A Quick Bathroom Makeover

I've been very busy as of late with travelling and such so I haven't gotten around to many house projects recently. However, with us planning to sell at the beginning of summer Siri had her Realtor friend pay us a visit and suggest various things we could do to improve the marketability of the house. One such project was the bathroom, which I had planned on doing a few things in anyway. The vanity top had been dulled by repeated cleaning and I wanted to replace it. This led to assessing the cabinet and deciding to replace it as well. This led to a new medicine cabinet and so on and so forth. 

So let's get right to it! I started by moving all of my stuff upstairs to our second bathroom and then took down the medicine cabinet and removed the vanity. I made sure to run a razor knife around the vanity as it was painted in. There was also a bit of caulking to remove from the backsplash. What I found was the new vinyl over an equally ugly older vinyl floor. I also removed the toilet tank to make it easier to paint around. I applied some primer to a few areas that needed it as well as the bare drywall that was behind the old vanity. I scraped some the the caulking and paint ridges off the wall that was around the cabinet to give me a smoother surface for painting later.

Disconnecting plumbing.

Some spots on the wall need priming.

Old vanity is out.

Some rot on the lower right corner.

Priming.

More primer! 

That was done after work on Wednesday after a few errands. Thursday was a long day and started with me driving to HOBO after work to get a new vanity combo. It is a small white combo about the same size as the old one. When I got home I taped off the moulding so I could start with the white for the trim. While that dried I started putting the vanity together. I picked up a new faucet as part of this project and installed in on the top. It is much easier to do this before you assemble the cabinet. I also installed the drain and stop at this time.

Taping and painting.

The trim looks a lot cleaner now.

New top! Putting the faucet in before assembly.

After the moulding dried I started painting the walls a light gray we had picked out. I taped off the tile and ceiling since I didn't want to paint either of those areas. This went very quickly as the bathroom is a very small space. I probably didn't need to get a full gallon of paint. When this had all dried I could start reassembly of the bathroom.

Gray walls. Left the fixture brackets up since the flanges cover them.

Replaced the tank.

I started with the new light fixture: a chrome light bar with three globe lights. I also changed the switches and outlet to white since the existing almond colored pieces don't really match the new gray. I put the tank back on the toilet and installed the new vanity cabinet. I was fortunate in that the base of the cabinet covered the entire area of the vinyl that was cut around the old cabinet. I did have to cut some notches for the supply lines as they exit the wall relatively high up. I mounted the cabinet to the wall with a few screws into the studs.

New vanity in with notches for supply lines.

Next I put the vanity top on. Because of the placement of the supply lines it was a bit difficult to attach the braided lines to the shutoff valves. The drain's trap already had a flexible neck so it was easy to maneuver to connect to the sink. A few lines of caulking around the cabinet is all that is needed to attach the top. After everything was in position I placed a bead of caulking along the backsplash to stop water from getting behind it.

Vanity top, medicine and storage cabinets installed. New light fixture up.

Hanger back up.

The last steps were to hang the new storage pieces and paint the door. It was already late (about 11;30pm) but I needed to finish as my brother was visiting this weekend. I hung the new medicine cabinet and storage cabinet with some anchors and left the door for Sunday since I had to work the next day. I rehung the toilet paper holder and towel bar and put my shower curtain back up. After my brother left I painted the door in the living room and rehung it.

Painting in the living room.

Rehung the door.

This was a fun project but a bit rushed. I ran in to one problem when I found that the outlet I bought was faulty. I've already replaced it with a working one but I still have a few tasks for this room. The grout in the shower is stained and the caulk lines are a bit moldy. I'll have to clean these areas up as well as seal the window sill that is in the shower so water won't leak into the wall.

Rain, rain, don't go away

come again and fill my barrel! If you recall from my previous post I picked up two 55 gallon barrels from CraigsList and constructed a composter from one. The second one was destined to water our raised bed garden. I purchased a downspout diverter from Amazon as well as a spigot for the bottom.

Barrel location at the back of the house.

I put the barrel up on three concrete blocks to get it up high enough to get a bit of pressure out of the spigot when it is filled. Next was modifying the downspout with the diverter. I used a hacksaw to cut the aluminum following the instructions that came with the adapter. I used some outdoor caulking on the bottom adapter of the diverter to prevent leaks.

Downspout cut.

In position.

I had to cut a large opening in the top of the barrel in order to get my arm inside to fasten both the diverter supply and the bottom spigot. I will probably cover this with a screen later to prevent debris from falling in.

Arm hole cut.

The diverter adapter and supply tubing.

Bottom spigot attached.

All done!

After attaching everything I put a few gallons of water into the barrel in order to water test the spigot and to weigh down the barrel in the very windy conditions on that day. Not more than two hours after I finished the barrel a large storm rolled through and filled my barrel to the brim! It was good to see that everything worked well and that we will be able to use this for the garden instead of manually water the plants everyday. All I need to do is get the soaker hose.

Breakin' It Down

...into compost. Yard waste that is. I decided that a wire mesh compost bin I made last summer wasn't working very well and chose to make my own new one from a 55 gallon barrel. I managed to find a pair of these drums on Craigslist for this project and a rain barrel. After cleaning the barrel I started on the frame of the composter.

Cleaned up.

The base is a simple rectangle slightly larger than the barrel.

Attaching the uprights.

 I made a simple triangular frame on each side to support the barrel. I don't think it will be terribly heavy getting filled with leaves and lawn clippings so I didn't make them as sturdy as I could have.

Side frames on.

Next I focused on the barrel itself. The bacteria in a composter need to breathe so I drilled holes on both sides around the outside of the barrel. Then I cut a door out by drilling out two corners and using a jigsaw to connect the dots. I didn't follow a template at all so the cuts aren't all that straight. But since it is a simple composter that will sit in the back of the yard I'm not all that concerned about it.

Breathing holes.

Door cut.

I then added the hardware. When turning the bin, the compost needs to be churned so I added some 8" lengths of pre-bent flashing to act as agitators similar to those found in a dryer. I also added a pair of hinges and a  barrel bolt latch to the door to open and close it.

Agitator installed with some 1/4" bolts and washers.

Door installed.

Finally I mounted the bin to the frame to complete the composter. I did this by using a length of 2" PVC pipe as the axle and drilling a 2 1/2" hole through the top and bottom (now the sides) of the bin. The PVC measurement is the inside diameter so the holes in the bin needed to be larger to fit around the outside diameter of the pipe. I then used some metal pipe brackets that are typically used to attach the pipe to joists to fix it to the frame. The pipe doesn't spin but the holes in the bin are just loose enough to allow the bin to rotate around the pipe.

Used a hole saw to cut the space for the axle.

PVC axle.

Complete!

I took apart the old bin and moved all of the yard waste from it to the new composter which nearly filled it up. There is enough room below this bin to add another one on the same frame but I would have to get another barrel from Craigslist. The other one I plan to use for a rain barrel doesn't have bungs to seal the top. This was a fairly simple project and I hope it will prove to be a better composter than the original wire mesh one I had from last year. The entire project cost less than $50 to make which is less than half the cost of store bought models.

Finishing the Karaoke Bench

A while back I had made a bench in the karaoke room for Siri. I finally found some time to upholster it so the room would be usable. I was initially surprised at how expensive foam padding can be and we waited until Memorial weekend for Jo-Ann Fabrics to have a 50% off sale. We also bought the fabric there since it was also on sale. We did still spend a lot more on upholstery supplies than I had on wood for the frame.

Cutting the foam batting to size.

Fabric added.

I started on one side and cut the foam to size. It is 24" wide so I cut it into 18" deep sections and butted them up to each other. I cut the fabric in half lengthwise since it is 48" wide and the bench is less than half that deep. My pneumatic stapler made attaching the fabric a breeze and I moved along quickly until I came to the corner. The fabric had to turn 45 degrees and I wasn't quite sure how to handle it. I ended up just cutting an angle in the fabric and stapling it down. I will have to figure out a way to cover the staples later.

Starting on the other side.

Finished in the middle.

I used one side of the fabric and it ended in the middle of the U-shaped bench. I then started on the other end of the bench and worked toward the middle. Again I made the turn by cutting and stapling the fabric at the seam in the corner. I finished it off fairly quickly thanks to the air stapler and the bench is actually pretty comfortable. Siri will have to find cushions for the backs but we can sit and make good use of the room for now. I will have to figure out a way to cover the corner turns as well as the staples in the front of the bench holding the fabric down.

Karaoke Bench

For Siri's karaoke room we didn't have any seating now that we've moved the patio furniture outside. I took one night and put together a basic bench. I designed a U shaped bench in SketchUp and you can get the plans here. I followed the basic idea of the plan but made a few changes as I constructed it.

Inspection by the Admiral.

I started by attaching a 2x2 cleat to the studs in the walls. This gave me my basic shape as well as the height. I had to make it about 21" tall to accommodate the existing outlets in the room, of which there are plenty.

Cleats attached.

I used simple 2x4 framing and 4x4 posts cut to height for support for the inside corners. All of this was fastened together using 3" drywall screws. I probably could have made it much stronger by using lap joints and maybe some mortise and tenons. However, if I had done that this project would have ended up on my woodworking blog.

Started framing.

Supports installed.

 I notched the 2x4 supports to go around the cleats on the wall and screwed them up from the bottom. I continued this technique all the way around the bench and then started with the paneling. For this I used 1/4" lauan since we plan to cover the bench with cushions and fabric later.

Lauan plywood cut and notched to fit.

Nearly done.

Completely covered.

This project only took me a few hours, even with a friend stopping by to visit for a while. The seating is slightly soft in between the bracing but after the cushioning and fabric go on it will not be noticable and these materials will help disperse the weight. After I cover the bench I may just use this room for my gaming room and move my consoles down here. I still need to cover a gap in the wall and put a door on the room so we can heat it efficiently in the winter.

The Aftershock

Of course, after the Big One there will be small shocks afterward. The shock I encountered was when I double checked everything after priming to find the flex duct had a large hole in the back of it that ran up behind the drywall. This must have occurred as I was moving it to attach the adapter to the hood vent. This set my schedule back a bit from when I thought we would get the kitchen back in working order but I did correct it as I didn't want the warm, moist air from the hood vent producing mold in the cavity above the alcove. But this was after I had gotten the sanding and priming done.

Taped off for primer.

First coat on.

Sanded and 2nd coat applied.

I also took the time to move the outlet for the electric range connection. Though we have a gas unit, I wanted to have this moved so that it wouldn't interfere with putting the fridge against the back wall. It was easy enough as it is fed from a junction box in the basement directly in the center of the alcove. I disconnected the outlet (after making sure the breaker was turned off) and just pulled the armored cable down to the basement. I drilled a new hole, fed the cable up, and simply re-attached the outlet on the right side of the alcove.

Moved the electric range outlet.

Fridge put in place.

It was about this time that I did my double checking of all the new construction and setup. I found the hole in the flex ducting. I called it a night and planned my work for the next day. I replaced the offending section of the flex duct with a rigid duct. In order to do this I had to remove the microwave, cabinet, and cut the ceiling drywall for access.

Replaced flex with rigid.

Replaced the cabinet after duct work.

Microwave attached and connected to new ductwork.

After testing the new duct work for leaks, I cleaned up and reattached the cabinet doors. I put the range in place and tested the gas connection. I then unboxed the final cabinet: a 12" base cabinet. We still haven't picked out the counter top material for this cabinet but it is between granite to match the existing top on the opposite side of the kitchen or a butcher block style of hardwood. For now, we are going to use a cutting board for a top and be careful not to make too much of a mess as we cook.

Everything installed.

We still have to paint the kitchen when we decide on colors, but the primer will keep the drywall sealed until that time. I have some toekick left from the pantry cabinet project that I still need to attach to the new base cabinet but I will do that later. All in all the remodel turned out nicely and I'm quite pleased with the results.