Bathroom Installation, Part 4

I had two goals for today's bathroom construction efforts: purchase every conceivable item I might need that would not fit in my car, and to lay the plywood for the floor. The purchasing needed to be done all at once so I could rent a truck once and be done with it, and in that I mainly succeeded. We got plywood, drywall, the tub, and the tub surround. I have drywall stacked under my bed and a tub that will live in my hallway for a few months.

The Home Depot guy helped load. I can't decide if this is because I bought so much at once that I earned the white-glove service or if he thought I looked like a weakling and took pity on me.

Unloading and hauling everything upstairs was exhausting, and then we ended up moving things multiple times to get them stored in the right places. The flooring took time but was ultimately satisfying because the change was more obvious.

We ripped out all the floor boards until we had joists. This is the part where you are working very carefully- if you step between those long boards, your foot will easily pass through the insulation and ceiling tiles into the room below.

We attached the thick 3/4" subfloor with glue and screws, and then topped it with the underlayment, which needed to be nailed down with about a hundred nails per sheet. We couldn't complete all the installation, since my father and I will need to install some plumbing before making everything permanent. But if I squint I can see how it will look like a room.

This was definitely a team effort. We had remote technical support from my father, who consulted with me repeatedly in the planning and sent helpful hand-drawn diagrams. My friend K, who is recovering from the flu, handled child care at his house, which kept the chaos at a manageable level at my house. E hauled heavy stuff up the stair for hours, and N and S hauled, sawed, drilled, and nailed like the pros that they practically are.

Stay tuned for the next installment in May.