NFT: I need to redo a bathroom. Anybody proud of theirs?

[DaneMcCloud]

I've had all 5 bathrooms remodeled since purchasing my home in 2003 and two of them I've had torn out and remodeled twice. In the past month, the shower valve in my recording studio burst and sent about 60 gallons of water into the garage below. I had my contractor tear out part of the tile and shower around the valve to replace it, only to have the replacement malfunction, so it had to be replaced, again.

Shortly thereafter, about a gallon or so of water per day leaked into my garage but I've been so busy that I haven't had a chance to have him out to take a look. He was out today, tore out the ceiling, only to find a dual floor for some unknown reason, tore that out and found that the drain pipe was sloped upward, not downward. He replaced that entire section but water was still leaking when the shower was turned on, so he tore out a section of the wall in my studio, only to find part of a copper joint still leaking. That was repaired but now, I have a 4' x 6' gaping hole in my wall and an 8' x 8' hole in my garage ceiling, neither of which should be closed for a couple of weeks while the joists and framing dries out.

So, all of that said:

1. Tear down to the studs, if possible. Be sure to check your copper, thoroughly. Replace anything that looks janky now.

2. Before putting up cement backer board (Please! Do not use hardibacker. It's cheaper but far less efficient), make sure your walls are furred up and square. It's probably not a big deal in Kansas but in LA, especially on a hillside, it's a major, major deal and the difference between a shower door fitting or not fitting.

3. Old School guys like to Hot Mop the shower pan and besides the smell, I'm good with that. I had one shower done with the Oatey Gray Shower Pan Liner and yep, you guessed it, it leaked and the contractor had to tear out and redo the entire shower.

4. Don't skimp on the glass. Most places will give you at least a 25% discount off the shower doors and walls. I'd definitely recommend the thicker glass: Don't skimp and go 1/4". It feels like a toy. Go 3/8's and if you can afford it, 1/2". It's a lot heavier but they'll use heavy duty hinges, which will make it feel much lighter than the actual weight of the glass.

5. I like natural tile, so three of my bathrooms feature 4x4 Travertine walls with Chair Rail and "Feature Strips" of either glass or mosaic Travertine. They look very "Roman" or "Spanish" but I really dig that look. I also prefer 1x1 Travertine mosiac tile for the floor because not only does it give the shower some "vibe" and color, the very slight variations in height make it easy for my toes to grip and feel comfortable.

6. Don't to crazy with a high end shower panel with jets and all that nonsense, especially if you have hard water (our water is the worst!). It just causes problems with the jets and replacing the valve means tearing out the tile.

7. Find a common name brand shower valve that looks good to you and go with it. My wife wanted all this "high end" stuff when we first remodeled and whoops, all the Grohe products failed within 10 years, whether it was kitchen, master bath or unfortunately, my studio shower bath. I replaced it with Moen, which are engineered in such a way that if the cartridge goes bad (the hot/cold knob), it takes about 10 minutes to replace for anyone that's ever held a screwdriver. No advanced engineering degree required.

8. As for your shower floor, go with whatever your wife likes but we prefer natural tile or at least tile with some texture and grip. Marble scares the bejeezus out of me because I just know that I'll slip, crack my head open on the shower dam and die in a really stupid way, so anything slippery and shiny is out.

9. Don't be afraid of cool glass mosaics, travertine mosaics, etc. It looks like it would be difficult to install but they're on mesh so in some cases, it's even easier than cutting ceramic or travertine.

I hope this helps and good luck!