Ivan's do it yourself tips

How to remodel your half bathroom

 

Before

Before the remodel it was a standard boring and dated bathroom.

After

After the remodeling it got a modern look with a stainless steel theme and decent hardware.

 

 

 

 

 

 

How can you do this yourself in two weekends?

It is not hard. It is also fairy cheap, at least compared with hiring someone else to do it. The material cost is about $800.

 

Steps overview

  1. Get the materials and tools
  2. Remove the old sink and mirror
  3. Paint
  4. Put up the new lamp
  5. Fasten the new medicine cabinet
  6. Put up the recessed toilet paper holder
  7. Assemble the vanity and anchor it to the wall
  8. Cut and set the slate pieces
  9. Attach the sink and faucet and connect water lines and drain pipes
  10. Install new electrical cover plates

 

1. Get the materials and tools

Materials

 

Total material cost is about $800.

 

Tools I already had most of these tools so I don’t add this to the cost since they will be reused for a lot of other projects

 

 

 

 

2. Remove the old sink and mirror

Just remove the screws and pull the medicine cabinet out.

Put a bucket under the sink, turn off the water valves. Loosen all pipes and water supply lines.

3. Paint

 

Protect floor, moldings, toilet and walls/ceiling with painters tape.

 

Note that you should be careful when putting tape on paint since it may tear off the paint. Just put it on lightly near the edge to protect.

 

Spackle holes

 

sand uneven areas

 

 

Clean the walls. Especially dust from the sanding is important to remove, otherwise the paint will not stick.

 

Paint the ceiling and remove the tape at the walls. Let it dry. Repeat if needed.

 

Paint the walls twice. Remove tape along edges each time the paint is still wet.

4. Put up the new lamp

Turn off the breaker switch and the wall switch. Follow the instructions for the lamp.

5. Fasten the new medicine cabinet

Adjust the hole in the wall if needed. For this type 4 screws are enough to get it in place.

6. Attach the recessed toilet paper holder

Adjust the hole in the wall if needed. Be careful so the back end is not dropped in the wall.

7. Assemble the vanity and anchor it to the wall

The IKEA vanity is easily assembled according to the instructions in the package. It will be used upside down so there is a flat surface on top to put the slate on.

 

8. Cut and Set the slate pieces

Cut the pieces. Cut one piece for the vanity top, one piece under the mirror and small pieces for the mirror sides. The hardest one is to saw the |_| shaped opening for the mirror. The protective yellow cover on the saw (see picture) is removed. The slate piece is carefully lowered so the _ can be cut.

 

Measure and drill holes in the slate for the sink drain pipe and the faucet.

 

Prepare with protective paper and tape. As always be very cautious with the tape so it doesn’t tear off the paint.

 

Mix the mortar to a consistency as “fridge cold peanut butter“

Apply the mortar.

 

 

Set the tiles bottom first and then build up from there. Here we chose not to have any grout since we had pieces that covered the whole width. Check that it is vertical with a level.

 

When the mortar is dry; drill holes in the cabinet for the sink drain pipe and the faucet. I did this through the existing holes in the slate to get it exactly aligned.

 

9. Attach the sink and faucet and connect water lines and drain pipes

Use Teflon tape and don’t over tighten.

 

10. Install new electrical cover plates

Turn off the breaker switch and the wall switch.

 

If you have any feedback on this page please email     ivan (at) mindlab.com