A bathroom is the smallest room in the house and usually the most expensive per square foot. Plumbing, electrics, tile, ventilation and waterproofing all land in about forty square feet, and every one of them has to be right.
Waterproofing comes before tile
Tile is not waterproof. Grout is not waterproof. What keeps water out of your framing is the membrane underneath, and it is the single most important part of the job – also the only part nobody ever sees or photographs.
Most of the rotten shower floors we tear out were tiled beautifully over nothing. If a quote for a tiled shower seems cheap, this is usually where the saving came from.
Showers: tiled or a surround
An acrylic surround goes in fast, costs less and is easy to clean. A tiled shower costs more, takes several extra days, and lets you build to the actual size and shape of the room. Both are legitimate choices. The mistake is paying for tile and getting surround-grade preparation underneath it.
Vanities and storage
A double vanity is the upgrade people are happiest with afterwards, when the room is wide enough to take one. Where it is not, a single vanity with real drawers beats a wider one with a cabinet you cannot reach into.
Ventilation
An extractor fan that vents into the attic instead of outside is a mould problem with a switch on the wall. We see it constantly. Fans should be sized to the room and ducted to open air, and that is a cheap fix while the ceiling is open.
How long it takes
A straightforward bathroom runs two to three weeks: demolition, rough plumbing and electrics, inspection, board and waterproofing, tile, then fittings. Tile and grout need curing time that cannot be rushed. If a bathroom is the only one in the house, say so early and we will sequence the work to keep it out of action for as short a stretch as possible.
Related services
CAZUN Construction is a family-owned contractor working across Louisville, the surrounding Kentucky counties and Southern Indiana. Licensed, fully insured, and free estimates on every job. Call (502) 996-1474 or send us a message.
