How to arrange bathroom

Question

Hi BP,

I'm renovating a bathroom for my rental. What are some good ideas to have it effective for a low cost? What size tiles, which color? How to elevate this bathroom for the lowest price?

Drew Sygit · Answer

It all depends on how much the property is worth and what rents are!

A Class A property: I'd recommend large tiles of color/design that will age well.

Can often use same tile on the tub/shower surround, but can also go different color/design.

• Biggest challenge is how to replace a broken tile in the future?Manufacturers change colors/designs quickly these days and very difficult to match of the shelf.If you buy a few extra tiles for this, where do you store them?We've tried at the property and tenants often either break them or throw them away! 😒
• Manufacturers change colors/designs quickly these days and very difficult to match of the shelf.
• If you buy a few extra tiles for this, where do you store them?We've tried at the property and tenants often either break them or throw them away! 😒
• We've tried at the property and tenants often either break them or throw them away! 😒

Biggest challenge is how to replace a broken tile in the future?

• Manufacturers change colors/designs quickly these days and very difficult to match of the shelf.
• If you buy a few extra tiles for this, where do you store them?We've tried at the property and tenants often either break them or throw them away! 😒
• We've tried at the property and tenants often either break them or throw them away! 😒

Manufacturers change colors/designs quickly these days and very difficult to match of the shelf.

If you buy a few extra tiles for this, where do you store them?

• We've tried at the property and tenants often either break them or throw them away! 😒

We've tried at the property and tenants often either break them or throw them away! 😒

Class B property: definitely sue same large tiles on floor & walls

Class C & D: do NOT use tiles on floor! Tenants HIGHLY likely to drop something on them, cracking them.

Use LVP

Can still use large tiles on the tub/shower surround

Another thing we've done lately is if the tub is shot, we remove and just make it a shower.

Very few negatives from showings or tenants.

Harrison C. · Answer

Edouard, one add to the fan point above: put it on a humidity sensing switch, not a plain on/off. Tenants almost never run a bath fan long enough, and a $25 to $40 switch that turns it on by itself when the shower steams up does more against mold and peeling paint than any tile choice.

If the bathroom will be shared by more than one adult (roommates, or rooms rented separately), a few cheap things matter more than finishes: a second sink if the vanity wall fits one, since the morning line is the usual complaint; a privacy lock on the door; and a hook and a small shelf for each person so nobody's stuff ends up on the counter. That keeps a shared bath from turning into a weekly text thread.

Richard F. · Answer

Functionality, durability, and low maintenance should come long before cosmetics. Cast iron/porcelain tub such as Americast; Hardi Board backing for your tile surround AFTER replacing all associated plumbing...supply, shower valve, trap and waste (developing a leak from old pipes a year from now means you tear out all the new work to fix it); heavy gauge metal trap ans waste for the vanity, brass bodied lav and shower faucets like Moen; and a quality toilet with a 3 or 4 inch flush valve and 2 3/8 inch glazed trapway (for best flushing "power" and least restrictive flow to reduce "clogged toilet" calls). Quarter turn "ball" type valves for all fixture shutoffs, with braided stainless steel anti-burst flex lines. And a written policy that puts responsibility for blockages caused by tenant on them for the cost of the service call. Also avoid MDF or other particle board type lav base, as virtually any water leak that does occur will destroy them. Solid plywood boxes instead, and seal the inside bottom seams with clear silicone.

Redgy Saint-Germain · Answer

Hi Edouard, to your follow up question, in a rental I only tile where water actually hits. Tile the tub or shower surround up to the ceiling, or at least a foot above the showerhead, and leave the rest of the walls as drywall painted with a good bath paint in semi gloss. Full height tile on every wall costs a lot more in labor and won't get you a dollar more in rent.

For the floor I'd use a different tile than the walls. Go with a porcelain floor tile a shade or two darker, in a matte or textured finish, so it isn't slippery when wet and doesn't show every footprint. On the walls a plain white or light gray subway tile, or a 12 by 24 laid horizontal, is cheap, easy to find again when you need to patch a cracked piece, and never really looks dated. Buy an extra box of each and stash it for future repairs.

If the tub is in decent shape, have it reglazed instead of replaced. Then spend on what tenants touch every day: a solid vanity with a cultured marble or stone top, a good exhaust fan vented outside so you're not fighting mold, and a decent shower valve. Seal the grout and caulk with silicone.

Redgy

Chris Seveney · Answer

Do not use small tile, do not use anything fancy. You do not want to be relocating fixtures that is the biggest expense in renovating a bathroom. Also they will not know the difference between a $150 fixture and a $300 fixture. Do not over design it.

Noah Laker · Answer

Keep the layout exactly where it is, moving plumbing eats the whole budget fast. Use large light tile, 12x24 in a light gray or white, with matching grout so it looks bigger and hides wear, and add a big mirror and matte black fixtures for a cheap lift. Tradeoff is that light grout shows dirt faster in a rental, so seal it and pick a slightly darker floor tile. I manage 100 plus Airbnbs in Sacramento and the simple light, durable finish photographs best and holds up. Hope this helps.

M Edouard · Answer

Thank you! Tiles to the wall or only one wall? Same tiles on the floor and the wall or different tiles?

How to arrange bathroom

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