish
Option B:
All of the above, but maybe tile over the existing floor. leave the walls. probably could DIY
Option C:
Total gut job, replace the piping too, which is showing signs of corrosion in the basement; and likely in this bathroom too since it the last area of the house to not be updated
15k? 20k?
If you like the 1920s style, you can totally redo that bathroom, keeping the theme, but utilizing modern colours. Black and white tiles would do wonders for an antique bathroom. I'm thinking of something like this:
rip out tiling, open up walls and replace piping, all new fixtures, basic to mid-level finishes. it's not the master, just a hall bath in between jack and jill bedrooms
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 04-18-2017 at 05:17 PM.
Personally, I measure out the areas I want to transform, and start online shopping.
Example:
200sqft of tiles = $$
tub and shower = $$ or tiled shower enclosure and glass door = $$
Vanity, sink and faucet = $$
replacing water lines = $$
replacing drainage lines = $$
updating bathroom venting = $$
etc etc.... There is way too much variability for me to say. I would venture a guess and say as cheap as $4500 if you do all of the work, to as much as 12k.
That's part of the problem... We don't know what your house looks like. What floor is this bathroom on? Are the pipes readily accessible? You'll have to cut open the bathroom walls to replace- not as bad as it sounds, especially if you tile over in those areas. The only hard part is replacing the drywall. Wait. Do you even have drywall? Or is it those old school horizontal boards and that mortar/gypsum paste over top?
Replacing the pipes with plastic PEX pipe is easy as pie. Assuming you can get to the pipes, that is. Also, 1920s construction standards are vastly different than today's standards. You might discover some wonky stuff along the way.
I don't want to scare you- this remodel is definitely doable. It's just the "behind the scenes" stuff that you should really look into so you know everything is good for the next 50 years.
Personally, I'm a DIYer, so I'd be doing a shit ton of homework before picking up any tools. You can however make your life easier, if you don't mind being a bit greasy. Get a few contractors in. Ask them a ton of questions. Get prices from them for everything. Ask them step by step on what needs to be done. Consider if it's worth using their services, or not. If not, you know what to tackle (according to what they told you) and you can start researching those individual items. It's greasy because you're calling them to see what needs to be done, but then don't utilize their services
It's a second floor hall bath that serves three bedrooms. There is another updated bath upstairs attached to the master. The walls are plaster and lathe. They would need to take down those walls or a portion of it.
I'm comfortable doing the DIY vanity install etc, perhaps the demo. But as far as a gut job, I would hire someone to do it. Since this morning, I have seen a few more comp transactions in this small town, and I'm open to maybe spending more to do it right, and maybe even doing some more work and flipping this house. I found a town in NJ with good value. Now there are a bunch of Brooklynites and NYers getting priced out and flooding the market. Since the time I closed on the house in July, the other homes in town went from selling at asking price, to 50k over, now blind bidding 150k+ over asking price. I seriously cannot believe it.
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 04-18-2017 at 08:59 PM.
That is actually very close to being a perfect style of a 1930`s era style bathroom. Just a lot more green or all white and you nail it.
I would just tile the bathroom (rip out the old tile) and go with a beveled edge subway and a marble floor. All white. Will update it and keep the era style in tact.
My concern is with the plumbing. Do you have original galvanized pipes, or copper pipe with some oxidation on it, meaning green stuff over the joints.
If you have original galvanized pipes than it is a no brainer that the pipes need to be replaced. If you have copper with some oxidation on it than it would be your choice to determine whether they need to be replaced. A little oxidation doesn`t necessarily mean the pipes are bad. Also could mean there is a a lot of moisture in the basement also meaning you need to run the right size dehumidifier to get rid of the moisture.
All that means, is get the plumbing sorted out and an update would work also.
That is actually very close to being a perfect style of a 1930`s era style bathroom. Just a lot more green or all white and you nail it.
I would just tile the bathroom (rip out the old tile) and go with a beveled edge subway and a marble floor. All white. Will update it and keep the era style in tact.
My concern is with the plumbing. Do you have original galvanized pipes, or copper pipe with some oxidation on it, meaning green stuff over the joints.
If you have original galvanized pipes than it is a no brainer that the pipes need to be replaced. If you have copper with some oxidation on it than it would be your choice to determine whether they need to be replaced. A little oxidation doesn`t necessarily mean the pipes are bad. Also could mean there is a a lot of moisture in the basement also meaning you need to run the right size dehumidifier to get rid of the moisture.
All that means, is get the plumbing sorted out and an update would work also.
good assesment. Copper pipes with some green oxidation at the joints only. Inspector uncovered it in the mechanical room in the basement. He assured me it may be limited to areas of the house that have not been renovated, which hopefully limits it to this one bathroom.
If you like the 1920s style, you can totally redo that bathroom, keeping the theme, but utilizing modern colours. Black and white tiles would do wonders for an antique bathroom. I'm thinking of something like this:
With a floor like this:
I have a ton of pictures like this in my inspiration folder from when I did the bathrooms. Many hours on Pinterest wasted.
Pic 1) Obviously the pipe of above leaking on the pipe below most likely from condensation.
Pic 2) The insulation around that pipe could be asbestos? Maybe? It needs to be removed because it will only get worse.
Pic 3) Galvanized to copper, obviously retrofitted.
Pic 4) Can`t tell what the stuff is around those valves. Important to note and a good thing that the supply lines that go up from there into the floor have no visible water damage on the sub floor,
I would bet that the plumbing in the bathroom has no issues anything above the sub floor and in the walls of the bathroom.
The stuff in those pics need to addressed though it`s kind of hodge podge.
Also at the bottom of the page where it says waste lines are pvc to cast iron is totally normal and should only be addressed if the transition collar is junk or the are any leaks.
Taco nailed it on the head... gut and go black and white... that is classic vintage that will never go out of style and will be timeless no matter what trends go and come back... do it right once... if you plan on living there for a while, just get everything done now and new... the plumbing being almost 100 yrs old needs to be updated anyway... you may as well enjoy it while you live there... and you already know this, any $ you sink into the bath, you will get some of it back when you eventually sell...
Agreed. For what it's worth, the house seems to have appreciated an astonishing 10-15% since I bought in July, which would be the equivalent cost of a bathroom gut reno plus a 911. Although it's not real money, and there will be dips. Needless to say, after digging around recent transactions, im more open to gutting out the bathroom
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 04-19-2017 at 09:09 AM.
Thermon, pulling the existing tiles off isn't that bad. You can get a nice power tool to dig under the tiles and pop them off. I can understand your desire to get someone in to do it though. After all, you would be left with a lot of garbage that needs to be hauled out of there and it is a pain. To keep costs reasonable, you could gut everything yourself and let a contractor do the new install work. Gutting doesn't have to be pretty. The finish work does though.
By the end of the day, as far as home renos go, it's your bathrooms and kitchen that have the biggest return on investment. As others have mentioned, I'd keep the theme but just update the colors. Black and white is timeless.
One thing to consider- measure all the bathtub dimensions. I'm not sure if you want to keep the existing one, or replace it, but either way, make sure you can get a new one through the door. Many people overlook that and end up returning the tub or cutting walls open to get it in
Not sure if you still even use the tub, but would you consider just doing a nice shower instead? Especially if you tiled it nicely to match the rest of the bathroom (assuming you gut and replace). Call it a classic theme, with a bit of modern flare.
Well, I think that so much money gets put into recreating the look...I'd rather just modernize some things to make it more functional...but really, I'm all about preservation and working with what you got.
Just my opinion...then again, depends on the wife's opinion (which I no longer have )
But he has to fix the plumbing anyway. Which means ripping open walls and likely means losing tiles. Even if he loses one tile, it's not like he can go pick up the same one from Home Depot.
Its funny, these older neighborhoods around NY were primarily built in the roaring 20s. New construction is few and far between. A lot of people here take the inverse approach, and kind of puke at newer construction, claiming it lacks character, and really cherish this vintage stuff. I am kind of in between the two. I could live with the look of the bathroom, and it is a conversation piece when people visit. Everyone gawks at the chunky ceramic knobs, and intricate pipe-work, etc. Anyway, Im favoring gutting it.
Yup. I am up on north side of Ridgewood. There is a gas lamp on my front lawn, by chance. There is only one per block on alternating street sides (one per 8 or so houses), so i guess im lucky. I am having a driveway and pavers put in this week, and the contractor had to flag off gas lines, and sure enough, there was a real gas line running to the lamp. They still operate on gas.
Last edited by ThermonMermon; 04-21-2017 at 04:20 PM.
i was driving through your neighborhood last week when i was going from work to Verona Park for our family photoshoot... i forgot how pretty some of the houses are in your area... i'm not talking about the McMansion in Upper Montclair... just at the bottom around Grove and Watchung...
04-18-2017, 04:35 PM
)
