Bathroom refurb, 1930s bungalow

[JP_]

OK, so it's finally bathroom refurb week*.
The bathroom has 2 walls that are battened with plasterboard+tiles - I am removing board and tiles today. Behind this is about an inch (maybe less on this wall) of plaster, then brick. The other 2 walls are just tiles on inch plaster.

I was going to take the whole room back to brick, but now thinking that as this wall, which was external but now internal, has hot& cold pipes and a shaver socket (basin is on other wall) I thought maybe I could keep the battens and just board and skim / paint (I plan to tile just around the bath).

I was expecting the battens to be rotten and the wall to be much worse, but I get the impression this job is not actually all that old, maybe less than 10 years (spare tiles were in the garage when we moved in 4 years ago).

One thing, sometimes I hear creaking noises which I think is from the heating, but could be these pipes, as they are in tight against the wall and the wood. So if I take back to brick, I could box in that corner, with the socket moved left a bit, and shove some insulation around the pipes to reduce noises.

But I would be easier to just leave as is.

The external wall, second photo, I will be taking back to brick, as I need to insulate that and board, and not enough room to do it on top of the inch of plaster.

*I'll probably only get the demolition done, maybe some boarding ...

 

[JP_]

all removed to brick!

 

[^woody^]

*Only two days left

 

[JP_]

The lazy builder starts late, then only seems to work mornings. After stopping for lunch he just moans about dust and tidies up a bit, then watches TV!

 

[JP_]

Bricks!

And a ****load of dust.

 

[^woody^]

Shouldn't this be in the "my projects" section? I can't see a question.

Fair play to the builder though. He seems like a tryer.

 

[JP_]

Probably. I think it started as a question but by the time i wrote it i made my mind up.

 

[JP_]

*Only two days left

Shower is out! Shower came out much easier than i expected, but the screwed down boards are a nightmare as half the screw heads are knackered. Getting there ....

 

[JP_]

I got the Wickes boards, and they look like they will be OK.
Also unearthed the original hot/cold pipes, and bath waste, so hopefully plumbing job just got a lot cheaper.

 

[JP_]

Well, got the toilet out and floor up
The corner of the room where the pipes and waste are had no support! Amazed that the bits of wood they put in held everything up.

So going to have to move those pipes, more copper, more plumbing costs...

 

[JP_]

Well, that was lucky!
While cleaning out the floor I uncovered what looks like a wet piece of wall plate and green stuff all over the pipes - the lagging falls apart too. Lots of green further on.
So lucky that I've asked the plumber already to re-route these pipes through the middle, so I can put some better support in the corner for the floor

Just goes to show that it is always a good idea to clean decades of crap out when doing a refurb!

 

[JohnD]

is that a concrete raft I can see under the floor timbers? is the void ventilated?

it looks like the WC soil pipe originally went vertically through the floor.

 

[JP_]

what's a concrete raft?
There is one air brick, it was blocked inside and out, clear now.
The soil pipe still goes down into the floor, but angled.
I've cleaned up a bit, this might be clearer

 

[JohnD]

what's a concrete raft?

A concrete slab on which the house is built

(rather than strip foundations under the walls)

If it is, you can build a brick pier or dwarf wall to support the joists (with a dpc). you might be able to do it on oversite concrete, but the quality, thickness and strength are not reliable. Oversite is basically to stop the builders' boots getting muddy, and prevent weeds growing up through the floor.

There is one air brick

no throughflow of air, then. You need at least two, on different walls, unless the air blows under the floor to an airbrick in a different room.

The soil pipe still goes down into the floor, but angled.
I've cleaned up a bit, this might be clearer

I have a feeling there is a nasty bodge hidden under that mortar poultice. Is the mortar damp, and stained with, errrr, "detritus?"

 

[JP_]

I see. I think it is sold concrete slab, there are dwarf walls in each room to support the floor.

Yeah, airflow does not look good.

The mortar is dry and no scent of anything bad, but at the bottom, right below where the pipe is greenest, the ground is a bit wet. So likely leaking then. The toilet has not been used for about 2 weeks now, although it did spray the hose down the soil pipe earlier.

The water pipes are coming out on Monday. Maybe I should get the drainage done again?