We love our old house but it’s been a struggle renovating it. We asked our regular plumbing service to help us replace a shower stall that was once a bathtub with a vintage cast iron tub. The estimated cost was $3,000 if they could save the tile behind the shower surround, or $3,500 if they had to install a new surround. We were to supply the tub, surround and hardware.
Unfortunately, the plumbing service didn’t make any effort to save the tile and proceeded to rip it all down. We expected they would have known it was glued and needed something to dissolve that, but they didn’t.
The plumbing service installed new drywall, but did not tape any seams. There are at least four inches of exposed drywall and exposed seams in every direction around the shower surround. In addition, there is plaster literally hanging from our ceiling and a one inch gap of exposed lumber around the framing of the tub, with a sixteen inch section at the bottom where the lumber is cut out completely on either end of the tub from above the tub to the floor. There is also a three by three-quarters inch hole in the tile directly adjacent to the tub bottom where the subfloor is exposed.
We’re disappointed with the plumbing service’s work and it’s been frustrating renovating our old house. After all the hard work we’ve put in, we’d like a bathroom renovation that looks good and is functional. We hope to find a plumbing service that can do the job right and help us make our house into a home.