A Bathroom Remodel--Day by Day--Day One

A Bathroom Remodel--Day by Day

Day One

    It's 4:00 am, Monday morning, February ninth. "Start" day is here. I walk outside and check the thermometer--it's a balmy 60 degrees, with clouds, but the air feels dry. I hope it doesn't rain. The next thing I do is check the list of items I've written up that the guys need to take with them to the job.

    Believe me--without a written list, someone would have to come back to the office and gather up what was left behind. 

    Here's the list: carpet and hard-floor protective runners, dust masks, wet/dry vacuum cleaners, both hammer drills, flat shovels, tile scrapers, wheelbarrow, wrecking bars, trashcans, 5-gallon buckets, 3" wall insulation, dusters and floor mops, and last but not least, a yard sign and my camera. (They're both already loaded. I put them in my SUV yesterday.).

Wesley loading his truck at our office (my house). That's a rain barrel on the right, for watering my front-porch plants during the summer. Notice how wet the driveway looks?

Steve looking cool.

Steve and Kirk loaded up.

    We put up yard signs on jobs, with our name, logo, and phone number for various reasons. Advertising being the main one. But we also use the yard signs to help subcontractors find the job and to let the homeowners know that we are not hiding from anyone--that we are proud of our work. Plus, Montgomery and Prattville require "signage," meaning all trucks on job sites must have the company name and phone number written on them. I believe this is done for two reasons--number one, so the city inspector can drive around and be certain we have our city license, and number two, to keep what I call "the bad elements" from driving up to someone's house and emptying it of its contents. If local cops see a pickup parked in front of a house, they have the right, because of the law, to stop and ask the driver what he's doing there. If he claims to be working at the house, he's supposed to have his name and phone number on his truck. 

    Working on today's job will be the supervisor, Kirk, along with Wesley, Steve, and T.G. Wesley and T.G. will only stay until the demolition is over. Then they will carry the trash to the dump and go to another job, leaving Kirk and Steve to finish out the day. 

 Here are some "before" photos of  the bathroom. This is how the room looked at 8:30 this morning.

    Our goal today is: install protective runners on carpet and hard floors; use a vacuum to suck the water out of the commode and relocate the commode to the home owner's back yard; take out the tub; remove all wall and floor tile, remove damaged sheetrock; remove vanity top and medicine cabinet; take all trash to the city dump before it rains; pick up tile and some other materials at Lowe's and bring them back to the job-site; jackhammer a trench in the concrete so the plumber can move the drain from a tub-based bath to a shower-based bath, meaning from one end of the wall to the center of the new shower; search for any leaks that could have gone undetected; open up the ceiling and the wall for the electrician (By doing this ourselves, we can make sure the ceiling and the wall are ready to be closed up properly and quickly.); check new medicine cabinet and make inset for it; install backing for the teak seat and three grab bars (they must have solid wood that we can screw to); lay out where the new curb for the shower will be (We are enlarging the shower by coming as close to the commode as we can--the minimum we can go is 15-inches from the wall to the center of the commode); install backing for the new towel bar, since it's also a grab bar; re-hang any damaged sheetrock that won't be in the plumber's way with new mold and water-resistant rock (When we remove the wall tile, the sheetrock is usually easier to replace than to repair); and last, but not least--make a list and gather materials for tomorrow.

Wesley applying clear carpet protection.

My personal goals for the day are: start the job and check on it several times; order the glass partition; take lots of photos; get customer approval on the new medicine cabinet (I picked it out while customer was out of town); have customer decide on paint colors; gather items we'll need for the Greater Montgomery Remodeling Expo that starts on Friday, Feb. 20th.

Our yard sign.

Wesley and T.G. dismantling tub. 

Above are pictures of the job when we started.

Below are some shots after the demo, as Steve and Kirk jackhammer the trench for our new drain.

The wet spot on the floor is because the shutoff to the commode won't close properly. We'll have to replace the shutoff valve.








And there you have it--Day One on a new bathroom job. We didn't accomplish everything we set out to do. The main thing we didn't accomplish was to take the trash to the dump. We had to pile it in the customer's back yard because of the rain. When the road into the dump becomes wet, Wesley can't back out, and he didn't want to be stuck in the Prattville Dump all day. If it doesn't rain tonight, Wesley will load up and take the trash tomorrow .
    How many items on my own "To-Do list were accomplished? Most, but not all. I always give myself more to do than I can, so not accomplishing everything on my list isn't a big deal. I did order the glass side panel today, and I went to Noland Company and hunted up Faith--who was with another customer, as usual--and picked up the two shower valves for the plumber (Mike Smith of B & S Plumbing). I also called Mike to verify that he'd be on the job in the morning. He said he would, and Mike has hardly ever let us down. He does outstanding work at reasonable prices, and he always shows up when he's supposed to show up. I can't ask for more than that.
    I also checked on the job several times, took tons of photos, and got the customer's approval on the medicine cabinet. I didn't gather anything for the upcoming Expo, and I didn't get the customer to choose the paint colors.
    All in all, I think we had a pretty good day. In fact, I believe the job is going great! But, as always, there's lots more to do. I'll be back tomorrow for Day Two! Are we having fun, or what?!

Earl.