Our Home Depot has buckets full of them that are free for the taking but they are only gallon-sized. And I never knew, until now, that they come in different sizes. Thanks Zanne! Thanks Plumbing Forums!
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My bathroom repair project
- Thread starter Zanne
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Ah, Home Depot is an hour away from me. Locally I have two small hardware stores. The crappier one closes at 4pm weekdays and is closed on weekends. The nicer one is open until 5pm on weekdays, 'til noon on Saturday, closed Sunday. There's a Tractor Supply Co that has some stuff. And then there's the Walmart that has a few things and is open until 11:59pm. Although, they generally shut down the registers before that so its more like 11:50 when you have to be done shopping.
I did a bit more shimming. I tried to remove some boards to shim behind but the screws stripped and wouldn't come out and I didn't feel like messing with it so I glued paint stirring sticks on top. I still need to add some more to fill it out, mark where all of my screws are, and get it plumb on the higher up area. The bottom area is mostly plumb-- needs a little tweaking. If I had it to do over again I would have bought a bunch of 2x4s and put them in the wall where they were needed and then sistered more of them on and had them even with the edge of the tub flange. If some of the screws weren't stuck, I'd pull it all off and try that, but I have to work with what I have now. I wonder if wood putty can fill in some dips that won't be screwed through. The left side is a bit more off. My friend said he'll come over sometime this week to help. He's been busy working on his own house. He's getting a new kitchen sink.
I did a bit more shimming. I tried to remove some boards to shim behind but the screws stripped and wouldn't come out and I didn't feel like messing with it so I glued paint stirring sticks on top. I still need to add some more to fill it out, mark where all of my screws are, and get it plumb on the higher up area. The bottom area is mostly plumb-- needs a little tweaking. If I had it to do over again I would have bought a bunch of 2x4s and put them in the wall where they were needed and then sistered more of them on and had them even with the edge of the tub flange. If some of the screws weren't stuck, I'd pull it all off and try that, but I have to work with what I have now. I wonder if wood putty can fill in some dips that won't be screwed through. The left side is a bit more off. My friend said he'll come over sometime this week to help. He's been busy working on his own house. He's getting a new kitchen sink.
Moving at snail's pace. Unboxed the wallset & only got one papercut from the cardboard. I was like a monkey with a football trying to navigate and get stuff out of that box in such a small space. Measured and marked screw locations. Lined tub with plastic and marked screw locations on painter's tape. I cleaned up the floor a bit after taking this first pic.
Cat tax
Going to make a cheat sheet for screw locations.
I still need to square up the side walls and make sure everything is plumb. Trying to figure out the best way to do that. I do have some actual shims to use if I can remember where I put them.
Next step after getting walls squared up is to set the cementboard in place temporarily and do a dry fit of the wallset and mark where to cut off the cementboard. I need to hang the plastic back up on the walls but my left arm is not cooperating. It's also not cooperating with lifting. I need to get the bottom back piece of cementboard into the tub so I can put aquadefense on the edges. I also need to make sure to transfer marks for the tub spout and valve trim so I will be able to drill through the right spots on the surround.
Cat tax
Going to make a cheat sheet for screw locations.
I still need to square up the side walls and make sure everything is plumb. Trying to figure out the best way to do that. I do have some actual shims to use if I can remember where I put them.
Next step after getting walls squared up is to set the cementboard in place temporarily and do a dry fit of the wallset and mark where to cut off the cementboard. I need to hang the plastic back up on the walls but my left arm is not cooperating. It's also not cooperating with lifting. I need to get the bottom back piece of cementboard into the tub so I can put aquadefense on the edges. I also need to make sure to transfer marks for the tub spout and valve trim so I will be able to drill through the right spots on the surround.
No photos but I managed to lift one cement board by myself into the tub and got 2 goats of Aquadefense on 3 edges. I messed up the tape and plastic flipping it over but I have it positioned so I can get the 3rd edge. Had trouble lifting due to my left arm not wanting to cooperate. I'd taken my muscle relaxants and was tired so I went to bed after rotating it. Today I need to do 2 coats of the Aquadefense and let them dry. I'm going to spread plastic out on the floor to get some coating on the other boards outside of the tub. Trying to work inside the tub is a royal pain. Too much slipping and plastic moving and limited space. I'm going to draw up a sketch to use to show locations of the screws and see if any of them can be detected with magnets to make things a little easier. Need to see if I can find some strong magnets.
Make sure that cat doesn't get walled in because you'll never hear the end of it!
Yeah, I'm keeping the kitties out of the bathroom. Some of them try to run in but I get them out. I've been trying to dry fit the lower back cement board but need an extra set of hands. Stupid left arm is not cooperating at all. The spacers keep slipping so they aren't holding it in place properly.
I really want to address the issue with the left wall being so out of square with the tub.
The other side just needs to be brought to the same level as the flange- which is about the same thickness as a 5 gallon paint stirring stick.
I really want to address the issue with the left wall being so out of square with the tub.
The other side just needs to be brought to the same level as the flange- which is about the same thickness as a 5 gallon paint stirring stick.
You can hot glue a 1/4" strip of paint stirrers to the right side of the tub, so when you apply your backer board, it will come out nearly straight.
I guess I need to get some hot glue. LOL. Or use a different adhesive. I haven't used hot glue in over a decade. I do have wood glue, super glue, and doublesided sticky tape. I temporarily put the one cement board in place with screws. Its going to take some adjustments I think. The board warped and isn't wanting to sit flush so I will have to use something to push against it to make it sit flush while screws are driven in.
I think Mom might have hot glue and a hot glue gun but she's sleeping right now so I'll have to ask her later. she's not feeling well.
Got the cementboard dryfitted and put screws in after shimming it to be straight. It's a hair off but best I could get it to go. Shouldn't matter too much since the board on top can be cut flush with the top of the surround. I'll have to dry fit that after I shim out the walls. I might do the right wall first since it is simpler (aside from holes that will need to be drilled.
I'll probably enlist my brother to help move boards around since my left arm is still being a witch with a capital B.
Got the cementboard dryfitted and put screws in after shimming it to be straight. It's a hair off but best I could get it to go. Shouldn't matter too much since the board on top can be cut flush with the top of the surround. I'll have to dry fit that after I shim out the walls. I might do the right wall first since it is simpler (aside from holes that will need to be drilled.
I'll probably enlist my brother to help move boards around since my left arm is still being a witch with a capital B.
The hot glue worked waaaay better than I expected. This stuff is so much better quality than the crap I used a long time ago. I guess they've improved it. I used a mini glue gun which is just the right size for my hand and is easy to set down. I ended up going back and getting longer glue sticks bc the 4" ones went so fast.
Pics are ugly & it needs more work.
Left wall:
Right wall
Center
Because the tub slopes down to the right I had to use more spacers. When I go to put up the right side cement board, should I have it at the same height as the end of the other board? Or should I have 1/4" gap? The left side has 1/4" gap from the tub surface to the board.
I believe the surround will sit flush on the edge of the tub on the left side but will need to be shimmed on the right side. I'll use Insatrim and caulk for the gap.
Pics are ugly & it needs more work.
Left wall:
Right wall
Center
Because the tub slopes down to the right I had to use more spacers. When I go to put up the right side cement board, should I have it at the same height as the end of the other board? Or should I have 1/4" gap? The left side has 1/4" gap from the tub surface to the board.
I believe the surround will sit flush on the edge of the tub on the left side but will need to be shimmed on the right side. I'll use Insatrim and caulk for the gap.
Use a framing square from one wall to the next.
I need to take a picture of the big orange framing square I brought up from the workshop. I was using it to gauge how many stirring sticks and craft sticks were needed to get the correct angle.
Once I get the cement boards up, I will make sure to use the framing square and adjust as needed and maybe put thinset just a tad thicker in areas that need it. But, that is aways off. Still have to see if I can even lift the next board to set in place. I want to get things done but need to be patient so they get done correctly and I don't mess up my arm more.
Once I get the cement boards up, I will make sure to use the framing square and adjust as needed and maybe put thinset just a tad thicker in areas that need it. But, that is aways off. Still have to see if I can even lift the next board to set in place. I want to get things done but need to be patient so they get done correctly and I don't mess up my arm more.
Ok, I don't think the orange thing is a framing square and I forgot to take a picture. It's a triangle thing and I think a framing square is an L? I think I have one of those somewhere, but if not, I can get one. But I was using the orange triangle.
I decided to remove the one screw holding the cement board up in the middle, move it to the left top corner, and use that as a pivot point so I could get the board completely level. I used wooden slats I got on clearance (6 pack for 75c), and some craft sticks as shims. I think it took 2 slats and 3 sticks- maybe 4. Put screws in the other 3 corners to hold it up. Then I dragged over another cement board-- I almost fell over trying to lift it up onto the tub. it slipped because my left arm still doesn't have full strength back. Got it on top of the toilet and then moved it over. It is temporarily in place-- needs adjusting obviously. Will need shims and such and I will add screws to the inner edge and center to hold it in place to do a dry fit of the surround so I can mark where to cut. I need to reduce the gap in the corner to 1/8" and put a 1/4" gap underneath. I used tape to keep it from falling forward.
I think I frightened my cats by singing "All by myself" after I put the board up. LOL.
I decided to remove the one screw holding the cement board up in the middle, move it to the left top corner, and use that as a pivot point so I could get the board completely level. I used wooden slats I got on clearance (6 pack for 75c), and some craft sticks as shims. I think it took 2 slats and 3 sticks- maybe 4. Put screws in the other 3 corners to hold it up. Then I dragged over another cement board-- I almost fell over trying to lift it up onto the tub. it slipped because my left arm still doesn't have full strength back. Got it on top of the toilet and then moved it over. It is temporarily in place-- needs adjusting obviously. Will need shims and such and I will add screws to the inner edge and center to hold it in place to do a dry fit of the surround so I can mark where to cut. I need to reduce the gap in the corner to 1/8" and put a 1/4" gap underneath. I used tape to keep it from falling forward.
I think I frightened my cats by singing "All by myself" after I put the board up. LOL.
I got the right side board leveled, spaced properly, & popped in 2 screws so it wouldn't fall off. Still need to get it plumb. Did a dry fit with the surround panel to make sure the screw wouldn't be put too far out. I probably need to put it in a different spot as it might be too close to the edge once the cut is made. I'll have to mark where I shimmed to make sure I get screws in the right place. For now I wanted to make sure it stayed at the right height and is level. Will have to make sure it is plumb later.
Got the left side in. It conveniently has fibers forming an L on the lower left side.
Again, I will have to adjust screw positioning as I think when it gets cut that screw will be too close to the edge. I remembered to mark the shims on the inner corner but forgot about the outer. That is something we can deal with when my friend comes to help.
I thought about trying to get that last panel up but considering both of the side ones fell on me at different times I don't want to risk something overhead falling. Plus I know there is no way my left arm will let me get it that high. I couldn't even lift to tub level with my left arm. But its not sore so that is a good thing.
After my nap I'm going to organize my tools and make sure I have everything I need for tomorrow:
Rock-On screws
Cement board cutting tool
Tape
Drill bits
Plastic vapor barrier
Spacers
Craft wood for shims
Composite shims
Holesaw & pilot bit
Dust masks
Aquadefense for edges once they are cut
Pencil to mark stuff
Pencil sharpener
(can use knife to cut or use mechanical pencil)
Staple gun
Staples
Silicone caulk
Straight edge
Level (4ft & mini)
Water to stay hydrated
Hot glue gun & glue sticks
???
Trying to think of what I'm missing.
Any suggestions on how to get the gap properly on the upper board? The stupid spacers keep moving on me. Maybe I can temporarily tape them in place?
On to other things, I'm going to make some curtains. The 2 panel kind sewing to a valance so that they are stuck together at the very top but form a curvy upsidedown V with some tiebacks. For the valance I want something like this but with a larger and flatter rod pocket & no frill on top:
The rod pocket/curtain header would be more like this (which is closer to the color of curtains that will be in Mom's room):
So, something like this but with a different blue color. No pleats means I don't have to worry about using as much fabric.
Got the left side in. It conveniently has fibers forming an L on the lower left side.
Again, I will have to adjust screw positioning as I think when it gets cut that screw will be too close to the edge. I remembered to mark the shims on the inner corner but forgot about the outer. That is something we can deal with when my friend comes to help.
I thought about trying to get that last panel up but considering both of the side ones fell on me at different times I don't want to risk something overhead falling. Plus I know there is no way my left arm will let me get it that high. I couldn't even lift to tub level with my left arm. But its not sore so that is a good thing.
After my nap I'm going to organize my tools and make sure I have everything I need for tomorrow:
Rock-On screws
Cement board cutting tool
Tape
Drill bits
Plastic vapor barrier
Spacers
Craft wood for shims
Composite shims
Holesaw & pilot bit
Dust masks
Aquadefense for edges once they are cut
Pencil to mark stuff
Pencil sharpener
(can use knife to cut or use mechanical pencil)Staple gun
Staples
Silicone caulk
Straight edge
Level (4ft & mini)
Water to stay hydrated
Hot glue gun & glue sticks
???
Trying to think of what I'm missing.
Any suggestions on how to get the gap properly on the upper board? The stupid spacers keep moving on me. Maybe I can temporarily tape them in place?
On to other things, I'm going to make some curtains. The 2 panel kind sewing to a valance so that they are stuck together at the very top but form a curvy upsidedown V with some tiebacks. For the valance I want something like this but with a larger and flatter rod pocket & no frill on top:
The rod pocket/curtain header would be more like this (which is closer to the color of curtains that will be in Mom's room):
So, something like this but with a different blue color. No pleats means I don't have to worry about using as much fabric.
Fridge full of your favorite brewskis and snacks for afterwards.Rock-On screws
Cement board cutting tool
Tape
Drill bits
Plastic vapor barrier
Spacers
Craft wood for shims
Composite shims
Holesaw & pilot bit
Dust masks
Aquadefense for edges once they are cut
Pencil to mark stuff
Pencil sharpener
Staple gun
Staples
Silicone caulk
Straight edge
Level (4ft & mini)
Water to stay hydrated
Hot glue gun & glue sticks
???
Trying to think of what I'm missing.
A sharp blade and straight edge. Cut 2-3 times to score the board, then snap and cut.
I bought a cement-board scoring thingy to cut and it was a royal pain. Then my friend remembered I have an oscillating attachment. That actually went through a LOT faster. It cut through cementboard better than it did through wood.
Too tired to give details so I'll show pics. Forgot to take a pic after the side boards were put back up (after cutting) and before the surround was dry-fitted. But I will take a picture when I remove the surround to clean things up, tape, add trim, & apply thinset.
Scoring 2 to 3 times didn't cut it. Needed to do it more like 100+x. LOL.
I'll have to take more pictures bc the side boards were trimmed after the last pic.
Too tired to give details so I'll show pics. Forgot to take a pic after the side boards were put back up (after cutting) and before the surround was dry-fitted. But I will take a picture when I remove the surround to clean things up, tape, add trim, & apply thinset.
Scoring 2 to 3 times didn't cut it. Needed to do it more like 100+x. LOL.
I'll have to take more pictures bc the side boards were trimmed after the last pic.
I'd still tile from the top of the liner to the ceiling. It would be really trick!
Looking good!
More details on the process yesterday:
Removed side cement boards to have more room to put upper back piece in. Shims would not stay in place, board kept slipping around & we couldn't get proper gap with a screw in the corner. I finally suggested popping screws in to hold the bottom edge of the top board at the right height and keep it pressed flush against the wall. That allowed us to keep it in place to put in screws.
Put the side boards back in place-- shimming to make them level. Dry fit the surround to mark where to cut. Discovered that it fit together nicely enough without any shimming (the instructions said not to leave any gaps). Marked where to cut cementboards.
Removed the side cement board panels to cut them with the scoring tool. Cut the top cement board in place. Did another dry fit of the surround to check the fit again and make sure things fit. Marked for adjustments to cuts.
While my friend was taking a breather & talking to my brother, I took the cement boards down, set them aside, vacuumed with the shopvac and cleaned the tub edge and flange with alcohol (leaves no residue and dries faster). Friend was surprised when he came back in.
Put up plastic sheathing along with waterproof gorilla tape-- that stuff stays in place really well. Couldn't find 3rd roll of tape I bought so ended up not taping the bottom. I will seal it with auquadefense & caulk. I still wanted to tape with something but friend wasn't up to it and I suck at trying to apply anything adhesive. He actually had me stay away from the tape because he said I jinx adhesives. LOL. I did help hold the plastic up in one corner and jinxed it-- tape stuck to something it shouldn't and would not come off. LOL. But it ended up being ok. As an aside, I told him exactly how many slats & popsicle sticks were needed for the back wall lower cement board. He didn't believe me until he kept checking the level and I handed him more of the things. He laughed and said I was right we got things tightened down. While the cementboards were down I did some cleanup to some rough edges. The aquadefense had a big drip on the bottom right corner of the back board so I trimmed that off.
Anyway, I don't remember if it was before or after the next dry fit of the panels, but while friend was taking another breather I put in more screws to secure the back lower board. We did both take breaks but I went back to working on stuff before he did. He was doing more of the lifting and more exhausting stuff in general. On the dry fit we discovered that the side edge on the left board needed to be trimmed back a bit more. Also trimmed above the surround on both sides, but the scoring tool wasn't cutting it so I brought out the oscillating tool. It is slow going through wood but it went through cementboard like a champ. I forgot to mention that when my friend was putting in screws for the cementboards I was handing them to him to make the process faster. I also had to pop a battery out to charge it and put in another battery. 2nd battery ran out of juice but 1st battery had charged by that time (I have a rapid charger).
After cutting the cementboards we needed to adjust some screw placements.
Last dry fit of the wall panels looks good.
I despise tile so there will be no tile in this bathroom. LOL. I forgot to take pictures of my drawings & writing inside the wall. Also forgot to drop a bottle with a note. We were going to take the panels down again so I could put on aquadefense but I didn't want to mess with leveling everything again and will just be doing aquadefense while everything is in place. I'm going to put 5-1/2" tall PVC trim above the surround. I'll probably need my friend's help to put it up since my left arm still can't reach high enough with my left arm. I've come to like the blue stripe look of the old wall panels. I may find some non-yellowing clearcoat to paint over it for extra protection though.
Next steps:
Not all of those are in order.
Here are the most recent pics I took. I'll get more later. The back wall panel had been in a plastic bag. The right wall panel wasn't wrapped. The left wall panel had protective plastic on the back and edges but not the front. The videos and descriptions all indicated that the cling plastic was supposed to cover the fronts of all of them. The back panel had a sticker I removed but it left adhesive behind so I will have to clean that up later (I just now remembered that).
I cut and did a test-fit of the L-bead trim on the right side. Looks nice. I may leave the tearaway strip and just caulk it to the edge of the surround very carefully. Or use doublesided sticky tape or something to make it stay in place. I'll have to see how it looks when I dry fit the PVC trim boards. If it looks bad I'll tear it away. (I put tape on the trim to hold it in place)
I cut off about 58" from a 10' piece. That leaves a little over 5' left and I'm trying to decide where to use it--
horizontally on back wall
vertically on left wall
Cut in half and used horizontally on the tops of both sides. I bought enough to cover them all and to cover that wall corner that looks ugly where the wood paneling doesn't quite meet up. Although, I might try to find a tall PVC outer corner trim piece for that instead. I'm going to add wainscoting to the lower part that is painted white.
Removed side cement boards to have more room to put upper back piece in. Shims would not stay in place, board kept slipping around & we couldn't get proper gap with a screw in the corner. I finally suggested popping screws in to hold the bottom edge of the top board at the right height and keep it pressed flush against the wall. That allowed us to keep it in place to put in screws.
Put the side boards back in place-- shimming to make them level. Dry fit the surround to mark where to cut. Discovered that it fit together nicely enough without any shimming (the instructions said not to leave any gaps). Marked where to cut cementboards.
Removed the side cement board panels to cut them with the scoring tool. Cut the top cement board in place. Did another dry fit of the surround to check the fit again and make sure things fit. Marked for adjustments to cuts.
While my friend was taking a breather & talking to my brother, I took the cement boards down, set them aside, vacuumed with the shopvac and cleaned the tub edge and flange with alcohol (leaves no residue and dries faster). Friend was surprised when he came back in.
Put up plastic sheathing along with waterproof gorilla tape-- that stuff stays in place really well. Couldn't find 3rd roll of tape I bought so ended up not taping the bottom. I will seal it with auquadefense & caulk. I still wanted to tape with something but friend wasn't up to it and I suck at trying to apply anything adhesive. He actually had me stay away from the tape because he said I jinx adhesives. LOL. I did help hold the plastic up in one corner and jinxed it-- tape stuck to something it shouldn't and would not come off. LOL. But it ended up being ok. As an aside, I told him exactly how many slats & popsicle sticks were needed for the back wall lower cement board. He didn't believe me until he kept checking the level and I handed him more of the things. He laughed and said I was right we got things tightened down. While the cementboards were down I did some cleanup to some rough edges. The aquadefense had a big drip on the bottom right corner of the back board so I trimmed that off.
Anyway, I don't remember if it was before or after the next dry fit of the panels, but while friend was taking another breather I put in more screws to secure the back lower board. We did both take breaks but I went back to working on stuff before he did. He was doing more of the lifting and more exhausting stuff in general. On the dry fit we discovered that the side edge on the left board needed to be trimmed back a bit more. Also trimmed above the surround on both sides, but the scoring tool wasn't cutting it so I brought out the oscillating tool. It is slow going through wood but it went through cementboard like a champ. I forgot to mention that when my friend was putting in screws for the cementboards I was handing them to him to make the process faster. I also had to pop a battery out to charge it and put in another battery. 2nd battery ran out of juice but 1st battery had charged by that time (I have a rapid charger).
After cutting the cementboards we needed to adjust some screw placements.
Last dry fit of the wall panels looks good.
I despise tile so there will be no tile in this bathroom. LOL. I forgot to take pictures of my drawings & writing inside the wall. Also forgot to drop a bottle with a note. We were going to take the panels down again so I could put on aquadefense but I didn't want to mess with leveling everything again and will just be doing aquadefense while everything is in place. I'm going to put 5-1/2" tall PVC trim above the surround. I'll probably need my friend's help to put it up since my left arm still can't reach high enough with my left arm. I've come to like the blue stripe look of the old wall panels. I may find some non-yellowing clearcoat to paint over it for extra protection though.
Next steps:
- Set wallset aside
- Clean up tub
- Trim plastic sheet at bottom
- Drill small holes from inside closet for tub spout, controls, & shower arm
- Apply Aquadefense to seams & edges.
- Apply alkalai resistant mesh tape & L-bead trim to edges
- Apply thinset to tape & trim
- Put low expansion foam inside back of shelf for back wall panel
- Measure hole locations to know where to avoid putting adhesive for wall surround
- Put up wall surround & do small sort of pilot holes from closet side to know where to drill for controls & tub spout (shower arm will be above cement board & wallset)
- Install PVC trim
- Drill from surround side and cleanup any rough edges
- Small amount of caulk will be put inside holes where surround meets cementboard to seal them up (alternatively, I can use aquadefense there after the wall surround is installed but will have to make sure there are no drips)
- Install plumbing and shower trim (after making sure the waterlines are clear of debris/dirt)
- Install showerhead
- Put up curtain rod and curtain
- Take a shower
Not all of those are in order.
Here are the most recent pics I took. I'll get more later. The back wall panel had been in a plastic bag. The right wall panel wasn't wrapped. The left wall panel had protective plastic on the back and edges but not the front. The videos and descriptions all indicated that the cling plastic was supposed to cover the fronts of all of them. The back panel had a sticker I removed but it left adhesive behind so I will have to clean that up later (I just now remembered that).
I cut and did a test-fit of the L-bead trim on the right side. Looks nice. I may leave the tearaway strip and just caulk it to the edge of the surround very carefully. Or use doublesided sticky tape or something to make it stay in place. I'll have to see how it looks when I dry fit the PVC trim boards. If it looks bad I'll tear it away. (I put tape on the trim to hold it in place)
I cut off about 58" from a 10' piece. That leaves a little over 5' left and I'm trying to decide where to use it--
horizontally on back wall
vertically on left wall
Cut in half and used horizontally on the tops of both sides. I bought enough to cover them all and to cover that wall corner that looks ugly where the wood paneling doesn't quite meet up. Although, I might try to find a tall PVC outer corner trim piece for that instead. I'm going to add wainscoting to the lower part that is painted white.
