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seventy17

Bought a house with great potential but no bathroom is functioning

13 years ago
The house is 52 years old. There was only one prior owner who upgraded nothing. There are 2 bathrooms with outdated tile on the floor and walls. The fixtures are old and rusty. The sinks are the small basins with the chrome legs. No cabinets. No 3 prong outlets .

Comments (20)

  • PRO
    13 years ago
    and what is the question?
  • 13 years ago
    Sorry. Regarding the bath with the pink tile...the tub is similar to the one in the green bathroom. There are some rust stains on both tubs which I think I can remove. The tile has hard water marks all around. Tried everything to remove them and can only subdue them. I am 74 on a fixed income and need to save money. I need suggestions on how to remove the water marks or opinions on salvaging the pink tile and tub in spite of the water marks. Already remove the wallpaper and will replace floor, sink and commode.
  • PRO
    13 years ago
    Solicit bids from professional tile cleaners. I suspect you should have all the grout properly cleaned and revealed.
    seventy17 thanked McCabe By Design LLC
  • PRO
    13 years ago
    Ok, some cost-effective solutions:
    hard water marks on tile can be removed with acid (you can hire someone to do this), as long as the surface isn't etched.
    Is the tub worn through to the iron base? Bathtubs can be resurfaced with success, and again there are companies that specialize in this.

    For the pink bathroom, if you have both the tub and pink tile wall professionally coated white, you could (relatively inexpensively) just replace the toilet and put in a small vanity from a home center.
    At that point, the floor will look appropriate and intentional.

    The green bathroom appears to have vinyl tile, which should be replaced. If you put in a vanity and toilet, and just have the tub resurfaced white, the green tile walls may just look acceptable (don't paint them).

    For all the rooms, remove all wallpaper, use solid colors.
    seventy17 thanked sstarr93
  • 13 years ago
    The companies that re surface tubs can do the same for the surround tile. You could replace the green and white with a solid neutral but keep the pink tub. There are also acrylic overlays that cover the tub and surround at the Home Depot and Lowe's or other bath refitters. They claim to fix a bathroom in a day.
    If the fixtures are still sound, it would be fun to do a retro bath with the pink tub. A modern vanity might give more storage and a new toilet could be a water saver. All depends on your budget and taste.
    seventy17 thanked kathleen MK
  • 13 years ago
    To all: I just found a web site that caused me to rethink the whole thing and took the pledge to save the pink bathroom. Thanks to one of you who suggested I find a professional tile cleaner, the water marks are not totally gone but greatly subdued. Check this out:
  • 13 years ago
    The pink tub didn't post. Try again.
  • 13 years ago
    @seventy17, I'm glad you liked the website, and now your pink bathroom too! Please come back and show us pictures of your progress and/or the finished rooms :)
    seventy17 thanked orangecamera
  • 13 years ago
    Doing several bathrooms at once is expensive. Start with the master bathroom. Look into having the other bathroom(s) cleaned up by having the tubs and any awful tile refinished. It will look fine for years. Look in the yellow pages or online for tub resurfacers. The main thing is to have all the faucets and controls checked and maybe replaced. Rust in the tub may mean rust in the waterline or faucet. That needs to be corrected.
    seventy17 thanked felizlady
  • 13 years ago
    We are currently redoing 3 1/2 baths. We have a pink and green bathroom, but someone replaced the sink with a white one, so if you don't want your pink sink and toilet, let me know. Is it the salmonish pink from the 50's?
    seventy17 thanked shortped
  • 13 years ago
    To: Shortped. I am still making decisions. I my have sink and toilet to offer you. Yes they are the 50's kind of salmon colored pink. Where do you live. I am in Somerset PA.
  • 13 years ago
    I say, "Embrace the yellow!" If this were my bathroom, I would paint the tile on the walls white. Then I would paint the floor tiles a medium to dark gray. Nice fluffy white throw rug (100% cotton so you can bleach it). A yellow/gray/white paisley ikat shower curtain which you can find at Target. This color combo is very popular right now and you can find it anywhere. I just remodeled my yellow bathroom on a budget. $91.00 later, I am through. I even painted my yellow linoleum floor with a big 22" square grid pattern. It looks awesome. I put 2 floating shelves above the toilet and used it to accessorize. Another thought for your walls, you could put wainscoting over the tile.....just a thought.
  • 13 years ago
    Seventy17....then I live about an hr and a half from you....lol....
  • 13 years ago
    What are your soap dishes and toothbrush holders like?
  • 13 years ago
    I have several soap dishes. Not sure why you are asking? At any rate transporting sink/toilet is doable. Will keep you posted when we remove them. Currently they are still installed but about to be taken out. If you are doing retro, you may be interested in the faucets, Seem to be in good working order. I do make trips to Murrysville and Pittsburg from time to time. You said 1 1/2 hour away but not which direction.
  • 13 years ago
    North of you. This week is our fair. I am looking for toothbrush holder for one of our bathrooms.
  • 13 years ago
    Cannot help you with that but I am sure you have tried the retrorenovation website?
  • 13 years ago
    Let me know please about any of the things you are getting rid of, ok?
  • 13 years ago
    I will but things are moving a little slowly. My contractor is booked for the next week or so and I leave for a week's vacation Aug. 21. I will keep you posted as things get done and decisions are made.