Remodel your bathroom with help from Ramsey homeowners: Video
Need help reimagining your bathroom in your North Jersey home? Here’s how Ramsey homeowners Gregg and Alicia Carbone chose their tile and more.
- Planning what your goals are for a bathroom renovation, including both functionality and design, is one of the most important steps in the process
- Regardless of whether you’re keeping your bathroom’s layout the same or changing it, it’s recommended to always consult a plumbing professional
Whether it’s outdated, or it’s just not your style, renovating your bathroom can make a big difference in the feel of your home. But whether it’s minor cosmetic updates or a full-scale remodel, redoing your bathroom is a big undertaking with a lot of factors to consider.
In our series, Ramsey Renovation, we’re following along with Gregg and Alicia Carbone as they re-do their 1910 home. While it originally had two bathrooms, they were able to add two additional full bathrooms to the home’s layout: one in the master bedroom and one in the attic.
“That was our first step in the bathroom process, and going from one-and-a-half bathrooms to three-and-a-half bathrooms is a pretty big deal,” Gregg said.
And more bathrooms means more spaces to design, and more hurdles to jump. Here’s how the Carbones approached designing their home’s bathrooms, with tips for navigating your own bathroom renovation. A few things you’ll need to keep in mind: Planning is key; your plumbing may have to be moved or upgraded; and you should choose the highest quality materials and fixtures that fit your budget. You’ll be spending a lot of time in your new bathroom.
Planning and designing
Creating a plan is one of the most crucial steps of a bathroom renovation. This helps determine your function and design goals, and whether you can achieve them in your space and with your budget.
“That planning process is essential,” said Emma Chelstowski, project coordinator for Overall Renovation Inc. and a licensed real estate broker. “What kind of mood do you like? What kind of features in a bathroom would you like? Have you looked at inspiration photos?”
Alicia Carbone said she knew that she wanted the design of their home to pay homage to its original time period. But Gregg wanted something that felt modern, so their focus was figuring out how to blend the two.
They wanted each bathroom to have a different style and use different materials, but to blend with the home’s overall design.
“I think you have to have an intentional plan first in your design. Just go to Pinterest and start figuring out what your style is, and really don’t let up from that,” she said. “It’s very easy to go into it and fall back on what’s trending.”
The first determined the color palette and theme for each room. Their plans included going with a moody and organic color palette with matte materials in the powder room; having the main full bathroom on the second floor be very green and earthy, but also bright; creating an elegant master bathroom with lots of white and marble; and giving the attic an industrial, but rustic, vibe with blue color-drenching. After this, they moved onto shopping for tiles and fixtures for each space.
Starting the project from scratch was an advantage for them in the designing process, Gregg said. While they still had difficulties coming up with their style, he said they didn’t have to worry about basing their design around fixtures that were already in the room.
“When you start from scratch, I feel like you pretty much have full creative control because there’s nothing to base it off of,” Chelstowski said. “However, when you start from scratch you will definitely experience higher costs and a much longer timeline. When you work with an existing space, meaning you’re just renovating the bathroom you already have, it’s much more budget friendly. It’s faster and it’s less demolition, but it limits a lot of flexibility.”
Beyond aesthetics, Chelstowski said to also figure out if everything you want to do is actually achievable. If you’re design goes beyond minor cosmetic upgrades, she said you’ll likely need architectural plans to determine if your home can support these upgrades. And if it is capable, you’ll need permits and the help of professionals to make sure everything is up to code.
Since the Carbones did a gut renovation, these were all things that were addressed before they got into the visual design of their bathrooms. But if you’re working within an existing bathroom, especially if you want to change the layout, this needs to be factored into your plans.
It’s also important to determine your budget for the project, as it’ll help guide what’s possible within the space. Consider the size of your bathroom, whether you’re upgrading everything or only certain features, and the possibility for unexpected costs or last-minute additions. It’s also recommended that you choose all of your materials for the project before it begins, if possible, to get as acccurate of a number as you can.
This Old House estimates that a mid-range bathroom remodel can cost anywhere from $2,500 to $30,000, or more, while The Journal of Light Construction values this project to cost about $25,000 on average. There are also other tools available for estimating a bathroom remodeling project online through places like Home Depot and Remodel Inspo.
Technical things, like plumbing
In addition to making your bathroom look how you want, it’s important to ensure it also functions how you want. This is where plumbing comes in.
All of the work done to their home’s plumbing system was completed when it was being reframed, Gregg said. The work, which included a complete redo of the home’s existing plumbing, was done by Rob Revere — who happens to live across the street from the Carbones’ home — and his sons, Matt and Ryan, of Revere Plumbing and Heating in Ramsey.
“We took out all of the plumbing — the gas was originally steam heat — and the new plumbing went in when we were down to the studs. It was the same thing with electrical,” Gregg said. “We put up this special sheet rock for the bathrooms, so the exhaust fans and things like that were put into place before that.”
This doesn’t necessarily need to be done for a renovation to an existing bathroom. For minor renovations, where the layout of your fixtures is staying the same, Ryan said they can typically just use the home’s existing plumbing in what they refer to as a “pull and replace” project. But to change the layout of your bathroom’s fixtures, Matt said all of the plumbing needs to be taken out to where it enters the bathroom so it can be repiped to the new locations.
If you have an older home, though, Matt said there are instances where all of your bathroom’s plumbing would need to be replaced, even if you’re not changing your layout.
“One of the main differences between older homes and newer homes is what plumbing materials are currently there. If you’re talking about a 1910 home, you’re dealing with cast iron waste lines and galvanized drain lines. If you’re renovating a bathroom that was built in the 80s, you most likely have more of a modern piping system,” Matt said. “So on a renovation of an older home, a lot of the times we take out the cast iron as far as we can because now’s the time to get it out of there.”
Overall, they recommend that you always hire a plumbing professional when taking on a bathroom renovation regardless of the size of the project. While you don’t need a plumbing permit, or even a plumbing license, for renovations where you aren’t relocating fixtures or altering the system, Ryan said a professional can provide expertise that you may not have.
There are also code requirements that need to be followed when doing any type of renovation. Matt said that there’s minimum clearance requirements for fixtures, and the layout of bathrooms in many older homes don’t meet these codes. This isn’t something a homeowner would typically be aware of, but a plumbing professional would.
“Along with codes, every fixture has what we call a trap. It’s a water trap, and it protects sewer gas from coming up into the building. And the venting system is very important, and homeowners don’t really know how that works. But plumbers who know the code know that venting is very important because it protects that trap seal from being siphoned out,” Rob said. “And if you lose that water, then sewer gas can come right up into the building.”
Picking out tiles for flooring and shower
The Carbones chose to go with tile for the floors in all four of their bathrooms, as well as for the walls in the showers of their three full bathrooms. While you don’t have to do this, incorporating tile is common because of its durability, water resistance and ease of cleaning.
Their choices include a gray cement tile in the powder room, which will be paired with a taupey brown wall color, as well as a limestone hexagon tile floor and color-blocked subway tile in the main full bathroom. For the master bathroom, they went with a marble subway tile for the shower and a subtle gray and white marble checkerboard floor.
“I knew I wanted penny tile somewhere in the house. Not because I love it, but because I feel like it’s the most time period appropriate out of all of them. But I didn’t want a flat penny tile, I wanted a design in it. So we got a white penny tile with a blue design kind of built into it all throughout the flooring,” Alicia said. “Because it’s a small bathroom, we transitioned the bathroom floor right into the shower and everything’s come out perfectly.”
That room was completed with a dark subway tile arranged in a herringbone pattern for the shower.
The Carbones said they chose to buy most of the materials ahead of time, and did a mix of online and in-person shopping. They did have some instances where they didn’t like a tile they originally picked out, or it didn’t look how they expected it to.
“We ordered flooring online for our master bathroom, and we hated it,” Gregg said. “Another thing with this is that returning tile actually costs you money. So if you order, say, $1,000 worth of tile and you want to return it, you only get like $800 back because it’s heavy. We didn’t want to lose money to return it, so we’re going to put it in the laundry room instead.”
Despite this experience, neither of them advise against ordering materials online. In fact, Alicia said she preferred looking online because there’s a lot more options available than there are in store. She also recommends picking out grout when you purchase your tiles, which is something they didn’t do.
“To go back and put yourself in the same mindset you were in when you conceived the idea of how you wanted the room to look is hard. Grout is a really important thing. It could make white tile look beige or yellow or gray,” she said. “When it came down to it, I had to rely on the guy that worked at the store to guide me. Everything worked out, but we definitely had a lot of grout returns.”
Deciding on fixtures and accessories
The fixtures — toilets, tubs, showers and sinks — are the most essential part of a working bathroom space, apart from things like plumbing and ventilation. And because you’ll be using them daily, Chelstowski said to invest in these pieces.
“When we renovate bathrooms, or we’re building new bathrooms, one thing we like to focus on is what you’re going to be using daily. What is going to bring long-term reliability? The tub, the shower systems and the toilet,” she said. “So don’t fall short on plumbing fixtures because if you do, you’re going to have a lot more maintenance over time since you’re using them on a daily basis.”
When budgeting for fixtures, she suggests that you consider a price point that fits the type of home you have. Also consider the size you need, the material you want — acrylic, brass, stainless steel, ceramic, cast iron and so on — and your home’s plumbing configurations.
The Carbones only incorporated a bath tub in one of their three full bathrooms, opting for full tile showers in the other two, and used three different Kohler-brand toilet styles. And for their vanities, Alicia said they went with two-piece sink vanities in each bathroom, rather than integrated sink vanities.
“Vanities are expensive and they’re really heavy. Those are not as easy to change out, but we got all of our vanities in two pieces, where you get the sink separate from the base,” she said. “They’re all so beautiful, but if someone’s really stresing about that kind of decision, the ones that you can get from any of the stores are gorgeous. I would never even see a reason to buy them separately unless you were going with a completely custom set up.”
With that, Chelstowski recommends prioritizing bathroom storage when remodeling your space, whether it be with your vanity, extra cabinetry or storage systems around the toilet.
And for other smaller design details, Chelstowski said to also invest in high-quality lighting. For Alicia, though, she said she’s not as worried about details like lighting and mirros because to her, they can always be changed down the line.
“I want that stuff to be fun. I want it to speak to my children when they’re young, and I want it to be something that I change out when they’re teenagers,” she said. “So I think for those kinds of decisions, I wouldn’t take them so seriously if you can avoid it.”
Maddie McGay is the real estate reporter for NorthJersey.com and The Record, covering all things worth celebrating about living in North Jersey. Find her on Instagram @maddiemcgay, on X @maddiemcgayy, and sign up for her North Jersey Living newsletter. Do you have a tip, trend or terrific house she should know about? Email her at MMcGay@gannett.com.
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