When a bath has seen better days, the majority of men and women believe replacing it’s the smartest choice, but when additional variables are included, your ideas about replacement could alter. To start with, the expense of this new bathtub is simply the start. An extremely fundamental 5-foot enameled steel bathtub may cost less than $150, but if you include the expense of a contractor, demolition, removal, landfill fees, tilers, and also a plumber, and the entire price of the project skyrockets.
Instead, relining a bathtub with an acrylic lining is expensive, and it only covers up the issue. At costs equivalent to or more than trimming, bathtub liners aren’t the deal option. But they’re always less costly than a complete replacement, and unlike trimming, you can’t worry about the end wearing away. But in contrast to replacement and relining, refinishing your bathtub starts to seem pretty great.
The Advantages of Refinishing a bathtub
Possibly the very best thing about trimming a bathtub is your bathtub stays in position. With house remodeling, even when you alter something, something adjoining is changed. It has the domino effect, therefore that it stands to reason that if you’re able to keep your tub set up to refinish it, you won’t encounter this horrible, twisted, cascading impact of vinyl surround, flooring, cement board, plumbing fittings, and even more, being awakened and in need of repair.
Whenever you’ve got a bathtub refinishing by specialists, or you recoat the bathtub yourself, all of the work is completed onsite. Surrounding materials such as vinyl, floors, and all the other components are masked off and abandoned in position.
Do-It-Yourself Bathtub Refinishing
Do-it-yourself bathtub remodeling is much cheaper than hiring the experts, however you’ll get a poor finish that’s more inclined to peel. Rather than using a spray gun, then use a brush or small roller. You are able to purchase DIY kits which have a bit of sandpaper with hardener, latex gloves, steel wool, brush, cleaning solution, cleaner/thinner, and safety goggles. The sandpaper comes in white but may be tinted (tint not included).
Professional Bathtub Refinishing
Professional bathtub refinishers may predict their procedure reglazing, and also the particular steps they use can differ marginally, but the basic procedure is more or less regular.
- Clean the tub thoroughly and eliminate all caulking.
- Mask round the tub and cover areas not to be refinished. Refinishing technicians are highly conscious of how they’re in a personal residence, so that they require precautions to minimize overspray and additional clutter. Technicians set down drop cloths and covers over cabinets and plumbing fittings.
- Eliminate the tub faucet, drain fittings, along with other hardware.
- Establish a ventilation fan to port overspray and odor out.
- Gently sand the whole tub to roughen the first end. Sometimes, the bathtub may also be etched with acid to assist the new coat adhere.
- Vacuum that the tub to eliminate debris in the sanding point.
- Fill cracked, scratched, or worn places, then sand smooth. When there’s extensive damage, the restorer may cost minimal additional fees because of this.
- Employ around three coats of primer using a sprayer, and let it dry.