Bathroom flooring (tile?)

Nhrafan

Okay, the plan I have is to completely remodel our master bathroom in the next couple weeks or so.
Background is: House built in 1965 on a slab foundation.
Have radiant electric in floor heating. Everything is all original as far as I can tell so far.
I would like to lay down ceramic tile for the floor but am not too sure what I need to do this. I believe the floor is a linoleum now glued to the concrete with the heater in between. I have not tried pulling up any of the floor yet to see just what it is.
I cannot lay any type of subfloor on top of whatever is there because it would raise up the level way too much.
Can I just rip up the old floor, scrape away all traces of adhesives then put down a layer of thinset, install the radiant heat pads, then another layer of thinset then tile? I think I've seen this done before but don't know if there are any problems with this method at all.
Also being a slab... do I need to check the level of the floor at all? I don't see it moving or flexing much being what it is.

Thank you for any replies and suggestions ahead of time.

Rob

R&D Tile

Remove the vinyl and check the slab for flatness and cracks first.

Floorwizard

yup.
agreed

Nhrafan

Okay, so here's the bathroom that I want to re-do.
Anyone have any suggestions?
I'm thinking of going with a vanity from lowes along with the vanity top (48")
A Kohler toilet
A new deeper tub (found one at Lowes that I don't really like but it fits my price range.
I'm looking to spend about $2000 to $2500, is this a reasonable budget or am I way out of line here?
I will be replacing the switches and light fixtures as well as the vent fan as well.

Any advice for someone doing this for the first time?

P.S. I will be doing ALL the work myself, no labor charges.
(unless for some reason I need to for code or legal reasons)

Thanks.

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jproffer

You can spend as much or as little as you want on vanities, tubs, toilets, etc. so your budget is fine as long as its fine with you.

This may require an inspection and may also require you to dedicate a circuit to this bathroom, if it's not already. Buy a book on wiring and read it before you start. Learn the RIGHT way to wire a switch...(I'm not picking on you...or anyone else for that matter, but there's a thread on-going right now about wiring a switch and...well its a miracle the forum hasn't caught fire). Again, not picking, just a little disheartening to see a person put family and property at risk because they don't ask questions BEFORE they start. So if you have questions....ask. I'm not going to say there's no such thing as a stupid question...this isn't second grade and we all know that there are many stupid questions. But I'd rather ask a million stupid questions and NOT burn down my house or kill my family if given the choice.

Rant over...thank's for listening...plz don't take it personally. (and if the person from the other thread reads this...u don't take it personally either...don't mean to b|+ch, I'm just concerned)

Nhrafan

Funny you mention that... While at Lowe's Sunday (for most of the day!) I picked up the complete guide to home wiring because it caught my eye.
Lots of things I already knew but a few that were good tips and things to consider as well. I actually like all the diagrams for every type of switch configuration you could imagine in it. That helps a lot. Wish i would have had that the first time I attempted to replace a set of 3-way's !!

Electrical is the one thing that scares the crap out of me. But I like it that way. Always have respect for it is the main thing I was always told.
That's one of the reasons I respect whatever the code is.... I figure they developed because of a reason for each and every one.

Thanks.

mischka222

How is your tile set in the wall - I originally planned about $2500 for our master bathroom upgrade, but found that all the tile was set into mortar and chicken wire which I then had to hire someone to demo and the whole project cost me over $5000.00 - and I did not even get the tub I wanted becasue we were cutting cost do to all the "problems" we did not entertain when we originally set our budget.

Again - this is why the other bathroom is still pink - and that I am trying to paint the tile and tub and just replace the sink and toilet at this point - cheaper and less headache and since it is a "guest" bathroom I am not overly concerned about being uber cool and modern. House was built in the early 1900's and there are more problems with "upgrades" and "reno's" than I ever imagined.

Good Luck!

Nhrafan

That's kinda what I'm afraid of but.... I'm going to take the chance with this one though and see what happens.
There is a home-built linen cabinet (now that I'm pricing them I see why) at the faucet end of the tub. I removed the access panel and all I see behind it is drywall, not even the greenboard, so I'm assuming it's just onto the drywall. Good thing we never used the shower much in here and only used the tub once. It was always easier to use the shower in the other bath so this one never got much use. I don't see any water damage from where I removed all the inside panels so there doesn't appear to have been any leaks or problems with that setup so I've made the decision to move forward with the project.
Went and ordered all the things I need delivered to the house last night.
Oh and I found out I only need an electrical permit to add a few fixtures into the mix. $60 ! Better than the $450+ the neighboring township gets for this type of work!!

Sometimes it's nice to live out in the stix!!

I'll post more with pics to show how it's going and what I find along the way.
Plenty of asprin and a quiet place to cool off when things "don't go as planned"

Nhrafan

I don't have the old floor up yet but everything is finally out of the room. Everything except the old floor that is.

Question....
I plan to put in the tub first, then put up the cement board around it. Then put up the drywall and do the tape and mud work. What would be next? The vanity cabinet and top or the floor? I'm going with tile either way because I can't use the stick tiles in there due to the radiant heated floor.
So would it be better to put in the cabinet and then tile up to it?
Or would it be better to put the floor down and put the cabinet on it?
If I put the cabinet in first should I shim it up to get it closer to the finished height of the tile?
What kind of tile is best to use on the floor for this?
I'd like to go with 12 x 12 because it means less pieces to line up.

Ron The Plumber

If you want more room, how about a pedistal sink?

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Nhrafan

HATE pedistal sinks.
I am already taking out the home-built linen cabinet from the end of the tub so I need to keep as much storage space as possible as well now.

That's the other thing I'm trying to figure out.... what I'm going to do in place of the linen cabinet. I'm thinking some kind of shelves or something. Need to keep the cost way down so another pre-made cabinet is out unless I find a deal of a lifetime for a $100 or so.

jproffer

Put the tile in first and put the vanity on top. Chances are you'll want to change it someday....it will be much easier if you don't have to try to match tile.

HAASEMAN2003

I watching DIY the other day and they put a vinyl covering over the tub. Looked great this might also be a less expensive option.

HAASEMAN2003

By the way. Did Santa live there? LMAO

Nhrafan

Tell me about it....

Tub is already smashed out.... glad I read about smashing the cast iron tub with a sledge and taking it out that way. Even the pieces were heavy as !
Actually a shame to destroy such a well made item but wanted to get rid of the pink PLUS get a deeper tub than the 14" one.

So does everyone agree with putting the tile in first then the vanity?

Thanks!