I've posted part of this in the bathroom forum as well but since it fits in the small house forum (900 sq feet downstairs plus 200 for the dormer)

Before:

after new siding:

rear view:

rear view with new siding:

I don't have a "before" shot of the original patio but here it is after being screened in. I've posted pics in the porch forum to discuss problems with water flowing into the porch from the sidewalk. the porch sits lower than the sidewalk and gardens in the backyard.

You can see in this photo how there is nothing to stop rain water from flowing straight down the sidewalk and into the porch.

This cottage has a small hideous bathroom that needs to be totally redone. This is the only bathroom in the house.

The previous owner had a tub with a handheld shower attachment but not a true shower.

Beautiful blue tub with pink tiles that are falling off:

storage space adjacent to tub... is as deep as the tub so it's impossible to reach things in the back of these shelves:

space under the sink & counter is totally wasted. it's very shallow and right now only is space for the plumbing. I'd like to
somehow take advantage of this space. since there is very little storage in this house I need to make the most of all the space I have.

Under the counter that is behind the tub in this photo is the area that houses the well pump. so the piece of counter
has to be removable to get to the pump. That is also why the "doors" that were in front of the plumbing is also removable.

the open space in the "wall" above the bathtub faucet is problematic.... it needs to be walled in somehow so I can have a shower but we also need to retain access to the well pump.

the toilet doesn't sit flush with the floor but sits higher by an inch or so and I have no idea why there are no tiles around the toilet base:

along the wall that isn't shown above are two small pipes coming up out of the floor that I'm assuming are for hot and cold water. Above that sits a small mirrored medicine cabinet. So as small as this bathroom is, it would be possible to put in a narrow second sink. It's not necessary for now but might be nice to have in the future.

This is what makes the bathroom worth redoing:

I have had the roof replaced so the leaks should be done with. Most of the windows have been replaced and the original ones that remain are in good shape.

Darn, forgot to take a picture of the storage cabinet that is above the tub/shower and runs the entire length of that wall. The ceilings are very low so having these cabinets over the tub makes it very claustrophobic and anyone over 5'7" wouldn't be able to stand in the shower.
First things first, these cabinets have to be removed.

I can't afford to gut everything and put in the bathroom I"d like because other parts of the house (particularly the kitchen) also needs major work.

any suggestions for me?

how to wall in that open area that is above the back of the tub?
tile or shower surround?
I'm thinking beadboard for the walls in the bathroom.

how about front door color suggestions? I'm thinking something vibrant.. I bought some flowers today that were a pretty rosey pink color...
Since the screen door obscures the majority of the front door I'm thinking they should be painted the same color.

Thanks in advance & thanks for looking.

Susan

I don't have advice, but I think you have an adorable home, worth the time and effort it will take to make it more comfortable and beautiful. Best of luck!

If you can shorten the counter an inch or so, and build a frame to hold a piece of glass, I think that would work for the open space at the end of the tub, and still keep an open feel to the area. I'd try to find thick safety glass--watch craigslist for glass panels, or an old shower door, that can be cut to fit at an auto glass shop.

Drawer slides or trash pull-out type slides would work in your deep cabinet. My mother's bath has the same storage, and she just keeps her extra paper products (big packages of TP, and paper towels) in there. You could also store small items in baskets, and slide them out when needed.

Don't know how you feel about yellow, but I think a buttery-to-lemony color would look good on the front door, especially if you have any yellow accessories inside. Oh, yeah! Paint that tile yellow to go with the blue tub! ;)

Welcome to Smaller Homes--keep us posted.

I hate to say this without knowing more, but it really, really sounds like that bathroom needs to be gutted. Ceramic tile doesn't fall off the wall without a reason, usually moisture behind it, or if the house has shifted and the walls moved a bit.

If you took out the tub and put in a shower, you could have a decent sized closet at the end. But if you really like having a bathtub, I'd just move the tub down to the end of the wall. The drain probably goes right over to that toilet drain, somewhat like this.

Is that just debris under the sink or is there any rot under there?

I bet the sink used to be in the place where the two pipes are coming out of the floor, and someone decided to move it over to the counter. It looks like a wall sink that doesn't really fit on the counter.

I don't know why the toilet would be higher than the floor unless the plumber put the drain pipe in on Monday after a holiday weekend. The older I get, the more I appreciate a higher toilet, so I would probably build a base around whatever that is under the base of the toilet and tile it with whatever you put on the floor. However, if I were younger, I'd want it flush with the floor if it's just a matter of putting in the right pipe.

Is your well pump in the cabinet behind the tub?

Are you going to be doing this work all by yourself or will you have any help?

Not much :) but I obviously need to learn.

>If you can replace the tiles that are missing, you can >paint them yourself with an epoxy paint kit. I painted >ours for ap. $35.00, a couple of year ago, and it has >held up very well.

I had no idea....it never occured to me. That would be simple. I have all the missing tiles but they are plastic rather ceramic...Would this still work?

>>If you can shorten the counter an inch or so, and build a frame to hold a piece of glass, I think that would work for the open space at the end of the tub, and still keep an open feel to the area. I'd try to find thick safety glass--watch craigslist for glass panels, or an old shower >>door, that can be cut to fit at an auto glass shop.

Great idea. I love it!

>Drawer slides or trash pull-out type slides would work in >your deep cabinet.

good idea. I'll definitely look into those.

>Don't know how you feel about yellow, but I think a >buttery-to-lemony color would look good on the front door,

Hadn't thought about yellow.. will have to do a mock up and see how it looks.

Thanks so much.

Susan

>Wow, beautiful view!

Thanks! That's what sold me on the house. the house was originally a small two room fishing shack that got added on to... it's not layed out well inside but I'll put up with it for the view.

>>Is the house on a pier & beam foundation? If so, how high is the crawl space under it? It doesn't look like much, but if the subfloor is plywood, you can do all your >>plumbing from inside the house anyway.

The back of the house is on cement (so, kitchen and bathroom) and no crawl and the front of the house has a very small crawl space. Any one going in there would have to be very very slender! And not claustrophobic!

>>I hate to say this without knowing more, but it really, really sounds like that bathroom needs to be gutted. Ceramic tile doesn't fall off the wall without a reason, usually moisture behind it, or if the house has shifted >>and the walls moved a bit.

What I should have mentioned is those delightful pink tiles are plastic not ceramic. I just think they have fallen off due to age and neglect.

>>If you took out the tub and put in a shower, you could have a decent sized closet at the end. But if you really like having a bathtub, I'd just move the tub down to the end of the wall. The drain probably goes right over to >>that toilet drain, somewhat like this.

I did give the idea of taking the tub out and just having a nice shower but right now am leaning away from that. But a larger closet is certainly tempting. There is very little closet /storage space in this house.

>Is that just debris under the sink or is there any rot under there?
>

it's what's left of the old insulation. I just had to have a bunch of the pipes going to the well pump replaced... I still have to get rid of the rest of the insulation and clean the area up. Thank goodness for a nice neighbor who came over and did the majority of that work. He was a blessing! It's so nice to have running water again!

>>I bet the sink used to be in the place where the two pipes are coming out of the floor, and someone decided to move it over to the counter. It looks like a wall sink >>that doesn't really fit on the counter.

I bet you're right. I don't have my measurements with me right now but that is a very narrow counter.

>Is your well pump in the cabinet behind the tub?

Yes. I wish there was a better place to put it.

>Are you going to be doing this work all by yourself or >will you have any help?

I'll be having to hire help. I'm not knowledgeable about most of this work so it'll be much better if I hire a lot of it to be done.

Thanks for your help.

Susan

I'm 99% sure that tiled area was never meant to be used for shower then. What does the wall look like behind the tiles that have fallen off, especially those at the bottom of the wall next to the tub? That's where water would do the most damage, mold, etc.

We have changed a bathtub to shower in a bathroom with a concrete slab but it wasn't easy. The concrete had to be jack-hammered out. So that might not be in your budget right now. Blast those people for building such a wonky bathroom!

Is there any way you can make a drawing of the room, locating the plumbing that can't move? Include those two pipes in the floor too. If you have a desktop computer, you might be able to use the free Ikea planner software, but a rough drawing on paper or MS Paint with measurements written on it will work too.

the building you see beside the porch is my neighbor.

My garage was demolished when a 200 year old tree fell on it. Rebuilding it is on the "to do" list but you can see how long my "to do" list is! Being out of town so much I haven't been able to rebuild. Now that I'm going to finally get to stay home, I'll be able to rebuild my garage! Yea!

I'll take a picture of the base of the toilet.

I did take a few other pics to add to this thread but forgot the camera at the cottage last night.

Susan