Bathroom revamp - newbie

[Richard198]

Hi

I just about to start the most ambitious DIY project I have ever undertaken and a bit nervous about making a complete hash of it! In summary I am stripping out a wet room and replacing with a more conventional set up - sorry can't stand wet rooms!

Anyway spent last weekend stripping tiles off and now down to the plasterboard but have a few questions:

1. Do I need to strip all the old adhesive off the plasterboard walls or can I simply add more adhesive on top of what is left?
2. Two of the walls only have plaster on them rather than tiling adhesive (the tiles came off far too easily!) - but the plaster is cracked and loose in some areas. Again should I strip off all plaster first before putting adhesive on / replastering?
3. Some of the plasterboard is rotten from where the tiles failed - do I need to replace the board here or can I simply put new tiles on?
4. If I replace some of the plasterboard is there a better alternative to plasterboard - i.e. something that is more waterproof and better suited to a bathroom?

PS: Now have girlfriend looking at the mess I have created with that look of concern but support - ha! Need to make it seem like I know what I am up to so any help much appreciated!!

Cheers - Richard

 

[Rico99]

Hi there,

As the song kinda goes "Rip It Out And Start Again".

"Just Reaplce any and all plaster / plasterboard and use a "tanking kit around the bath / shower areas to waterproof the plasterboard before tiling.

Rico

 

[Richard198]

Thanks for speeding response - makes sense!!

I also need to cheat the enclosure a little - reducing it from 94cm to 90cm - so thinking I should just overboard the existing plasterboard rather than replace.... make sense?

 

[Rico99]

Hi there,

If your going to pull all the rest out you might as well do it all.

If you need to reduce the depth then either double board from new or build studwork wall.

You would have better piece of mind if all was new rather than having any nagging doubts about relying on the original damp plasterboard.

Rico

 

[Symptoms]

Richard - strip the plasterboard out and skip it ... this stuff has no place near water. Replace it with a cement board (Aquapanel or similar), similar to plasterboard but water resistant. Get it from Wickes and others; go to Wickes website and read their good ideas/how to do it leaflet on this product ... very helpful. A good tiled finish, to a large extent, depends on a firm flat base on which to lay them, so get as much old adhesive off as possible. Small areas of friable/blown/loose plaster will need to be repaired - hack out and patch plaster, easy enough for the novice. If all the plaster is fu**ed and can't be repaired then it's got to come off; either replaster or dryline it with Aquapanel if it's going to be near water, or plasterboard if the area will remain dry. Nothing wrong with double skinning plasterboard or Aquapanel.

 

[Richard198]

Brilliant - thanks both

Going to strip it all out and replace with the Aquapanel stuff from Wickes (someone else had mentioned that too) - and you're right, don't want to be thinking about the old stuff still in there

So next up just need to think about replacing a loose head shower with a fixed, a new toilet on a raised floor, new basin which needs to be lowered, wooden flooring that can be used in a bathroom and probably a million other things that I don't even know about yet!! Think I will be busy....