Well, if what I'm gathering from your "toes first" comment, is that you don't plan on moving ever, I would not worry about resale. After all, at some point in life, doesn't it have to be all about you and what YOU want? That said, I have to say when we took out our tub with the intention of installing the walk in shower, we discovered that after including the inches needed for tile, morter and backer board, the depth of the shower became very narrow which meant, no elbow room. It was so narrow that we decided to move the wall by 12 inches to help square the space out a bit. You didn't say if you're going to use a prefab shower unit or build one in, but if you're building it in and tiling, keep in mind that you will loose 3-4 inches of space inside the shower for tile, morter and backer board. So a 3 x 3 shower will not actually be 3 x 3 inside.

It's wonderful to know you are both in good health & hopefully, that won't change, but for the longer term, I strongly recommend that you also design you shower so it is handicapped friendly. By designing it to be more square it will also be able to accomodate a shower chair or walker. And, something we also opted for is a hand held shower system, as well as a shower head. It requires using a diverter like you use for a tub/shower combo and it gives you options in the shower. If you decide to install one, and it has a slide bar, make sure you advise the contractor you want that slide bar to be secured so it can be used as a Grab bar as welll. Even though they can be used that way, typically they aren't so the contractor will have to either have special fasteners OR make sure the bar is secured to studs in the wall.

In regards to being able to use the bathroom during the remodel. That's a tough one, I think a lot of it will depend on what you want to do material wise because with tile, grout has to have time to dry and so on. Maybe you should at least put a couple of nights in a hotel or with friends into the budget or schedule. If it were me though, I would definately start by trying to find the right contractor. Someone who is at least willing to work on a schedule that supports your needs as much as possible. Good luck to you! -- Lukki

Hi. I remodeled my one and only bathroom about 3 years ago. It is 5 x 7 as well. I had the tub/shower removed and installed a great shower with bench and frameless glass doors. Love it to death, which is good since I am a "toes first" person as well. The old tile was going to be too much of a pain to remove, so I installed walls (waterproofed and everything) right over the scuzzy old tile. Saved time and money. As far as moving out, I did for the first two days of demolition. After that they reinstalled my old toilet until the end of the job when the new one went in. For showering, I went to my neighbors (and sponge baths from the kitchen sink, washed my hair in the sink several times too) or showered at my office (there is a gym downstairs). One thing I would suggest since this is your forever home is to buy the grab bars when you buy the soap dish, shelves even thought you don't need them now...mine are stone and even though I hopefully won't have to install them for several more years, I like the idea of their coming from the same lot and being out of the same material. This is the time to do what you want and have fun with it!! Best wishes.

We are in the midst of a similarly sized bath remodel, and we were interested in getting the work done asap due to several reasons. In the end our job is finished in 6 days. One last bit of work (worth 1 day out of six) is left and getting scheduled.

In order to minimize the disruption, I realize the following can help:

1. Each part has 2-3 weeks lead time for delivery; sometimes longer such as 6 weeks
2. Make a detailed list of all items, take the time to design it (decide on fixtures etc) and start buying the items.
3. Make sure that the work starts only after everything is on site. That was our intent; it did not exactly happen and as a result we are not done yet. But it is a very good idea to let the contractors "see" what is going in on day1.

Regarding the changes:
We plan to live in the house over a long haul as well and our bathroom remodel just made us lose our only tub in the house. We got a cultured marble shower pan and a 60x32 shower (I guess after walls etc. it is around 59x30 or so).

I have to say that I never enjoyed taking baths so much in my life. This is a fantastic change for me. I was not sure till the last moment (due to resale rationale) that it was a good idea but now I am a convert :-)

If you are planning to, get the shower; you will not regret it.

Also, I second the suggestion of creating the space for disabilities etc. However, the current size will not be sufficient and will need to be expanded.

Good luck!

As for the time part, if you aren't doing major structural changes or relocating fixtures, you should not be without a toilet for more than a 1/2 day. Planning is the key. I mean the type planning where you write down every step you need to take and assign a time to each step. Be sure to allocate twice as much time as you think you need. If you are faster, you'll never regret being ahead of schedule. Break each step into manageable parts. Make sure you have all the parts and materials that you need before starting. You just need good detailed planning and time management.

In our 1-bath Condo, I was able to lay tile and set my toilet back the same day. Yes, there is no grout under my toilet. Later, I grouted up to the toilet and then used silicone caulk around the bottom to seal out any leaks.

We were without the tub-shower for three days. But we reinstalled the vanity & sink before we started that job (that only take a couple of hours). If you don't like sink bathing, a kiddie pool makes a great temporary bath tub. When we were kids we bathed in galvanized wash tubs. Anybody remember those? Can you still get them?

Plan, plan, plan... That's what the best professionals are so good at.

p.s. There's nothing wrong with budgeting a couple of days at a hotel. You can often get great mid-week rates. And there's nothing better after a long day's than a relaxing evening AWAY from the project.

Thanks everyone for the very sound advise. We will proceed carefully. After the long kitchen reno, we are hesitant to jump right in again.
Budgeting for a couple of days at a hotel is an option, but it would be most inconvenient as we have 2 Boxers who would need to go with us. I have started looking at tile and designs. I have 3 appointments with designers this coming week, so we will see where it leads us. I have a vision in mind, just not sure our budget is up to my vision.
Thanks again for sharing advise. What a great site this is. Everyone is so helpful.

I took the tub out of my only bathroom (5Âx8Â) about 2 years ago. They had to cut it into pieces to get it out of the door. ItÂs the best decision I ever made. I replaced it with a pre-fab acrylic base. One row of my tile had to be removed to ease the change. Since the green tile was in such good shape I kept it (even though it is almost 40 years old). The tub change-over was done in one day, but it took me a week to figure out what to do about the tile. In the meantime I just taped a piece of plastic around the entire shower to protect the walls and I was still able to use the shower until I repaired the tile. I know tile floors are what everyone wants now (I have them too), but they took several days to rip out the floors so they could brace them, install the tile, groutÂÂÂ a real pain to be without a toilet. I wish I had just installed a good vinyl instead. Last, I figured out a clever solution to get more space for walkers or wheelchairs as I get older. I have a 6Â closet that backs up on the bathroom. I am going to open it up to the bathroom and have my sink moved into this recessed space and it will free the 4 feet up next to the toilet for easy access. Good luck