Hey diy,
I have an older house, built in 1939, that doesn't have a shower. it has two bathrooms, one on the main floor and one upstairs.
>neither bathroom has an exhaust fan
>both bathrooms have poor electrical placement. Upstairs has a light switch next to the tub, the main floor has an outlet.
>both tubs are placed squarely in front of a window.
My understanding was that back in the day, they didn't need an exhaust fan as they would just crack the window when they were taking a bath.
My question to you diy: is it possible to install a shower in these bathrooms, or am I doomed to only take baths?
If it is possible, what all needs to be done?
>>959141
Here is a picture of the outlet next to the tub on the main floor.
>>959142
Damn it, I can't post a picture upright. My apologies to all those breaking their necks trying to look at these.
Yes, but you're going to have to gut them to at least remove or shrink those windows and accommodate additional plumbing for the shower head and shower surround (DIY cheap --> remove the tub entirely and buy a $300 fiberglass tub and shower surround). Adding an exhaust fan is trivial but you'll need one around 100 cfm.
Well you can start by getting your pictures correct so we can see what the hell you're talking about
>>959141
Yes you can have a shower. My personal plan would be to remove some of the wall surrounding the tub, install the new shower valve and piping, then install backer board and tile. You can put a curtain in front of the window and figure out how to install the shower curtain itself. Replace the outlet with a gfci outlet for code (and safety, I hear) if you can given its placement. I'd seriously consider rewiring the bathroom with 12/2 20amp service, especially if there's a woman using it so she can use a hair dryer and curling iron at the same time with the lights on.
>>959150
When using your phone take the pic, then take a screenshot of the pic. Upload the screenshot, not the actual pic
>>959150
thanks and sorry, first time trying to post from this ipad and it flips my image. i tried to correct it before hand when i posted the outlet and it didnt flip that time.
$40
Problem solved
http://www.jrsmedical.com/NC28324-Economy-Hand-Held-Shower-Head-1-3-8-1-3-p/118001hj4.htm?gclid=CP_MjOaNtMsCFQqoaQod2kANHg
>>959147
by shrink, do you mean cutting out the lower 3/4 of the window, leaving just a small rectangular window at the top of supposed fiberglass tub and shower surround like this picture? what would i need to do to water proof it?
>>959147
also, is it possible to replace the window with glass block and tile the rest of the bathroom, or is this asking for trouble? my main concern is mold
>>959151
havent had that problem yet but thats a good idea. a problem im running into is that the wiring in the house does not gave a dedicated green ground wire. it uses that old armoured cable with the ground inside the sheathing ( i believe its called BX cable? i could be wrong). can i still install a gfci without that dedicated ground cable?
>>959155
this is a good idea. im still curious about the potential mold issue. even when we take baths, the whole rooms fogs up and there is condensation on that walls. cracking the window helps a little, but since its winter, its gets pretty cold quick.
>>959163
Do you own the house or are you renting?
If renting how long will you be there?
>>959156
Yes. Otherwise you have a very good chance of splash eventually compromising the wall.
Source: I grew up in a house built in the 40s, someone converted it to a shower without reframing the windows and the wall rotted out. Once it's a proper height you really need not worry about sealing it per se, other than caulking I suppose.
But it is definitely worth to do this properly unless again you want water pissing all over your wall and rotting it out. It is also much easier to install the plumbing with the wall and tub removed.
>>959166
I own the house. bought it last December
Also, what do you guys think about coming in through the wall behind the bathroom to install the shower head plumbing?
Here is a picture of the room directly behind the bathroom. That white panel there is right in front of the bath tub, and when you take it off, the plumbing is exposed. Could I just cut out a section of the wall all the way up to where the shower head would be, then cover it up with a larger panel door like the one picture?
Or is this hack work that is frowned upon? I honestly thought it was a smart idea since you could always access the plumbing without destroying the wall.
>>959175
Picture of panel removed
>>959175
>>959176
Close up of plumbing guts
Not too terribly hard to install but it will involve removing some drywall on the back side and drilling through on the front. Looks like you'll need to add some framing at the top of the shower to support the pipe sticking up. Remove the wall and do everything then drywall over it. No need for that small door it looks tacky. Set everything up and use it for a few weeks to make sure it doesn't leak. Once you confirm its all good, drywall it back up. Also you'll need to tile the shower walls to prevent them from rotting now that your shower water will be getting everywhere. You'll need to remove the bathroom drywall around the tub and replace it with some sort of cement backer board. Use water sealant to prevent water from coming through, tile over it, or something like that. Gonna be some work for sure but it's not the end of the world.
>>959157
I did exactly this, and if the bathroom is small you'll basically be turning it into a closet if you remove the window. But you need to vent the humidity, so if you block the window you'll need to install a vent. Not that hard.
Make sure you install the shower head high enough to be practical
>>959161
Sorry brother, I can't tell you, I'm not an electrician. I can run new circuits, change outlets, etc., but I've only worked with Romex connected to breakers, and basically just "new work."
Not the best pic but most houses have a vent in the attic you could route the exhaust to. On my phone now so I tried to photoshop something, but you get the idea
>>959193
how difficult would running that flex duct from the main floor, to the attic above the 2nd floor?
>>959201
There are options, you can go horizontally out the side of the house if you have to, or run vertically up out the attic. Without seeing your house it's almost impossible to say. Vertically would probably involve wall cavities and creative ducting, and horizontal might as well, but it's still not as hard as it sounds.
>>959161
Putting a GFCI outlet where there is no ground is adequate. GFCI's in bathrooms or kitchens is required.
>>959161
Romex now will come with a bare ground in it, unless you buy it without a ground. You really only see a loose ground in houses where a ground was added later. If your wire has a bare wire in the pack that's a ground. But just because there is a ground wire doesn't mean the house is grounded.
If you put in a fan, make sure there's a fucking screen in it. Whoever remodeled my house before I bought it didn't put one in the second floor, and my bathroom is constantly full of stinkbugs and whatever else wants to be warm.
>>959192
A ground is a ground, you can make it work.
