Bathroom Reno - Any Opinions?
Getting one relatively small full bathroom renovated. It’s in bad shape and needs a total redo. Does this estimate seem reasonable for an average (meaning not low or high end) reno like this? Labor: Prep: Cover floors, walls, stairs down to exit door, enclose bath hall door, cover furniture in bedroom daily Demo: drain, remove,…
Getting one relatively small full bathroom renovated. It’s in bad shape and needs a total redo. Does this estimate seem reasonable for an average (meaning not low or high end) reno like this?
Labor:
Prep:
Cover floors, walls, stairs down to exit door, enclose bath hall door, cover furniture in bedroom daily
Demo:
drain, remove, secure toilet, shut off water, remove vanity – cabinets, remove tile(s) in the tub surround, remove shower body, remove floor tiles – 1-2 layers?, remove wallboard from tub – back wall (durock) side wall, remove closet shelving in bath, remove wall studs to open space into small closet/hall, remove cleats/shelves from closet, remove crown molding from hallway, re-route electric, remove tub, remove portion of ceiling (skylight), salvage floor boards in hallway floor outside bathroom, evaluate wall framing and sub-floor, disposal will be set up on an as needed basis
Plumbing:
remove drop down drain, replace drain line, lower lead bend, re-route hot and cold water supply for toilet and vanity, solder in new hot and cold water lines for shower body, install shower body, rough in drains for tub and sink
Finish Work:
re-frame tub surround to accommodate 60 inch tub, install skylight (trim out ceiling), install tub and drain, replace wall board throughout, install sub-strate to floor, install tile around tub, install tile on floor, install saddle, tape and compound walls – (3x), grout tub surround, grout floor, rebuild closets, enclose pipe (heat riser), sand, prime and paint, install sinks, install toilet, install shower rod, install finished plumbing trim, caulk around tub and sinks, install baseboard, install light fixture and GFCI outlet
Total Labor Costs
Total Cost – $17,250.00 (Length of job 4 – 6 weeks)
Estimated Materials:
$4,700 – this includes the three most expensive items which are: 60†vanity (approximately $1,600), disposal of debris (approximately $1,200), skylight (approximately $400)
GRAND TOTAL = $21,950
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Biff, two emails to you at that yahoo address bounced back to me. Email me at westgate63@yahoo.com.
renomom, my guys do one job at a time and spring is too far ahead. So email me at that address when you are ready to start work.
dylanfan can you also email me your contractor’s contact info for a bathroom reno I plan to do in the spring. thanks
nat215@mac.com
dylanfan, email me at biff dot champion at yahoo dot com
Biff, I recommended a guy who has worked for me for over ten years to two Brownstoner readers recently and he did two baths for them in the past couple of months, so he has them as references as well as me. His work is incredible and his price would come in quite a bit less than the estimate you have.
I do think that both of those bathrooms took four weeks and change (couple of extra days), so the time frame seems about right. He only does one job at a time.
Give me a way to contact you.
Thanks vinca and Joanna for more great advice. It’s appreciated.
Pete, nice thought but ain’t gonna happen. Last time I put up a towel bar, the wall almost came down. Handy is not in my vocabulary.
Based on my recent experience renovating a larger bathroom (including a 65″ tub and a separate stall shower), the estimate seems on the reasonable-to-low side.
I want to echo vinca’s comment about covering your bedroom furniture. The quote mentions covering the furniture “daily.” If it is (or will be) an ensuite master bath, are you expecting to uncover it each night and sleep in your bedroom during the renovation? You might want to rethink that. There’s no way we could have lived in our bedroom during our master bath renovation. We took the mattress off our bed, cleared the items off most surfaces, and sealed everything else up under plastic. The contractor used the room as a staging area and it was completely unlivable. In fact, we moved out for the whole time (although the fact that we have a small child and a dog played into that decision). Your particular situation may be different and the setup may work for you, but like vinca said, you shouldn’t discount the significant amount of dust and debris that this job will produce.
skip the contractor..DIY. get the whole family involved.
Will be bonding experience. Great education for the kids and much cheaper than tuition at Packer, st. anns or wherever. You’ll thank yourself when completed.
Definitely echoing ExTex on the three bids and her other comments. Also, do you need approval from co-op board, or otherwise? If so, I’d seek their input in advance to make sure your bids/contractors meet their requirements. Are you working from drawings, or expecting the contractor to basically follow verbal instructions? That can lead to lots of problems unless you work that out in advance. If you had a design drawn by someone (architect, designer, otherwise), get a bid from the contractors that professional normally employs. If their bid is competitive, it’s a plus to have contractors beholden to both you AND designer.
Buying all your own materials, rather than specifying and having the contractor purchase/deliver, is a mixed blessing. You want to be sure the material’s available for delivery on your contractor’s schedule, that the sizes/models delivered are exactly what you ordered, that they do not present any special installation challenges for your contractor, that all items will fit in conformance with NYC code, etc. Yes, the contractor gets a markup, but he also gets the material at a discount. Discuss this in advance.
There’s something about the bid you posted that doesn’t sit quite right with me. I think the example of electrical/points is indicative. Your bid mentions only “install light fixture and GFCI outlet.” You’ll need, at minimum, overhead light, exhaust fan, vanity light(s), vanity outlet(s) and switches, overhead light switch. Somehow the quote you posted strikes me as heavy on demo detail, and light on finish work detail. It’s possible to get a very bare bones quote from a very good contractor, but something in this quote feels skewed. Lastly, I hope you fully comprehend just how little “covering” your bedroom furniture will protect your entire home from construction dust and debris.