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Remodel your bath for under $4000 |
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Over the last few months I have given you some ideas on ways to remodel on a budget with some easy upgrades, but I thought I would get more specific this month. A friend of mine called me up last month and said he wanted to completely renovate his bathroom and had budgeted $4000 for the plumbing and tile products (labor not included). Normally this is not a problem, but he was insistent on having a 6' whirlpool in his bathroom, which made it a lot more difficult. After much finagling, we were able to get it done. Here is what we did:
- It was very important to my friend to have a marble bath, and he wanted to put the marble all over the bathroom from floor to ceiling. In order to keep within the budget, I suggested simply tiling the tub surround and the floor, bringing the cost from $2300 to $1300.
- My friend wanted a whirlpool more than anything, and had space for a 6' tub. Large whirlpools are quite expensive, ranging from $1100 to over $4000 (I would say the average is about $1500-2000.) There were a few different ways to go since he was on a budget. We could use a smaller whirlpool, which would leave him a 6-12" ledge on one side of the bath and would cost much less, splurge on the 6' whirlpool, or use a 6' tub without a whirlpool. My suggestion was the larger tub without the whirlpool, since the whirlpool he could afford was very basic and wouldn't necessarily help out with resale. He decided this was worth the splurge, and we selected a Kohler whirlpool that ran $1100.
- For the shower itself, we were able to use a Kohler tub and shower kit that cost $175 and included a pressure balance valve, shower head and tub spout.
- The vanity area is a very expensive part of any bathroom, and this is where we had to watch ourselves a bit. My friend fell in love with a new contemporary vanity that we have, but it runs around $800, which was too much for this project. The lease expensive way to go is to use a pedestal sink, which would run you under $300, but doesn't give you very much storage. Kohler has a nice intermediate option, their line of petite vanities. The Archer Petite vanity uses the same sink as a pedestal, but instead of a pedestal base you get a nice dark wood vanity with an open shelf and a drawer. This piece is $500, the faucet we selected was $200, and we were able to throw in a Kohler medicine cabinet for extra storage for $130.
- The toilet was the easiest part. He wanted something contemporary, and Kohler just came out with an inexpensive contemporary toilet that runs $270.
- Accessories complete the bathroom for about $100.
There you have it! A completed bathroom for under $4000.
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