Tub to Stand-Up Shower Full Bathroom Gut in Queens

This one was a full gut job from the ground up. We're talking stripped walls, exposed framing, decades-old cast iron pipes, and a tub that had long outlived its usefulness. The homeowner wanted a clean, modern stand-up shower - and that meant rethinking just about every inch of the plumbing behind the walls.

Before we could build anything new, we had to deal with what was already there. The existing supply and drain lines were outdated and needed to be addressed before any finish work could happen. We opened up the floor, pulled the old connections, and started fresh with proper residential plumbing rough-in work. No shortcuts. If the bones aren't right, nothing on top of it will be either.

One of the most important steps in a shower conversion like this is the waterproofing base. We installed a 40-mil shower pan liner - the liner sits under the mortar bed and acts as the last line of defense against water getting into the subfloor. The drain is set right through it, sealed tight, and tested before anything gets covered up. Most people never see this part of the job, but it's arguably the most critical piece of the whole build.

We also handled the toilet services side of things while the bathroom was open - getting the new toilet set and connected properly as part of the full scope. When the dust settled, what was once a cramped, dated tub space became a clean walk-in shower with large-format tile, a rain shower head, and a wall-mounted vanity setup that actually makes the room feel bigger.

Jobs like this don't happen fast and they don't happen without a plan. Queens homes - especially older ones - are full of surprises once you open the walls. We've been doing this long enough to know how to adapt on the fly without blowing up a timeline or a budget. The finished product speaks for itself.