Captain's Quarters - Repairing the Hull

Ahoy!  Are you ready for the most dramatic, dynamic, and aquatic part of the sorta-master-bathroom makeover?!

A hull in a nautical setting is the watertight body of a ship; so in this bathroom makeover, the hull is the large watertight body of the tub.  I've mentioned in my previous post that I really don't care for the look of tub surrounds.  But that's what we have and I love having a tub, especially with the dog and the possibility of kids someday.  It's just... soo ugly.  It would be too expensive to replace the whole thing right now, so instead my husband and I (mostly my husband) gave it a facelift!  I found the inspiration and tutorial online, Dan did the heavy duty stuff and we together we put it together.  

We followed the design and instructions from InMyOwnStyle.com.  Her starting tub was almost the same as ours, and the steps seemed pretty clear.  I like that she did this facade without damaging the tub.  More than likely, we'll replace the tub before we move out of the house, but it's nice to know that if I change my mind in a few years (HA!) I can take it off and you'd never know it was there.

That's my husband!  Prepping the work area.

Basically we built a frame for the front if the tub and covered it with beadboard wainscoting and MDF moldings (a plastic, waterproof, rot proof version of the classic wood moldings).  On the top edge of the tub we placed a board made from PVC to finish off the built-in look.  We also added MDF boards on the side of the tub going up the wall to further anchor it in place.  

While building it I was wondering if it would hold okay, if it would shift or move in the years to come. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to lean on the new top if the tub. If I have to stand on the edge of the tub to change the shower curtain, or to clean, will it move and all fall apart?  How well will it stand the test of time? The dramatic, dynamic, aquatic project was becoming enigmatic.  

But after we were done and it dried I discovered that I totally could stand on the ledge if I needed to.  It's not something I'm going to do everyday, but it's good to know that if I have to lean over the tub I can do so without worry.  And after reading comments in the blog where I found the tutorial, I've found that the tub is standing their test of time just fine.  They've had it installed for over a year, and the original author has daughters and large dogs that she bathes in the tub.  

I'm really happy with how it turned out, and it matches so much better with the rest of the bathroom now!

Ain't she a beauty?

The drain stop in the tub wasn't working properly, it would always drain out.  So we couldn't take baths and it made bathing Henrik a project and a half (we basically have to shower the dog).  Dan did some research and found that the type of drain stops that have the lever one flips up and down don't last as well as other ones.  So we decided that the old fashioned drain stop would work well for us.  When he replaced the drain piece, I was surprised at what it looked like when it came out! 

But take a look at it all shiney and new!  A great improvement! 

Now to make the tub fill, we PUSH the button on the drain to plug it

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to christen the new hull with some suds and aromatherapy.....

TTFN!
~The Craftmeister