DIY Bathroom Remodel

While most people lack the know-how necessary for installing tubs and toilets, a handy do-it-yourselfer can still work wonders as a bathroom remodeler. While you won’t be knocking out walls, re-plumbing, or re-wiring, a DIY bathroom remodel saves money while adding value and comfort to your home.

1. Think Sink: Replace loose, leaky, scratched, out-of-date sink faucets to spiff up a bathroom in minutes. Turn off the water valves under the sink, loosen the water supply tubes, and use a basin wrench to remove the old fixture. Plop the new faucet on the sink and tighten the nuts to hold it in place. Apply Teflon paste to the shutoff valve threads and tighten the nuts to the faucet supply stems. 
2. Update the Vanity: Old-fashioned vanities can be modernized in a few hours with vinyl wallpaper. Remove the doors and take off the pulls and hinges. Lay the doors on a flat surface and fill in the cracks with wood filler and a utility knife. Measure the height and width of doors and the vanity base and cut wallpaper to size using a utility knife. Paint the wallpaper with glue, paste it onto the vanity, and reinstall the doors, hinges, and pulls. 
3. Shine a Light: Good lighting is more important in a bathroom than almost any other room in the house. Mount a pair of task light fixtures next to the mirror for daily chores such as applying makeup and shaving. Install ambient lights to light off the ceiling and soften shadows. Replace old ceiling fixtures with eye-catching decorative fixtures that add a touch of class to a bathroom.
4. Rack It: Bathrooms are often filled with a jumble of hair products, lotions, toothpaste tubes, and other personal care items. Mount a few spice racks on a wall near the sink or shower, or inside a cabinet, to contain the clutter. 
5. Update the Medicine Cabinet: Creaky old medicine cabinets with scratched mirrors are easily replaced. To remove the old cabinet, empty it, take out the shelves, and find the fasteners that hold it in place. If necessary, use a drywall saw to enlarge the opening for the new, larger cabinet. Install the new cabinet in the opening and make sure it’s level. Insert the mounting screws following manufacturer’s instructions and install the hinges and door.