tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post7994559429078613473..comments2024-02-23T02:03:23.020-07:00Comments on The Eco Cat Lady Speaks: A Floor Too Far...EcoCatLadyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-25214601708798480322017-10-01T12:39:59.948-06:002017-10-01T12:39:59.948-06:00Ha! Not sure if I'm "handy and tenacious&...Ha! Not sure if I'm "handy and tenacious" or just really stubborn! <br /><br />I'm not terribly fond of brown in a bathroom either. Though, I think that part of my desire to go monochrome was a reaction from years of living with all that pink and green. I think part of me just wanted to erase all trace of color in there!EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-78267841323563597902017-10-01T12:36:07.439-06:002017-10-01T12:36:07.439-06:00I actually thought about using the leveling stuff,...I actually thought about using the leveling stuff, but for several reasons it would have been complicated in that room. Anyhow, I ended up just using some floor patch and it worked out OK.EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-13913528144393562262017-10-01T12:35:11.506-06:002017-10-01T12:35:11.506-06:00I did look there... well there are 6 of them in to...I did look there... well there are 6 of them in town, but I couldn't bring myself to drive all over. Everything they had at the one in my neighborhood was a cream or beige color, which I really didn't want. It worked out OK though, because the tile really wasn't that expensive... probably was less than a quarter the cost of the whole project. I'll definitely look there before I buy a new vanity though!EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-12502612137075453992017-10-01T12:33:29.600-06:002017-10-01T12:33:29.600-06:00OMG... 2 years?!? I think I'd be a basket case...OMG... 2 years?!? I think I'd be a basket case by that point! Not sure if you'll see this, but it turned out that Lowe's wouldn't cut it after all. Oh well... I now have a new saw and a new skill!EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-14015714849987089362017-09-23T08:42:00.492-06:002017-09-23T08:42:00.492-06:00Omg, I felt exhausted just reading about your tar ...Omg, I felt exhausted just reading about your tar troubles. You are so handy and tenacious!<br /><br />I think charcoal is a great colour choice. Normally I'm not very fond of grey personally, but I really think it goes very nicely in a bathroom floor. My bathroom has grey-brown tiles (ok) and brown cabinets etc (bad). Why do people put brown in a bathroom?! My mind just goes to poop straight away.<br /><br />Grey on the other hand is a nice, clean colour! 8)<br /><br />I think if I changed the brown cabinets to another colour, my bathroom would look way way better to my eyes, as the floors aren't very strongly brown. But...expensive, hassle, ugh. It was only five years old when I moved in and worsk fine, so can't really justify spending a lot of money on it, and I'md efinitely not up for that kind of diy hassle. No.<br /><br />MariaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-69400003460292860572017-09-18T19:04:20.684-06:002017-09-18T19:04:20.684-06:00What you described is par for the course for every...What you described is par for the course for every "little" project we have ever started! Have you looked into self-leveling floor compound? It might be useful in this room.Alex Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15562233895276078957noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-69968519057090588132017-09-18T17:31:15.580-06:002017-09-18T17:31:15.580-06:00Shop the Habitat for Humanity store. I got nice ...Shop the Habitat for Humanity store. I got nice tile,,, more than enough for my bathroom. gailAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-46211936925872309332017-09-11T13:29:26.951-06:002017-09-11T13:29:26.951-06:00I think tile is the way to go in a bathroom: you&#...I think tile is the way to go in a bathroom: you'll be happier with the project down the line.<br /><br />And so cool that they'll do the tile cutting for you. That's a huge part of the work! Will they nip the tile for the space around the toilet, too?<br /><br />My dad is still renovating the bathroom in his house...and has been for over 2 years. Dude is still working but, man, it's just taking too long.<br /><br />With that in mind, we bought a flip for our current home. No DIY for us. :)Done By Fortyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06246597867355460723noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-7855905845154742552017-09-09T13:42:37.335-06:002017-09-09T13:42:37.335-06:00Time will tell... this project is sorta turning in...Time will tell... this project is sorta turning into a comedy of errors. At the moment I'm up to my ears in toilet flange problems! Maybe some day I'll actually get to the tiling part!EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-31342628907791995122017-09-09T09:01:10.866-06:002017-09-09T09:01:10.866-06:00Wow, I admire your tenacity in tackling these proj...Wow, I admire your tenacity in tackling these projects--I'm much more of a wuss and usually call for help at the first sign of trouble. DIY is such a pain most of the time but I'm sure the finished result will be worth it.min hushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09460666548836420815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-3659872947622343132017-09-08T00:37:41.309-06:002017-09-08T00:37:41.309-06:00Oy! I remember your floors and uncovering an area ...Oy! I remember your floors and uncovering an area where concrete had been poured. And I never would have considered the issue with the chair making the vinyl shift - how disappointing! Maybe I don't understand the problem with the doors, but is there a reason you can't just saw an inch or so off the bottom of the doors themselves?<br /><br />Anyhow, the process on infinite digressions continues with my bathroom. I went to pull the toilet today and discovered that the shut off valve wouldn't work because of years of gunk built up on it. Ug! Spent the whole day taking it apart, putting it back together and trying to make it work, but no dice. And... this is a valve that I installed myself when I first bought the house. Holy Moly! Have I been here long enough for things I installed to get old and non-functional? I'm starting to feel like a track runner who's gotten lapped by the competition!<br /><br />Soo... tomorrow I get to go buy a new valve and see if I can get the toilet shut-off to work - and who knows what will be waiting for me when I finally get the toilet off! <br /><br />Maybe I'll have new tile by Christmas...<br />EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-66826592082962693322017-09-07T20:27:33.121-06:002017-09-07T20:27:33.121-06:00Oh No! I've never run into tar paper, knock on...Oh No! I've never run into tar paper, knock on wood, what a mess you uncovered. Good thing you caught the toilet leak before you had to replace the subfloor too.<br /><br />I can't count the times I've run into a big problem thinking it was going to be a little job. I lost count on this house alone.<br /><br />I love the tile you've selected. Laying tile is one job I haven't tackled myself yet. If I found your floor I probably would have painted and stenciled before tackling tile. <br /><br />Ripping up the carpet and finding that a new subfloor was laid over the hardwood eliminating any option for a hardwood floor, or any other type of good flooring because any floor I wanted would have made it impossible to open the doors in those rooms I let my son talk me into a vinyl flooring. Yes it looks like wood but I am having a love hate relationship with it. It's a pain to keep clean because of the grooves cut into the surface, everything gets in them. Also while they are supposed to lock in place my chair causes them to shift, the glue strips just aren't enough to deal with that kind of use. And as you said, it's vinyl. One day I may actually do what I considered and raise the doors up, a big job because we would have to make all new openings in the frames and then lay real wood down. <br /><br /><br />Can't wait to hear your tales of tiling.<br />Loishttp://lifeinaminimalistfarmhouse.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-25954193778119272742017-09-05T23:29:45.804-06:002017-09-05T23:29:45.804-06:00Well, don't get too excited about Lowe's c...Well, don't get too excited about Lowe's cutting the tile for you. I called back to confirm some details and they suddenly said that they wouldn't cut that many tiles, only one or two. Sooo... tomorrow I'm buying a wet saw (cheaper than renting.) Wish me luck and intact fingers!EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-77735257533490954942017-09-05T20:11:26.826-06:002017-09-05T20:11:26.826-06:00I am in awe of your intrepid spirit and great resu...I am in awe of your intrepid spirit and great results! Good for you, putting all of that physical effort into taking out the carpet and scraping up all of that gooey tar. I LOVE the new gray tile and hope you will share the "after" photo with us. <br /><br />I didn't know that Lowe's would cut things like tile, so that opens up a whole new world of possibilities. I've been thinking about replacing our kitchen backsplash with something prettier for a long time. (I think that project is about #468 on the list!) To answer your question, I am constantly getting into projects that turn out to be so much more complex than I originally thought. But hey, it keeps us out of the bars, right? Thanks for a great post. Eliza Crosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15983577132723952685noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-40982576510214455212017-09-05T12:58:54.647-06:002017-09-05T12:58:54.647-06:00I can't even imagine trying to get that stuff ...I can't even imagine trying to get that stuff up and leave the floor underneath in good enough condition to finish! I took a few serious gouges out of the sub floor. I'm not sure why I couldn't make the steam work. Maybe my little hand held steamer didn't produce enough of it or something. Anyhow, this experience has made me seriously reconsider the idea of pulling up the kitchen floor - which is in good shape, it's just ugly. Perhaps I'll just lay something down on top of that one! :-)EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-42208039154913718732017-09-05T09:52:30.258-06:002017-09-05T09:52:30.258-06:00Gah! The tar paper was almost the death of us in o...Gah! The tar paper was almost the death of us in our kitchen. We rented a wallpaper removal steamer, which eventually did the trick, but I sure wish I'd known about the carbonated water (though we were trying to preserve the hard wood floor underneath -- I wonder if the acid would have also damaged the wood?). Anyway, yes, totally in over our heads, wishing we'd just layed new flooring down on top. We did finally prevail, and the restored hard wood looks lovely! Best of luck on your bathroom project.Melissa | HerGreenLifehttp://hergreenlife.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-61087881025744949852017-09-04T18:16:22.751-06:002017-09-04T18:16:22.751-06:00Oh my goodness! I don't even know what most of...Oh my goodness! I don't even know what most of that means, but I'm duly impressed. I saw an article the other day about a woman who built an entire house. She had no previous experience, she just taught herself watching YouTube videos! It's pretty amazing how much one can learn online. Of course there is a flip side... you can also find competing & conflicting instructions & recommendations on just about everything! EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-15651142421787279522017-09-04T18:14:16.529-06:002017-09-04T18:14:16.529-06:00I wore a mask the whole time I was tearing it out,...I wore a mask the whole time I was tearing it out, and kept the fans & a/c off, and kept the bathroom door closed. So hopefully if there was any asbestos I didn't spread it around!EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-75444028921432944822017-09-04T15:53:34.016-06:002017-09-04T15:53:34.016-06:00Yes, my first thought was, "Oh no, I hope you...Yes, my first thought was, "Oh no, I hope you didn't have asbestos!". I didn't know you were supposed to keep things damp, and I hope that did the trick!<br /><br />I think I mentioned before that our bathroom was also carpeted (actually, our 1/2 bath still is .... someday ... ). I think that it's not just the "easy" solution but the "cheap" solution--but it still grosses me out!!!!!!!!!Krisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-52466076027485790212017-09-04T15:08:28.431-06:002017-09-04T15:08:28.431-06:00Well done you for getting down to it! Some weeks a...Well done you for getting down to it! Some weeks ago I had problems with the toilet flushing - why??????? I don't recall my childhood home ever having any toilet parts need replacing! Anyhoos....off to Googleland I went and discovered it was the syphon that needed replacing. I decided 'no plumber for me'.....and proceeded to take the close coupled cistern off the wall. This was relatively easy and so should the installation of my fancy duo-flush syphon be. However, I need one or two minor parts to replace worn parts and big homestores don't sell the little bits so I need a plumber's merchant. Only they aren't open when I finish work! Oy! That word says it all! I'm fed up of flushing with buckets of water and having a towel on the floor to catch the excess!!! I'm off a couple of days this week so hope to restore toilet to original condition sometime soon. We women are mighty diy champs when we put our minds to it!Gestalt Girlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14673690324143367225noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-88318684917721661302017-09-04T00:15:03.103-06:002017-09-04T00:15:03.103-06:00Oh my! That sounds like quite a project. I was a b...Oh my! That sounds like quite a project. I was a bit concerned about asbestos with ripping out the old floor, but the fact that it was vinyl and not linoleum means it's less likely there was any - though I think some old tar papers contained it. Anyhow, they say to keep things damp to avoid it getting airborne, and my soda water method certainly did that!<br /><br />I've gotta say, even with the bathroom a torn up mess, it feels much cleaner in there without the disgusting carpet. Can't wait to get the tile in there. I'm sure once I do I'll want to start working on the rest of the room, but hopefully the rest won't be such an enormous project... maybe?<br /><br />Now I'm off to do some research on toilet flanges...<br />EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-20746873605201456302017-09-04T00:08:22.854-06:002017-09-04T00:08:22.854-06:00The ick factor with the carpet was pretty high. Bu...The ick factor with the carpet was pretty high. But, having experienced first hand how much work it was to get that old floor out of there, I guess I can understand why someone would take the easy way out and just carpet over it. But still...<br /><br />Anyhow, the guy at the tile store let me come into the back room and test out the wet saw, so I'm much less freaked out about it than I was. Many years ago I knew a guy who cut off half of his hand with a table saw, and ever since I've an irrational fear of power tools. But the fact that the blade doesn't have teeth made me much less afraid of the thing.<br /><br />Thanks for the well wishes, I think I need all the luck I can get on this one!<br />EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-61497491009261722172017-09-03T23:03:50.154-06:002017-09-03T23:03:50.154-06:00Oh this is our life. We are currently in a never e...Oh this is our life. We are currently in a never ending spiral that was replace the upstairs and stairs flooring that turned into scraping all of the (asbestos containing) popcorn ceiling, retexturing, painting, installing flooring, and now building a new banister since the old one won't fit since we had to cut the stair treads to work with the wood stairnoses. It seriously never ends! Good luck with the tile project! We installed wood-look tile throughout the downstairs and I LOVE IT!!! Tile + cats is the best :)Megynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09237520120571515528noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-8778272913043913772017-09-03T21:05:45.844-06:002017-09-03T21:05:45.844-06:00Seriously, who puts carpet in a bathroom? I'm ...Seriously, who puts carpet in a bathroom? I'm horrified.<br />It will be a lot of work, but you won't regret it -- we have porcelain tile in the entire house (it's very hot where I live) and it's so easy to clean, resistant and waterproof. The one you picked looks gorgeous! Don't be afraid of the wet saw, the damn tile spacers are harder to use than it, and buy about 10-15% more tile than you think you'll need; both in case you break some and also as replacement if you need it in the future. Good luck!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7685979597473858413.post-78108421263597407352017-09-03T18:22:58.939-06:002017-09-03T18:22:58.939-06:00Ooooo, thanks for the tip - I'll have to do so...Ooooo, thanks for the tip - I'll have to do some research on that. <br /><br />But... the whole project just got slightly more complicated. When I called Lowes to confirm some details for the tile cutting and they informed me that they'll only do one or two tiles - not a whole project. Soooo.... now I'm signed up for a class at a local tile store - apparently they'll help you with the layout as well as teach you how to use the wet saw and do everything else. They also rent the saws. Their tile is slightly more expensive than at the big box stores, but I'm sorta thinking that the extra guidance will make it worthwhile. Oy! The fun just never ends...EcoCatLadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15704811319510740473noreply@blogger.com