- Plaster dust is like glitter’s evil cousin—just when you think it’s gone, surprise, it’s back.
- Subway tile is a solid move. Hides a multitude of sins, especially in these old houses where “straight” is more of a suggestion.
- Plumbing... yeah, agree and disagree. Sometimes you get lucky and it’s just a valve swap, but other times, one pipe cracks and suddenly you’re on a first-name basis with the hardware store staff.
- For our last bathroom reno (1928 bungalow), we budgeted $10k but ended up closer to $14k. Most of that overage? Pipes. Always the pipes.
We did ours last year—1925 foursquare—and it was about $12k all in. Thought we’d save by keeping the original tub, but surprise, the plumbing behind it was a mess. Subway tile really does hide a lot, though. Plaster dust is still turning up in weird places...
That plaster dust is relentless, right? We did a mini reno on our 1940s bath—tried to keep costs down by doing demo ourselves, but I swear I’m still finding dust in my sock drawer. I totally get wanting to save the tub; sometimes those “hidden” issues just pop up and eat the budget. Subway tile was a smart call though. It’s classic and forgiving, especially when you’re working with old walls that aren’t exactly straight. You made it through—props for sticking with it!
Funny you mention subway tile—I actually went with hex tile for our place, just to keep a bit more of the original vibe. Subway’s classic, but I kinda like the quirks of old floors. Dust, though… that stuff’s eternal. Still sweeping it up months later.
Hex tile’s a solid choice—definitely gives off that vintage vibe. Did you go with the small mosaics or the bigger ones? I’ve noticed the grout lines on hex can be a pain to keep clean compared to subway, but it does look great.
