How To Remove A Bathtub Video

How to Demo a Bathroom From Top to Bottom

We'll tell you how to get your bathroom down to four walls and then y'all tin build it dorsum upwardly the way you desire.

A bathroom stripped of the bathtub and sink.

A DIY Guide to Bathroom Sabotage

Outdated tile getting you down? Want to trade in your tub for a sleek open shower? Before you can get the bathroom you want, you need to get rid of the one you have. If you're hiring a pro to handle the remodel, making your bathroom demolition a DIY chore is a great way to save some money on your project budget. It's strenuous work, but it doesn't have any special skills. Most homeowners can accomplish it using uncomplicated tools you probably already own.

Footstep ane: Prep the Bathroom

While bath demolition is a project that's well within the ability of any DIYer, it's a large undertaking. To set yourself upwards for success in the long-run, you'll want to cheque off a few prep items before you get to tearing things out. From the tools you need to shutting off utilities, we've got you covered.

A dual-sink bathroom with items on the sink and shelves.

Get together Your Tools

While there are a few items that you may demand to rent from your local Home Depot or Lowe's, most bathroom demolition tools, supplies and safe gear can be found in a standard tool kit.

/////Tools	/////Supplies & Safety Gear
Pliers	Rags
Chisel	Saucepan
Jig Saw	WD-40
Pry Bar	Duct Tape
Hammer	Confront Mask
Shop-Vac	Work Gloves
Utility Knife	Sturdy Boots
Screwdriver	Plastic Sheets
Reciprocating Saw	Safety Goggles
Adjustable Wrench	Long Pants and Sleeves

Clear Out the Little Stuff

Completely clean out your vanity, linen cupboard, shower, and shelves or other storage areas before you start your bathroom demo. This is a good opportunity to practise some low-cal bathroom organisation, so throw out what you no longer employ and donate anything in practiced condition. Move whatever y'all're keeping to another room.

Remove Annihilation on the Walls

Next, take down your mirror to forbid harm while the hammers are swinging. If at that place are any shelves or cabinets to remove, only you plan to reuse them in your new blueprint, tear them off carefully and store them somewhere out of the way.

Shut Off Utilities

It's almost time to kickoff the real work of gutting your bathroom. Just outset let's make the room safe to work in.

Close off ability to the bath by finding the right switch in your breaker box and flipping it to the 'off' position. Your billow box should take a excursion map showing which switch controls the bath, only if not, yous'll have to use good old trial-and-mistake.

Depending on how your plumbing is prepare, there are a couple dissimilar ways to shut off the water supply.

If yous have a manifold supply organisation:

Discover the manifold lines near your main water supply line.
Identify the line for the bath. Each line should be clearly marked.
Apply the manifold key to turn the valve on the bath's line to the 'off' position.

Keep in Mind

If you can't turn the primal, don't force information technology. Too much strength tin break the valve and flood your bathroom. Instead, turn off water to your whole firm at the main water line.

If you have copper piping:

Find the valve for your sink under the vanity and turn information technology off.
Turn off the toilet valve, located on the wall or floor behind the toilet.
Observe the access panel for your shower line, usually located in the wall behind the shower. Turn the valve to the 'off' position.

If yous tin't access the valves for your bathroom fixtures, are unable to find the bathroom line on your manifold system, or have any other bug, turn the principal h2o supply valve to the 'off' position to close off water to your entire house.

Drain Water from Faucets and Toilet

To prevent a small-calibration inundation while you lot're working, drain any water that's left in your pipes after shutting off the water supply.

Turn on all faucets in the bathroom until h2o stops running.

Flush the toilet to drain the tank and bowl. Apply a small loving cup or sponge to go rid of any water left behind. You can also use a wet/dry vac for water left afterward y'all flush.

Rent a Dumpster

Before you break out the tools, rent a residential dumpster to clean up as you work. Betwixt your sink, vanity, tub, toilet, tile and backing, gutting a bathroom will exit you with way more than mess than you can set at the adjourn. And even if you do, your trash service won't take information technology.

If you're not upward for making several trips to the dump yourself, yous'll demand a coil off container to avert becoming that house with a toilet pulling double duty as a lawn ornamentation.

Check Dumpster Availability Near Y'all

Footstep 2: Tear Out Sink and Vanity

Time to start the real demo work. The merely tools yous'll demand for this step are a saucepan, an adaptable wrench and a utility knife. However, full-sized vanities tin can be very heavy. So information technology might not be a bad idea to have a friend on-hand to help.

Get a more detailed walk-through of this stride in our DIY vanity removal guide

How to Demolish a Bath Vanity:

Put a saucepan under the sink bleed to catch any water in the bleed trap.
Use an adjustable wrench to unscrew the nuts around the u-shaped section of piping, called the P-trap, under your sink. Dump any water caught in the P-trap into your bucket.
Unscrew the nuts where the sink's h2o supply lines come through the wall.
Check behind the sink for any bolts or brackets connecting it to the wall. Remove any that you find and lift the sink out.
If your sink rests on the vanity, pull it straight upwardly and out. Sinks tin can exist heavy, then accept a helper on standby.
Unscrew bolts connecting the vanity to the wall or use your utility knife to cutting through whatever caulk. Pull the vanity out.
Toss the debris in your dumpster so you have room to work safely on the next steps.

Step 3: Remove the Toilet

Tearing out a toilet is slightly more involved than removing your vanity, but information technology's still a straightforward task for a DIY bathroom demolition.

You'll need an adjustable wrench and a utility pocketknife. If your toilet has been in place for a long time, yous may too need some WD-40 and a socket wrench.

Get a more detailed walk-through of this step in our 1-stop guide to removing a toilet

A man lifts a toilet tank from the bowl.

How to Remove a Toilet:

Find the threaded pipe located nether the toilet tank, called the inlet supply pipage. Unscrew the pipe from the tank and from the supply line valve on the floor or wall behind the toilet.
Lift the tank from the toilet base and ready information technology aside if your toilet is a 2-piece model.
Remove the nuts and bolts attaching the base to the floor with your adjustable wrench. If they're stuck, spray on some WD-40 and use a socket wrench to ratchet them loose.
Cut through whatsoever caulk effectually the toilet base of operations with a utility pocketknife and lift the toilet off the flange bolts.
Use your utility knife to scrape away the wax around the drain flange in the flooring. Unscrew the flange and remove it.
Stuff rags in the bleed hole to keep sewer gases from filling the bath while you finish your demo piece of work.
Acquit everything to the dumpster to make room for the side by side task.

Bathroom tile being chiseled off a wall.

Stride 4: Have Down the Tile

This is the most strenuous chore in whatever bath demo, but luckily it's non complicated. This step will probably take a full day, and you should never rush the piece of work. Take breaks whenever you demand so you tin stay focused — and safe.

Before yous start, prep the room by duct-taping plastic sheeting over all vents, registers and the door.

Go a more detailed walk-through of this stride in our how-to guide to DIY tile removal

Safety Tip

If your home was congenital before 1978, test your bathroom walls for lead before starting tile sabotage. If pb is nowadays, hire a pro to avert exposing your family to extremely harmful dust.

How to Demo Bath Tile:

Use a hammer and chisel to flake abroad a vertical line of tile, starting at the rounded tiles on the edge of your shower.
Do the same in a horizontal line for the tile along top of your shower.
Utilize a reciprocating saw to cut through the exposed drywall, being careful not to cut into studs.
Insert a pry bar into these seams and begin prying down sections of the tile and bankroll.
Piece of work your way around the room using this process for all tiled areas.
Brand sure you always have firm footing and that y'all know where any helpers are before you lot swing your hammer.

Keep in Heed

Take frequent trips to the dumpster while y'all piece of work so yous don't gamble tripping on loose tile. Use a Shop-Vac to suck upward excess dust to avoid a slipping hazard.

Stride five: Tear Out the Bathtub or Shower

Your DIY bath sabotage is almost complete. All that remains is to get rid of the bathtub or shower. The skilful news is that, while this step may require assistance for the heavy lifting, it'southward fairly simple. And then get your toolkit ready — you'll need a lot of them to complete this step.

Become more than detailed walk-throughs in our guides to DIY bathtub removal and shower removal

A bathtub frame is exposed before the liner is removed.

How to Remove a Bathtub:

Grab your screw driver, utility knife, drywall saw, jig saw and pry bars and go to piece of work.

Utilise a drywall saw to cut through the drywall surrounding the tub to a height of almost 8 inches, if information technology didn't already come down in the last step. Be careful not to cut into studs.
Unscrew whatsoever screws securing the tub to wall studs.
Cut through any caulk betwixt the tub and floor with your utility knife.
Pry the tub a few inches abroad from the wall.
Use a jigsaw to cut the tub into two pieces. If your tub will fit through your doors in one slice, you lot can skip this step, merely cut information technology volition make it easier and safer to carry.
Work with a helper to pry each piece up and pull it out.
Carry each piece to the dumpster.

How to Remove a Shower:

Gather your wrench, pliers, screwdrivers, pry bars, utility knife, reciprocating or jig saw and a hammer and become ready to make a mess.

Use a screwdriver to remove hinges on the shower door, then set the door bated.
Unscrew or pry out fasteners holding the door frame in place, and so pull the frame off. You lot may need your utility pocketknife to cut through caulk.
Detach fixtures like the shower caput and arm, water control knobs or levers, drain covers, lather holders or towel racks.
Cutting your shower walls into manageable pieces using your reciprocating or jig saw. For tile showers, pry off rows of tiles in club to cut each wall in half. For fiberglass showers, cut each wall at the corner and base and then you lot take 3 pieces and a flooring.
Pry the shower floor loose and remove.

What Comes After a Bath Demolition?

Now that the hard piece of work of demolishing your bathroom is done, it'due south time to have a really expert stretch — and probably a nap. When you wake up, don't forget to plough the water back on!

Need some help planning your renovation? Cheque out our advice for fugitive common mistakes.

What Practice You Think?

What was the hardest part of your demolition? We're listening. Head over to Twitter or Facebook,

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