Beginnings of a Bathroom

We have not quite finished our big summer project (house painting), but one should never rest on his laurels. Last weekend Dean and I demolished our bathroom. Our good friend Carter lent a hand. We cannot repay him with enough In and Out Burger—he was such a great help. Here is what happened in this order:



The bathroom before the demolition. The vinyl floor was curling and moldy, and the single sink was tucked

behind the bathtub, barely visible and too small for 2 people.



The bathroom on Friday evening, after the plumbers and electrician did their job.

• Our fantastic plumbers came over and moved the cast iron tub out of the bathroom, so I can restore it in the guest room. It took three strong men to move it.
• We tore out all the 100-year-old bead board that was globbed with paint and moldy in spots. It was two inches thick and made of Redwood. Much different than the bead board you buy at Home Depot today.
• Dean and Carter framed a new ceiling, which will allow us to have a bathroom fan and vent the new fixtures.
• We ripped out the linoleum floor and the vinyl floor underneath by chipping away at it with paint scrapers.

All of this happened in one day. It "freed up" Sunday for a big day at the San Francisco dump and Home Depot.

 

I made a childish calendar entitled “Dean and Andi’s 16 Days of Construction.” It helps us visualize how short but intense this bathroom renovation will be. It has been a good tool for retaining mental sanity already.

 

We do not have a shower and our friends have all been so kind to let us use their showers, and even feed us and give us a beer and some conversation after long days of construction. Thank you Jason & Colleen, Kyra, Andy, and Denis (and Chris & Susan this weekend)!

 

We are really excited about the finished product. It is something we have dreamed about since last July, when we wrote this blog. It is a good sign that 13 months later we choose the same bathtub, sink and cabinet that we dreamed about last July--maybe we will never grow tired of them.

 

We started on August 6 and are set to finish on August 22. More to come soon!