When we had this house built, we opted the carpet/sheet vinyl combination as a way to cut costs. This was supposed to be a temporary solution until we could afford to have better quality flooring installed. Well, 10 years is temporary enough.
Click on the pics to view them larger.
The sheet vinyl in the water closet has been popping up for years. At times, we even tripped over it. 
I was damn tired of looking at the mold spot that had formed in front of the shower door. It was usually covered by a rug, but still. This carpet HAD to go!
On Friday, while Q was at work I ripped out the sheet vinyl in the water closet. A heat gun made short work of this task. That is the best $25 I spent on this whole project. I also removed the carpet and padding. That was a dusty, dirty job.
Carpet and pad waiting to be stuffed into the trash can. On Saturday morning, we would drive to Lowe's to buy our new flooring--a groutable peel-and-stick vinyl product by Armstrong.
After we got home with our materials, Q and I got down to business. We removed the doors and baseboards... cleaned and prepped the floor....
Cut and installed cement backerboard....
...and Jango helped!
By the end of Sunday, the entire peel-and-stick floor was laid. This picture was taken before the joints were grouted. For the grout, we used a premixed acrylic sanded grout. This is made specifically for groutable vinyl tiles. We also used 1/8" grout lines instead of the usual 1/4".
The floor had to be rolled to ensure adhesion of the tiles. This is also what happens when I quit caring about my appearance.
The toilet had to be removed. We placed it in the shower because the bathtub was being used for trash. This was a very, VERY messy job.
Jango won't drink he water out of Fiesta, but she will drink out of an upturned toilet tank lid. Dumb cat!
We also decided to remove the contractor-grade base moulding and replace it with a more ornate product. For this, we figured an 8-foot section would be enough. And it was. That little piece in Q's hand was all that was left.
Q installed the carpet-to-tile transition like a professional.
The finished floor. I got snappy-happy and took this pic before the base moulding was installed.
5 comments:
I need a little time to recouperate (SP?) from this project. Luckly I go back to work tomorrow. It will be much more relaxing that this job, I'm sure! My whole body hurts from my finger tips to my feet.
You worked hard, honey. Going back to work tomorrow will be a vacation for you.
Perhaps your next wife won't give a flying flip about what the house looks like. Nah, I doubt it.
Hooray!
What next wife? I'm not on the new every two plan, like Verizon.
That's good. Because you wouldn't be able to afford to replace me.
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