I am preparing to redo a 1st floor breakfast room and also a 2nd floor ceramic tile bathroom directly above in the near future in my 90 year old home. The plaster breakfast room ceiling is damaged from previous bathroom leaks but is probably repairable and the walls are in good shape. The 2nd floor bathroom is mosaic tile set on a mud bed. The mud bed in the bathroom has a large crack from when the previous owner moved the toilet from a separate adjacent room to this part of the bath. Since the ceiling below is damaged and the setting bed above is cracked, I plan to replace all of the plumbing in the bathroom. My question is would this work be easier if I tore out the 1st floor ceiling or would you completely remove the mud bed and subfloor and do the plumbing from above? I the 1st floor ceiling is to remain intact, I might drywall on top of the plaster.
Thanks,
Stan
Replies
With one room right below the other, I would take out the ceiling and the floor and the plumbing.You could then make sure the joists are right for a tile floor and whatever. Essentially, it seems like more work; however, you might find that at the end of the project, you have actually saved time, done a better job, and had an easier project. You may not even spend a whole lot more to do the job right.
My first guess is that it is better to take out the cieling instead of the mud bed, but tat is without seeing the mudbed and tile job, or the access to the room the cieling is in. You will need to protect two rooms from dust and debris damage, but more than likely, you need to get into the cieling anyways. It's still possible that you might end up doing both. Go cieling first.
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mud beds in many bathrooms fill the cavities between the floor joists. Access from below really isn't possible in these cases. Gotta dig it out!
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Or just ask the plumber if he's ok with working upside down. Some of 'em frown on that there. I'd pull the ceiling and the floor, reasons mentioned above.
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