That is my question too. About 25 years ago, my parents had it done and if you so much as dropped a shampoo bottle, it would chip the bathtub. Maybe it is better now?

I re-glazed my kids bathtub around 5 years ago. Replacing the tub would have been a chore because it's up the stairs off of a narrow hallway.

I used the paintable tub and tile kit. It's not hard to do at all, it does take some time to do all the steps and let it cure.

Forget about all of the "don'ts" your contractor was talking about. If you only use windex on one of those magic erasers you wont have any problems. Never use bleach or harsh chemicals.

Mine still looks brand new - no chips or problems. My kids certainly don't treat it gently.

We had a PINK Kohler shower insert professionally reglazed to white about 31/2 years ago. It still looks great.
The only issue was the smell for a couple of days- not a big deal. Be prepared not being able to use it for several days.

When the previous owner remodeled the bathroom probably sometime in the 90's judging by the beautiful almond and blue marblized tile and navy blue fixtures, in his infinite wisdom he also decided to get the clawfoot tub reglazed in almond.

The almond reglazing is chipped and you can really see it because it is almond against white. I don't know if he did it for cosmetic reasons or if the tub was in bad shape but BLECH.

After much back and forth about it, even though it is by far the bigger hassle now, I decided to get rid of the old tub :'( and get a new clawfoot tub with factory fired on porcelain finish. I do not intend to redo this bathroom again ever and that includes the tub. We are planning a family and the new tub should outlast me.

BTW the cost to reglaze is $750, the cost to get a new tub is $1100 including freight and custom paint color, minus $100 discount for getting a whole set. I also saved about $200 on the faucet by being able to get a less expensive but good quality faucet to fit the new configuration of the new tub.

We had a tub reglazed a year ago and it has held up well. It is an old, beautiful corner tub, long than standard that would have cost us $$$$ to replace, it looks like the $7800 Waterworks empire tub - a good incentive to refinish! But I'd only reglaze if the tub is unique, and unusual size or shape, or a short term solution.

I have been thinking about this for a while, and previously I remember most people having negative comments about the glazing. I am contemplating this for a rarely used bathroom with pink fixtures... I know there are various franchise who do this and would love to hear which ones people have used and have been happy with. mom1993? gardenspice? sherry?

I have 10 bathrooms in my home. They all have the two sided cast iron apron type tubs, which as most of you know are quite expensive to replace (Waterworks). 3 have needed reglazing. My cost ranged between $400 and $500 each as they were refinished previously and there is an added charge for stripping same. I would say this, the finish is very good, certainly not as hard as porcelain, nothing is. If you are reasonably careful, it should last a while. If you drop something hard in it and it chips, the finisher is usually willing to come back and touch it up. I figured I could have my tubs refinished several times and still be $7,000. ahead of a new one. If you have a more conventional 3 wall tub, the price difference is not that great and you might want to consider replacement. The labor and collateral damage is the wild card there. I have also had a cast iron corner sink reglazed and that came out great as well.

Let me ask once more; to the ones who did it and were pleased, what companies did you use ?

Sheilaaus,
If your bath is seldom used then don't hesitate reglazing it. Our extra bath ( maybe used 10 times in 25 yrs.) had cocoa brown tub and toilet. With a new Toto white toilet and reglazed tub and it looks like new. (Tile in the tub/ shower surround was white and pristine- not even a waterspot.) Now just have to get a new vanity, floor and granite counter when we get some extra money.
We are in the D. C. area- " The Washington Post" had an article about reglazing, we used one of the firms they recommended. Porcelite-Tub Refinishing Our GC( re- doing our master bath,) also recommended them)
Pam

I just had a Re-Bath rep come to look at the 50-yr old, stained, chipped cast iron tub in the house we just bought. They make a very plastic-looking liner that fits exactly into the tub and then they seal it with their "special" silicone that only they have. He quoted me $2100. I managed to keep a straight face until he had left.

So, we will definitely be refinishing ours instead. I found several companies by Googling for "tub refinisher in Atlanta". The ones that seem to be Nationwide are "hardtops.com" and "acleantub.com". I am getting them both to come out and quote, but one told me roughly $300-400 to strip the tub completely and then refinish it.

I will post pics when we are done.

I'm updating this with a before and after photo of our refinished tub. Its a 1950s cast iron tub that had previously been refinished 2-3 times and was ugly but apparantly did not have any rust problems under the old finish.

We used a refinisher that I found thru the webpage "hardtops.com". He used a paint-on finish that is guaranteed for 3yrs, but he says in 7 years of doing this he has not seen problems with it. He stripped the old finishes, then sanded the tub, filled in several dings, and put on the new finish. It cost $315.

Before:

After:

Here is a link that might be useful: refinisher

This decison was the biggest issue before we started to remodel and really held us back from starting sooner (we are now in the middle of it). We wanted to gut the bathroom ourselves but heard how hard it was to get the cast iron tub out. Ours was pink.

We had bathfitters come, and the quote was over $3,000 for a custom tub and wall surround.

Then we got a quote for reglazing -- $300. He said he would only do it in our downstairs bathroom where we have a window, but will not do upstairs becuase he won't use the chemicals where there is no window -- too dangerous to his health. So we were kind of bummed because getting the tub out from upstairs will be a bear.

We were pretty set on reglazing because the downstairs is a guest bathroom and the bath/shower isn't used that much -- unless we move downstairs when we are old :)

Then our plumber came to give us an estimate for the rough plumbing -- he suggested not reglazing because it doesn't last, and said here's a hint, take a sledgehammer to the tub -- which we did and it came out in 6 pieces in 1 hour -- and the town took it from the curb. He also begged us not to get our faucets from the big stores so he wouldn't have to rip our walls out in a few years.

So now we have a new Kohler white cast iron tub downstairs and are not afraid to face the upstairs bath remodel.

We will most likely get Americast upstairs because it is lighter.

Just wanted to let you know what we found out about reglazing and an easier way to get the old tub out.

We had our cast-iron tub reglazed also, this Monday. It looks like Mayland's. It does look much better than it did, but it does kind of look plastic-y and, as my daughter cynically says, it looks "painted."

That said, I'm glad we did it because it was $275 and if we had pulled out the tub, destroying part of the floor and walls while we were at it, would have added thousands to the cost. I would have liked a whirlpool-type tub but am happy with how nice the bathroom looks with the reglazing, new tiles, fixtures, floor, etc.

We used "Sink Surgeon" in the Atlanta area.
Rose

We just had our tub reglazed and I think it's the identical tub that Mayland posted above. I love the results and according to reports from neighbors it will last for years. We will be moving in 2-3, so it's a temp solution for us.

I really can't believe the difference it has made in my bathroom!

Someone recommended Miracle Method to me and I think they are nationwide.

Just have a few words of caution here to add. A friend just had his main bathroom 40 yr old tub done because it was in pretty bad shape and he is selling the home. The tub looks painted and everyone looking at the house notices it. He has to disclose that this was done and what the warrenty on the finish is.

Well, he's lost a couple of potential sales because folks are thinking that they will only have "x" number of years before SOMETHING will have to be done. So they are offering up to $20,000 less or more on the house because they are deducting the cost of a total remodel.

If he had just left it alone, I believe more folks would be willing to live w/ it as it was or just assume that the bath would need total updating (which it does). The painted tub just makes it look like something will have to be done sooner rather than later.

Just something you might want to ponder if you think you might be selling. I'm sure there are different quality finishes out there that are wonderful and last for years and years... just be sure!

Results are always dependant upon the experience of the glazer and company. My current tub was reglazed about 5 years ago and is in perfect condition. Never a problem.

A tub reglazed in another house was a nightmare. The guy obviously had little experience. When he was through, the tub felt like sandpaper and we knew he had not prepped between layers. My husband spent 2 days with a power buffer (car guy) to smooth all out. At least we had 3 layers of glazing to work with and the final result was wonderful. The guy who did it said he would not finish....never even asked to get paid nor was he ever heard from again.

Check out the reglazers and ask for references. Tis expensive and really important it is done right. Going back or resolving a bad job would be difficult or not even possible.

Shelia - Sorry, I have not checked in lately. We used a company called NuSurface in Austin, TX.
You say you have pink fixures. Personally, I would not resurface regular bathroom sinks - they are easily replaceable and certainly not a toilet.
We remain happy with the shower. Someday, we will tear the whole thing out but at the time, we had just finished the guest bath and I was not interested in another major redo, but I could not stand the pink/mauve color one more day!
I want to say it cost around 300-350 and so far it is flawless after daily use and weekly cleaning.