DIY bathroom renovation

Home-Dzine reader, Tasha, bought her first home in October 2011, only to find that within the first month there were leaks in the main en suite bathroom.

 

Home-Dzine reader, Tasha, bought her first home in October 2011, only to find that within the first month there were leaks in the main en suite bathroom. When it reached a total of 4 leaks, the insurance company informed her that there was no alternative but to replace the existing pipes - at her own cost.

Here is Tasha's story...

Not wanting to tackle this project on my own, and after the plumber had replaced all the pipework, my Dad and I tackled the rest of the bathroom renovation. He lives in Durban and flew to Cape Town to help me with the project and, as a single mom with a new home, I had not built up a tool collection yet, hence the broom stick and pool pole which needed to be used in exchange for clamps!

The tiles needed to be removed from the bathroom walls and all excess cement had to be chipped off. The walls were then plastered sanded before painting.

The bath had to be built in and wooden panelling was put on top. I then sanded, stained and varnished the panelling. Walls and ceilings were painted and all other accessories were hung. I also stained left over panelling and used this as a skirting board around the edges of the bathroom.

Overall I'm pretty happy with the outcome. It was definitely daunting to start with but once you get going its very empowering! I enjoyed every minute of it.