I had to have some help when I opened this up.  But my objective was to add a light over the tub; I had to do some wiring, drilling and cutting as well as climbing into the dusty attic.  This is what I had when I finished.

And it works!

Next up was the toilet.  More specifically, there was no way I could change out the floors and still leave the same flange. I talked to my friend Matt; my best bet was to cut the pipe in the garage below and add pipe which would extend above the floor level.  I can then cut it to the correct height when my floor is installed.

You can also see in the above picture the added layer of plywood.

I took out that new piece near the door and replaced it with plywood running in the same direction for added strength.

I also replaced the insulation; obviously I need more practice at this.

Although to be fair, the walls on the left have a ton of obstacles!

Next up, I will be installing the CBU, although we do not yet have the tile picked out. Alex wants some sort of blue tile, we will see…

Stripped

And some of the soft spots patched.

Patched

Now I need to figure out how to bring home all the backerboard and drywall.  I think everything else I need will fit into the car.

Not like this!

And then there is the lip problem. No, not the areas that the razor just doesn’t reach.

I’ve read many forums on this and not a few instruction PDFs from tub makers and cement board makers.

Some say to leave 1/4 inch between the top of the lip and the bottom of the CBU.

Some say to use furring strips on the studs so that the CBU can be brought to within 1/8 inch of the top of the tub, thereby covering the lip.  The furring strips will make the protruding lip even with the studs so the CBU won’t bow when it goes from tub lip to stud.

All say to use a vapor barrier, but some say 15# felt, some say plastic (anywhere from 3mm to 6mm). Some say to bring that barrier over the lip, and trim it before caulking. And use caulk to help stick it to the tub lip.

Why is there no consensus?

And then there is RedGard and Ditra. What the heck are they?

I nudged a few of the surrounding tile; they came off as easily as a dress after the prom.  Knowing what mold spores can do, I sent the girls out of the immediate vicinity.  Well, that and they were both grabbing my arms and yelling at me to stop doing that!  The youngest was crying; she just doesn’t like letting go of anything!

Here’s what it looked like after I quit prodding.  Yuck!

Was that really behind there?

So we headed out to find someone who might know what the next step should be.  In this case, it turned out to be a man at Lowes.  He said the best step would be to just rip out all the drywall rather then peeling the tile off.  That way we could avoid spreading the spores everywhere. He also said that lumber from 15 years or more ago had anti-mold properties that today’s lumber doesn’t have. He said that in 1985 the government no longer mandated the use of chemicals to prevent mold. To my relief, he was more or less right – at least above the tub.

I did that, and decided to go ahead and replace the insulation behind the drywall I removed as well.

The new insulation comes wrapped in some sort of plastic.

I also added some Great Stuff to the gaps where I could see daylight.

See that yellow foam-looking stuff?

I’m lucky enough to have a friend who worked in construction for 10-15 years, and he was a perfectionist. He says you should do it right or not bother. So I had a video call with him via Skype. (Why doesn’t everyone use Skype? I don’t get it…) He said I might as well take out all the tile on the floor. And look under the tub. And… He makes me think this might be an opportunity rather then tragedy.

I think this tub needs replacing!

Smish-smash I was taking a bath!

The black spots near the tub were bothering me, so my friend told me how easy it should be to pull the tub as it was mostly likely steel and not that heavy. I did manage to snap off the drain pipe; thankfully it’s PVC. Here’s the nastiness underneath.

Black spooge.

Don't look in the corner.

I’m going to pull the sink next. Might as well see what’s what. But unfortunately before I can begin repairs I need to fix the sagging garage where the dumb-ass “handyman” cut through a support beam to install a garage door opener.

Right through a support beam!