Got the Shower Insert assembly installed and working over the last couple of days. Lots of work and so glad I had our friend from the neighborhood: Dale B. (Master Plumber) doing the really hard stuff involving pipes and fittings!
Dale does nice work doesn't he?
I should have known things were going too well. I got the frame for the shower doors mounted with only some minor issues (must buy a Mitre Box for future work like this). Then came the big problem:
I had the inner door hanging, no issues. Then, I went to hang the outer sliding glass door and it burst into tiny little safety glass bits in my hands as I went to hang it!
One second I had a pane of glass in my hands, the next was a big bang and I was looking at Patrick who was as shocked as I was.....nothing remaining in my hands and the floor full of bits of glass!
I cleaned up, and Patrick and I headed to Home Depot to see what they could do about a replacement pane of glass. I didn't have much hope but would end up being pleasantly surprised.
I explained what happened, and the customer service rep said to fetch another glass pane assembly and I got the box back to him and we opened it back at the customer service desk. I extracted the one that had shattered and they'll return the rest to the manufacturer for refund. No added cost to me except for the PITA factor and the worry that the glass is more delicate than I had assumed!
We carefully got that pane of glass back home and mounted without further issues. Caulking all the seams was next and though not great, good enough for my limited skill set!
Now to line up a drywall guy to replace the stuff that had to come out for the removal of the old tile wall and bath tub!
After waiting the required 4 hours for the caulking to dry/cure, I tested out the shower and so did Patrick, no leaks, all good for now.
Now all that remains for me specifically is to report for jury duty on Monday and see if I'm selected for a trial or not. Honey-do task is complete, I need not be here for the dry wall installation, Martha says.
So assuming I don't get selected for a long jury trial, I can start making preparations to return to Arizona before the end of the month!
10 comments:
PITA factor asside, you got great customer service, Dom. I doubt you would have gotten this at a German store ;-)
I was very surprised at their willingness SonjaM, does Germany go for the “big box” stores model?
You missed out not doing the copper plumbing. One of the most satisfying tasks ever. Therapeutic even…
Nice customer experience with Home Depot. I’ve never had a problem with them or Lowe’s. ACE seems to be more problematic.
RichardM, he made it look pretty simple....but then again, am sure experience and the right tools and such help a lot to make it look simple.
It’s never a good sign when things go well when renovating. 🤣 I don’t mean to laugh (yes I do) but picturing you standing there, arms outstretched and a pile of glass at your feet is a little bit priceless.
We have found Home Depot and Jerry’s (local store) to be fantastic to work with. We had to exchange a tub wall and they pulled a replacement from another box. Home Depot let us bring back some unused light fixtures well over a year later.
Your shower looks nice now that everything is installed. 👍
Bluekat, yep I’m sure the expression on both Patrick’s and my face must have been priceless! The poor boy now worries about the panes shattering while he showers!
Nice work, a good father-on project to share. The shattering glass makes for a family story to be shared around the dining table for years to come. Priceless.
Thanks CCjon, both Patrick and I are quite skittish when handling the glass doors now but I guess with time.....
I have to replace the tub and shower in our downstairs bathroom. I got an estimate from Lowe's -- $8000. A friend who's a handyman said we could do it together for a fraction of that cost but I'm resisting. I've done this kind of work before but I'm so tired of home maintenance stuff.
What you did is EXACTLY what I want to replace the tub with. Neither Kim or I ever take baths anymore. It's always showers. And as we get older, this is a far more functional set up.
So, aside from the shattered glass, how big a PITA was this little project? I would be using PEX instead of copper this time. Tired of sweating joints too.
Hi Steve....it was a medium PITA overall but only due to the necessity of repetitive work. The shower surround insert proved easy to mount....just be damn careful with measurements when it comes to cutting the hole for the water control....
Also, in what I’ve come to recognize as a major character flaw, once I start a project I want to “get it done “ ASAP.....so patience and a nearby hardware store are key.
Some other lessons learned:
Copper is apparently better per my master plumber friend, he made sweating the pipes look easy. I would have probably torched the house.
Wear gloves during the demolition phase, blisters are no fun when doing the removal work. Schlepping the debris up the stairs to the Bagster bag in the driveway was messy.
Had to remove a 4 x8 trench of the concrete floor to enable the correct installation of drainpipes for new shower....a chipping hammer proved handy once I figured out best way to use it effectively. All that crouching and dust proved painful the next day so plan accordingly. The previous owner hadn’t done this, instead, elevating the tub with wooden platform and what my plumber friend called a rube goldberg contraption of tubing which failed and caused the leak which caused the mildew which caused the replacement!
Cutting and mounting drywall proved easy. My drill was too powerful for driving screws so we ended up using my friend’s less powerful drill....go figure....too much power. Oh, and the dust produced by the drywall, wow. A good shop vacuum is essential.
I’m sure you’ve a mitre box , I didn’t and thought I cut cut metal framing to size by hand....nope. So my results look a bit bad on real close inspection. Still, the frame is a good fit after cutting the horizontal pieces so good enough.
Mudding, tapping and coating seams is definitely something that requires practice and experience to look right.....luckily my friend stepped in on this.
Major seams proved difficult to make seamless....I would use cardboard strips as spacers next time as had previous owner but not this time and it shows where new panels meet existing drywall. Seam gaps greater than say 1/4” I’d fill in with mud as tape does have its limitations. Oh well.
Caulking seams is messy but wash up is easy. There’s some flex between the panels comprising the shower surround so be prepared for some re-application. Again, my ham fisted work shows....but then again....
Overall cost was roughly 1/4 of the quote you got from Lowes and mainly parts/supplies and my plumber friend’s time/help. I’m guessing a drywall guy’s time and effort would have raised it by at least $1000-1500 minimum.
Hope this helps. Martha and I are in agreement that we’d rather spend the money on traveling in the future!
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