Michelle sent us in the info on a big (mostly DIY) job she just completed in a rental unit. She took a bathroom from "uninviting" to a clean, bright, space ready for the renter to make the most of. Here is the story...
We just finished renovating the bathroom in a rental apartment. The before image doesn't quite capture how uninviting it was. The shower stall (and I use that term loosely) was made of flimsy shower panels held together by wishes and a couple of screws, just big enough to get clean while knocking your elbows and knees on the walls. The plumbing, coming up through the floor from the basement, was dangling on the far side of the shower wall. The bathroom was dark because the only window had been boarded up with plywood and covered with wire shelving. The overhead light/fan combo cast a dim yellow glow over the room, and the fan vented to the crawlspace above...and no further.
We did a gut renovation, tearing everything out to the studs and subfloor. We had professional help to relocate the plumbing, but everything else was done by us - installing new foam insulation on the exterior walls, new cement board and water-resistant drywall, new subfloor, new vinyl floor, new shower, new vanity, new light and fan (properly vented), new window and trim.
Our original budget was $2000, and our final cost was close to $3000. This includes all materials, fixtures, paint, trim, and labor. Almost everything came from Home Depot or Lowe's. The biggest expense was the professional plumbing work ($1600), and the next biggest was the new corner shower (about $400).
It looks pretty stark now, but we hope it will be a bright and inviting space for the next renter to personalize and enjoy.
Thanks, Michelle!
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where is the after?
@norah28 - uh, how about the third photo that is devoid of debris and grime?
White is always classic - nice job!
yes, need more pictures and I am very curious why you would renovate a rental? Did the landlord pay? Wait, is she the landlord? I'm confused....
there must have been a time lag...when i first saw the post there was only one photo: the before.
@kinyama --
"It looks pretty stark now, but we hope it will be a bright and inviting space for the next renter to personalize and enjoy."
It's obvious she's the landlord...
I'm curious to know more about this:
Is there anything that Michelle did that she wouldn't have, or didn't do that she wished she had done?
How long did the project take?
How long did it take to lease the place out after she was done?
More pix?
HUGE improvement! Great job
Is there really only one after shot? I guess the shower looks nice.
Thanks for posting, AT!
Yes, I'm the landlord. In response to bepsf:
If I could do it over, I might have knocked out a wall to make a larger bathroom by combining it with a closet. This is a change we'd like to make eventually, but just having plumbing moved is so expensive that it'll be quite a while before we can afford it. Doing it now would have been only slightly more expensive and would have dramatically increased the floor space.
The project took about 4 days of solid work from the demolition to final touches. Actual time was more like 1.5 weeks because several steps (like putting down the floor and caulking the shower) had long wait times before we could do the next step, and we wanted to be mindful of the neighbors and not make too much noise when people were home.
It took just under 2 weeks to re-lease the apartment, which seems pretty good for February.
More pictures:
http://img854.imageshack.us/g/apartment2after009.jpg/
Kudos on taking on such a crazy diy job! Installing a window scares the bejeezus out of me, I think you might be my diy hero. I think this makes a fantastic shower for a renter who perhaps you can give some permission to personalize a bit! ;)
Nice shower...can we see the sink?
I hate corner showers and those mottled glass doors that always seem to accompany them! But the bathroom is truly a great improvement over its former self.
Hi Zoee,
I posted some more "after" pictures in my previous post. The shower is small (38x38 neo angle), but bigger than the old version, which was 30x30 square. Putting in a larger shower would have meant a totally custom job, and a square wouldn't have worked because of the clearance between shower and sink on the diagonal. The whole bathroom is 68" by 76". Here's a link to a couple more pictures: the shower before, and the old shower as we were taking it out. http://img823.imageshack.us/g/before2u.jpg/
I agree with MsDonnaGirl about the glass doors. They just look so 80s (well, at least she didn't choose the brass rim). I mean, don't get me wrong, it's a huge improvement but it's not really note-worthy considering the after is nothing special.
I am actually surprised this reno cost $3000. The plumbing must have been pricy becuase none of the othe items look like a splurge.
Does anyone have alternatives for this type of shower in a small (5' x 6') 3/4 bathroom? We're currently stuck with a corner glass stall in a bathroom where there's no possibility of knocking down a wall. I've debated just waterproofing the entire room, especially since this will presumably be a kid's bathroom in a few years, but does anyone have any other ideas?
The only thing you really need to make this bathroom look not so stark is to add a little paint colour to the bottom part of the walls.. it would break up the white a bit.
@CraigslistDecorator --
You might have noted that this was a very budget job, and for a rental space - a custom shower w/ clear glass doors would have run far, far more than this person wanted to spend on a rental...
...and clear glass doors require some extra maintenance - renters would be unlikely to take the time and care to squeegie a clear glass shower surround every single day.
I think you did a good job... Its a nice clean bathroomn as a renter you really can't ask for more!
I've showered in that kind of shower. It's really not as bad as you'd think. I mean, you're not going to shower with your SO or anything, but you can still get the job done.
That "Before" was one ugly bathroom.
You did great!
@dimsum - There are a couple of different ways you could go. I would just do a European wet room or a shower using a hospital track.
Reason 1026 I'm thrilled that I'm buying a house with a plumber.
Wow, apparently someone has no imagination. Yeah, it looks better than before but it's still tacky.
boring! so boring!
I agree that this isn't an exciting reno, but compared to the ghastly "before" photos, the "after" is SO much better. Also, since it's a rental unit, you want something that's easy to keep clean and fairly generic.
Personally, I've lived in rentals that didn't have bathrooms this nice, so I appreciate it! And it's plain enough that a renter could personalize it in a variety of colors. My current bathroom, though spotless and beautifully well-kept by our landlords, is a blue lagoon of 80s-tastic mottled tile. I'm fine with it, but I do sometimes dream about a white bathroom! :)
Again with such negativity! Congratulations to Michelle; I am dreading renos on all 3 baths in my house. I challenge the rest of you to post your fabulous bath renos. Really, I could use your brilliant (and fully executed) ideas.
What's with all of the mean comments...geez. It's a rental. So obviously she wasn't going to go with carrara marble and custom everything. It's clean, and in a generic style a lot of people will enjoy. And those showers aren't that bad!
If you ever end up redoing it, a wet room could be a way to go. It's basically just tiling the whole room with waterproofing below. Although then the renter needs to remember to squeezee the floor :)
I wish my rental bathroom was like this. The one I live in has that god-awful Tuscan theme going on...a rusting sconce hung too high that I'm sure wasn't meant for humid spaces, walls and floors done with tile that wasn't meant for bathrooms I'm sure since it's such a pain to clean – and a gray tub and toilet! Ick!
Oh, and did I mention no fan?
Well done Michelle--it's amazing how much it takes for a bathroom reno!
As for some of the comments--be classy people. Attentive, renovating landlords are what the rental population need! Don't scare them away!
I'm not much of a fan of stand alone showers either (give me a tub darn it) but I'd much prefer mottled glass to clear. Seriously, standing there with your butt nekkid self visible to anyone who wants to walk into the bathroom? Even though it's just me and hubby, that gives me the creeps.