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<\/p>\nRoad Ah, tubs.\u00a0 We have a love affair with huge soaking tubs with jets, tubs with beautiful clawed feet.\u00a0 No one likes to think about the dark side of tubs, the small acrylic finish shower tub combos. \u00a0These sad little tubs are still installed in practically every non-custom home being built today.\u00a0 Generally, I champion multi-use products wholeheartedly, but the acrylic shower-tub combo is multi-problem.\u00a0 They have zero style.\u00a0 They\u2019re difficult to clean, and too small to be enjoyed as a tub.\u00a0 They\u2019re difficult to step in and out of when showering, and children tend to forget to keep the liner in the tub, so you\u2019re always mopping up water.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Replacing the acrylic shower-tub combo with a walk-in shower has always been a top priority on our home improvement list. While this isn\u2019t the best project for a beginning do-it-yourself-er, it is possible to give your bathroom the ultimate makeover for under $3,000.\u00a0 This is a significant savings over the average small bathroom remodel cost in 2017 of $9,371.\u00a0 Even if you only feel comfortable handling certain aspects of the remodel, opting to hire-out for some items, you should see significant savings.<\/p>\n
[bctt tweet=”It is possible to remodel a bathroom for $3,000 if you do-it-yourself” username=”@BlowingAwayWest”]<\/p>\n
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Here\u2019s how we tacked our shower-tub combo to walk-in shower conversion:<\/strong><\/p>\n We removed the fiberglass tub.\u00a0 This is one of the most difficult steps because the bathrooms are often built around the tub enclosure.\u00a0 Turn the water off to the house before starting.\u00a0 Use a saws-all to cut the tub into pieces.\u00a0 Go slow, and be careful not to cut any of the plumbing in the wall.\u00a0 Pull the tub out in pieces, using gloves because the fiberglass\/acrylic is very sharp.\u00a0 This job is messy. The easiest, least expensive option for a shower base is to purchase a one-piece shower base.\u00a0 The pros include: it\u2019s cleaner, and the drain will be level without any extra work.\u00a0 The cons include: what you buy is what you get.\u00a0 You can\u2019t change the color and you can\u2019t tile it.\u00a0 You will also need to do some minor plumbing in the floor of your bathroom to move the combo drain to the spot where the shower pan drains.<\/p>\n If your tub combo is like ours, there\u2019s no light fixture above the tub. Since we wanted light in our shower, we needed to install a light fixture.\u00a0 We had to pull the power from the light fixture above the sink.\u00a0 We did this by cutting the wall and running the electrical wires from the sink light fixture to the shower.\u00a0 We installed a waterproof can-light fixture in the shower, giving ample lighting in the shower. Home improvement stores carry standard sizes in shower doors, or you can have a shower door made to order.\u00a0 We opted for the second option because we wanted a bigger, heavier door.\u00a0 Once you\u2019ve decided what you want, you will know the size of the opening you need for the door.<\/p>\n We framed in the wall between the toilet and shower, leaving the needed opening for the shower door. There\u2019s no drywall installed behind these combo tubs.\u00a0 Therefore, you will need to replace the drywall with waterproof drywall that is specifically designed for showers. \u00a0We also replaced the drywall we had cut out to pull the electric to the shower. Because we used a preformed shower base in white, I wanted white tile subway tile.\u00a0 There are so many options in tile, that you can have a lot of fun picking it out. \u00a0Smaller showers look nice with smaller tile, but large tiles are a cinch to install and require only a few cuts.\u00a0 We added a blue glass section to add interest to the all-white shower.\u00a0 That\u2019s it for installing a walk-in shower.\u00a0 This was a complete bathroom remodel.\u00a0 If you want to see how we tiled the floor, replaced the toilet, or installed the new sink, check out our other posts on the bathroom makeover.<\/p>\n Thanks to JeremiahBarberPhotography.com for the great “after” photos.<\/p>\n If you have any questions, please ask in the comments below.\u00a0 Complete Bathroom Remodel Tub to Shower Conversion Road Ah, tubs.\u00a0 We have a love affair with huge soaking tubs with jets, tubs with beautiful clawed feet.\u00a0 No one likes to think about the dark side of tubs, the small acrylic finish shower tub combos. \u00a0These sad little tubs are still installed in practically every non-custom […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":659,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43,40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-652","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-big-projects","category-home-improvement"],"yoast_head":"\n\n
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