Remodeling:
Both an exciting & intimidating process!
Here are a few tips from a master plumber to help you along your way!
Trying to decide what to replace?
The answer to this depends on the extent of the remodel, and what piping you have in your house. One of the big things I often see is people who take on a house that is 40-50 years old, remove the drywall, and put all new surface things in. The house looks amazing when they are done, but the old water and drain pipes were left there leaving the possibility of major issues that will surface in due time.
While you’re doing that… think about this too!
If you are removing drywall and the flooring, there is no better time to replace the hot and cold water pipes as well as the drainage pipes. (If you happen to have PVC drain pipes, or have already repiped the hot and cold water lines, then this obviously does not matter to you!)
Replacing the pipes during this type of remodeling makes it cheaper because the plumber does not need to worry about tearing anything up as it is already gone. If you wait till after the remodel and then have to replace pipes, it will take more time, and depending on how everything is laid out, you may have to remove flooring or drywall that you just finished installing.
Upgrades can vary… $-$$$
Not every upgrade is that high volume of work though. Oftentimes homeowners are looking into a minor remodel such as a kitchen, or a bathroom. In these cases, there are a couple of much cheaper upgrades you can do at the time to really help yourself and your plumbing, without spending an arm and a leg.
Kitchen Remodels
Kitchen remodels make the house looks so much better, but the remodel is not cheap. Many people decide to reuse old plumbing to save on the cost. Sometimes this can work, sometimes it does not. Let’s take garbage disposal for instance. The majority of the time, cheap disposal was installed, and many of these tend to rust, jam, and leak.
Reinstalling your old disposal can greatly increase the chances that it leaks onto your brand new kitchen cabinet floor and ruin it. Now you can figure that you will be paying the plumber to install the disposal whether it is new or old, so the only increase of cost is of the disposal itself. It is very much worth spending the extra $200-300 for nice disposal unless you already had one.
Considering Reusing Old Appliances or Fixtures?
Some people will save their old faucets and toilets, this really depends on what you have, and the condition it is in. It is often best to ask the plumber’s advice on keeping the old faucets, they will have a good idea of the benefits vs. the risks.
Lastly, if you are replacing the tile in your tub or shower, it is usually a good idea to replace the valve in the wall. It is the easiest and best time to do it. (Unless you are lucky enough to have a quality one in good shape already installed!)
Hopefully, these tips and insightful bits from Our personal “fix-it-Felix” will help you out when it comes to remodeling!
