how much did your bathroom remodel run you (roughly)?

Haha, sounds familiar. Had a similar scenario myself - thought it'd be an easy swap to a low-flow toilet for eco-friendly points. But yeah, once we pulled it out, the subfloor was basically mulch. Ended up having to redo flooring, plumbing, and even reinforce some joists. It definitely added more than a few dollars (and days) to the original estimate.

On the bright side, I convinced the client to go with reclaimed tile and sustainable materials since we were already knee-deep in repairs. Turned out pretty amazing actually, and they're loving the eco-friendly bragging rights now.

I'd say all in all, probably ended up around $8-10k when we initially expected half that. Older homes always keep things interesting...

Went through something similar when we redid our upstairs bath. Started as just replacing some cracked tiles, but once we pulled them up, found water damage had eaten right through the subfloor and into the joists. Ended up sistering joists, redoing plumbing, and adding proper waterproofing. Original $3k budget ballooned to around $7k...but at least now we know it’s solid. Old houses always hide surprises.

We had a similar "fun" surprise when we tackled our master bath last year. Originally, it was just supposed to be cosmetic - new vanity, fresh paint, maybe some updated fixtures. But once the vanity came out, we discovered the plumbing behind it was a total mess. Pipes held together with duct tape and prayers, I swear. Ended up having to redo a chunk of plumbing and replace drywall that had gotten moldy from slow leaks we never even knew existed.

Budget-wise, we started around $4k and ended closer to $9k once all was said and done. Honestly though, as frustrating as it was at the time, I'm glad we caught it when we did. Now every time I brush my teeth without worrying about pipes bursting behind the wall, I count it as a win... Old houses definitely keep life interesting.

"Pipes held together with duct tape and prayers, I swear."

Haha, did we have the same plumber? When we redid ours, we found wiring that looked like spaghetti and insulation that was basically newspaper from the '60s. Started at around $5k, ended up closer to $11k once we fixed everything properly. But hey, isn't it weirdly satisfying knowing your bathroom isn't secretly plotting against you anymore? Old houses... gotta love 'em (or at least tolerate them).

Your story sounds painfully familiar - I've flipped a few older houses, and bathroom renos always seem straightforward until they're absolutely not. You start pulling tiles and suddenly you're staring at ancient plumbing held together by hope and rust. But honestly, even though the budget inevitably doubles (or triples...), that peace of mind when you finally shower without fearing a pipe burst is priceless. Hang in there; you're definitely not alone in the old-house struggle.