Bathroom Patch Job
Temporary fix for water damage in a poorly designed bathroom
The previous owner of our house sacrificed an 10x12 bedroom to create a main bathroom and an ensuite bathroom. The space the original bathroom occupied was incorporated into a larger master bedroom. The new main bathroom is small but functional. Unfortunately, it is also a poster child for how not to renovate a bathroom.
One day, I was cleaning the grout around the tub when I noticed a loose tile. It did not take much persuasion to remove the tile and reveal the mess that was behind it. This is what I learned about my bathroom:
- Original walls had not been removed. Drywall was simply installed over the old walls. (To me, when going to the expense of new walls and tiles, it only makes sense to gut everything to the studs to upgrade the insulation and make sure there are no other problems)
- Plumbing for the tub is on an outside wall. There is minimal insulation (less than R-12) with kraft paper facing, but no other vapour barrier. It's surprising that the pipes haven't frozen.
- The walls are standard drywall (not even blue board). Cement board should have been used in this wet zone.
- There was no silicone around the tub at all. The gap between the tub and the tile was filled with grout.
- Did I mention that the plumbing was on an outside wall?
My quick fix (and keep in mind that this is only temporary) involved removing the worst of the wet drywall (both layers) exposing the studs. I attached some strapping across the studs and installed 3/8" plywood to patch the hole. I then installed a piece of Barker tile board over the plywood and sealed all the seams with silicone.
It's not the best looking repair in the world, but I am confident that no water is getting through any of my work.
Within the next year or so, we will be building a new bathroom where our master bedroom is now, so this repair only has to last us a short time. After that point, the two current bathrooms will be gutted and will once again become a bedroom....