Its been a while since I last wrote anything about the bathroom remodel, but I can happily report that it is finally finished. We completed building the walls, mudding the corners, and putting in the vinyl plank flooring about a month ago, which was quickly followed by the toilet, shower base, shower tile and vanity. Though I didn’t do much of the plumbing, but was entirely responsible for installing, grouting and grout haze cleaning for the entire project. I’ll be sure to use this skill again!
Unfortunately, although I’ve sanded and painted walls before I greatly underestimated how long it would take me to finish the place. My roommate had his assistant help us out a few days but he must have been completely out of it when he was taping because it took me three more passes to make the walls even remotely acceptable. My roommate blew off this sort of work as unnecessary, but I can see now why my Dad is so anal about it. If you don’t spend the time up front making your wall surfaces level and smooth, the project will look cheaper than it really was and take more time to fix later.
I also installed some sophisticated board and batten wainscotting that proved to be a handful. This was my first try doing anything like this and my cuts could’ve been better. I had to use a ton of Bondo, caulk, and vinyl crack filler to make it look seemless. It turned out rather well, but I can see now why many people avoid doing this. It’s much easier to gaze at its beauty than it is to install, seal and paint. Since you generally use a semi-gloss paint on this wainscoting every piece had to be sanded down perfectly or else the light would catch every imperfection.
Even my Dad was impressed by the work afterwards, saying that I had “gold-plated” the damn thing. That made the whole ordeal worth it 🙂
Unfortunately after that point work slowed down greatly as we tried to get the place ready for my roommate’s girlfriend to arrive from Georgia. My roommate turned aside from the bathroom to remodel the kitchenette downstairs, giving it new lights, a range hood, and replacing the countertop with a new butch block counter top that wrapped around the corner. It’s WAY nicer than it used to be. After the disaster though, he never really stayed at the house again or did any more work.
This left me to finish the rest of the work on my own. Days of taping, sanding, and painting were followed by painting the doors to match the trim, hanging up the mirror/towel ring/shower shelf, and installing water-proof base trim along the shower to cover up the edges of the vinyl planking and the shower. I picked a medium green color for the bathroom because I think people might appreciate it in the dead of winter when nothing outside is alive and blooming. Finally I installed a door over the electrical access panel so one didn’t need to see the gaping hole in the wall.
This project is done. After three months of work, I can’t wait to get on with the rest of my life!
