Shower Renovation Questions

[nelsonxn]

Hello,
I need to remove the existing threshold between my bathroom and bed room door and replace it with a new threshold that will transition from low carpet bedroom side to the higher tiled bathroom side.

I need to do it without damaging the leveling compound in the bathroom and the carpet in the bedroom.

Pounding it out with a hammer and chisel might damage the leveling compound on the bathroom side. I don't want to buy a grinder but i do have an Oscillating Multi-Tool and a pry bar.

Any ideas?

example drawing below...

[ss3964spd]

You could use a nail setting punch and a hammer, Nelson. Start at one end on the carpet side. Will probably be slow going but much more controllable then just whacking it.

[cx]

I wouldn't worry about damaging the leveling compound, Nelson, that's easily repaired.

[nelsonxn]

both reply's are good...

The threshold is attached with thin set mortar, jam sits on sub floor.

I know i can lift the carpet to get at the threshold from that side and try to chisel it off, i just don't want to re-attach and re-tension the carpet.

Have you all ever tried to chisel it off by holding the carpet down with a large enough putty knife to protect the carpet?

[nelsonxn]

Ok,
since i didn't want to mess with either side of the threshold,

I used a 1" diamond hole saw to cute out 3 holes across the center it. It helps if you have a vacuum hose near action - 4 mins.

Then used a air hammer to lift the two half's of the threshold off the sub floor a bit, then used it to jack hammer each half of the threshold in segments - 30 secs.

clean up.

Its amazing how easy and quick it was with the right tools and methods.

There was minimal damage to the edge of the leveling compound.

Thanks

[nelsonxn]

Hi,
Back story...
Original toilet sat on typical starter home 4" ? white ceramic tiles that sat on sub floor that was flush with floor trusses in the water closet.

I left the original toilet flange in place when i reworked the water closet sub floor in our master bath.

New story...
I applied 3/4" OSB sub flooring over the trusses to match the rest of the bathroom sub floor height which had 3/4" OSB on top of the trusses.

Since the bathroom floor - overall - was not level, I had to add plywood and leveling compound, about a 1/2" in height, in order to raise the height of the sub floor to make it level overall.

So, now the finished sub floor height in the water closet and subsequently the flange is about 7/8" higher than it was originally if you include the new tile thickness. The result is that the flange does not sit flat on top of the new tile (not glued down yet) with one side of the flange about 1/4" above the new tile while the other side sits on the tile.

Questions:

• Am i creating a problem with the flange and attached drain being 7/8" higher off the original sub floor?
  
• will a wax ring or foam gasket work with the flange being angled up on one side by 1/4"?

thanks,

[ss3964spd]

If I'm understanding correctly, your closet flange is sitting on the finished tile floor on one side but is 1/4" higher on the other? If so, either the floor isn't level and the riser is plumb or the floor is level riser isn't plumb.

Sometimes you can cock those plastic fitting a little when gluing them up but that depend a bit on how deep one goes into the other.

I'd recommend you mock it up. Install, but don't glue, the flange. Use a ribbon of, say, some plumbers putty, maybe 1/4" in diameter, placed on the high side of the flange. Maybe put a piece of plastic wrap on the putty so it doesn't stick to the toilet. Carefully set the toilet in place and then remove to see how much, if any, the putty has been compressed. If its been squished down to almost nothing then so too would be the wax ring - not enough to seal.

[nelsonxn]

To answer your question: floor is level riser isn't plumb.

the flange sat flat on the original tile and sub floor but since the flange and connected drain pipe is now higher due to added leveling material, the slope of the drain pipe is now a little steeper causing the flange to lay a little more angled than flat on the tile.

your suggestion is good. I'll try it since i really don't want to heat separate the flange from the vertical drain pipe and be forced to glue a coupler and pipe segment to make the flange lay flat.

my understanding is that wax or foam gaskets can compensate for some deviation from flat.

[nelsonxn]

Hello again...

I'm installing some 6x36 inch porcelain wood plank tiles on my master bath floor. There are no baseboards available specific to the type and pattern of porcelain wood plank tiles i'm using.

What do you think would be a good option/look for a baseboard given the type and style of tile pictured below with white painted walls?

[ss3964spd]

Just opinion, Nelson, but perhaps a wooden baseboard, in a profile that matches what is already in the house?

Or, you might consider a complimenting tile for the baseboard. Perhaps even a solid surface material.

[Snets]

Another option is to make baseboard with that same tile and put an edge profile on the upper edge. There are many profiles out there to choose from.

[nelsonxn]

Hello,
A 1/2" trowel is recommended for 6x36 tile - can i use a 1/4" trowel to minimize the finished tile height if tiles are fairly flat and can get 95% coverage?

This is for a curbless shower. Also the bathroom floor has been leveled.

The finished shower floor tile is a 1/2" above the bathroom sub floor. The bathroom floor 6x36" tile (i plane to lay next to the shower tile) is 3/8" including the square grid pattern on the back side.

I'm afraid that if i use a 1/2" trowel, the height of the 6x36" bathroom tile next to the shower tile will be too high next to the shower tile by about 1/4" especially since I'm using the the Rubi Level Quick system.

The Rubi strips have curved feet that do not fully flatten out under the tile imposing a minimum space of slightly under 1/8" (about 3/32") under the tile.

I was thinking that i could use a 1/4" trowel and maintain a 1/8" mortar bed under the tile with thicker back buttering and since the Rubi Level Quick strips impose a 1/8" space under the tile anyway. That should keep the height difference between the shower floor tile and the bathroom floor tile to a minimum.

thanks,

[cx]

The requirement for your installation is that you achieve a minimum of 3/32nds" of mortar under the installed tiles with a minimum of 80 percent coverage under each tile with good coverage under all edges and corners.

If you can do that with your chosen trowel and your chosen thinset mortar and your technique, no reason not to do so. Only a few trial tiles set and removed will tell you if you can do it adequately.

My opinion; worth price charged.

[nelsonxn]

Yes, I can.

Thanks for the encouragement.

[nelsonxn]

Hi,
The 32"x16" porcelain tiles I'll be laying on the shower walls have an slight 3/32" to 3/16" bow at the center along the length.

Am I going to have a problem the length ends digging slightly into the mortar due to the bow - even with leveling clips?

Thanks,