Apartment Bathroom Renovation
	Upper West Side of Manhattan
	A luxury building from 1912 presents special concerns for renovation.
	See Below for Progressive Images From This Project!

Original Rooms prior to beginning project:

		Original Stained Glass Windows and wide moldings will remain, they will be restored as necessary to complement the rest of the bathroom renovation. The original 1912 shower fixture for the master bath will be fitted with a new 12" shower head (similar to the original) and restored by polishing and re-chroming where necessary. Sink for master bath below will be replaced with a new one. The original toilet will remain, chrome hardware for the toilet will be replaced or restored.

Beginning stages of project: Demolition

		Original bathtub will remain, it is protected against debris. These old, cast iron bathtubs are very heavy and sturdy, replacing them with a modern one might disturb the clients idea of preserving the charm of the bathroom while modernizing.
		Old pipes will be replaced with modern ones; a chance like this to replace old plumbing comes along rarely, but its often more cost effective than the potential problems of leaving aging mechanicals and later having to destroy and rebuild walls to access them for repairs.

The walls dividing the rooms of this 1912 apartment are constructed with gypsum block. The blocks are made of straw and plaster and were used extensively in the early part of the century mostly because of there resistance to fire. They are mortared together with cement and then later plastered over.

Framing and Mechanical Work:

		For the framing for the placement of Sheetrock and Denshield metal track is used and screwed into the existing gypsum block walls. Wood is used in some areas as well. The Denshield is a fiberglass based product used as a tile backer, It is easy to work with and offers amazing water resistance. Rough plumbing for the new and restored fixtures is in place as well as necessary electrical work. This must all be done before the walls are covered and access to these mechanicals is not available any longer. The picture below shows a temporary frame where a hand made wood medicine cabinet will be placed. The frame acts as a guide and prevents the new cabinet from being damaged during construction.

Completion of Sheetrock Work / Beginning of Tiling:

		Here the framing work has been completed, all rough electrical and plumbing work is finished and the walls have been covered with a tile backer board, in this case, Denshield. Parts of the wall which are to be painted are covered with water resistant green Sheetrock (a.k.a. greenboard). The tile will be adhered directly to the Denshield and the Greenboard will have its joints taped and be sealed with plaster. The tile being used here is a 3" x 6" tile with a staggered pattern.

Tile Work/Other Finishing Work:

Tile work is nearing completion in these images. The box above is a frame which is used in the construction process. It will be replaced with a hand made mahogany medicine cabinet once all work is completed. The pipes shown on the image to the right will be covered with a mahogany radiator cover, capped with marble. The small, unpainted area above the tile line will be fitted with a chair rail tile.

Hand Made Cabinet Work:

Solid mahogany cabinets hand made by Manhattan Cabinet Maker Jerry Middleton are shown here. The two medicine chests are inset into the wall and have mirrored backs inside as well as glass shelves. These cabinets are intended not only to reproduce the turn of the century style of this apartment but provide great ease and functionality as well.

Final Project Images:

Pictured here are the two completed bathrooms in this Upper West Side Apartment. Note the very fine cabinet and wood work. The marble tops on both the cabinet unit and radiator cover, the mirrored inside of the small, master bathroom medicine cabinet. Although its hard to see in the photo above, the home owner opted for a European style shower fixture for the main bathroom. The fixture has a hand-held shower head, as well as normal tub controls.

Details from the final project:

Shown here are some of the important details that make a project like this one totally unique. The stained glass window above was removed from its original frame and a new frame was constructed and the original window was replaced and refitted. To the right is the original 1912 shower fixture. The fixture was totally restored and chromed and then fitted with the 12 inch shower head shown, a new addition, but quite similar to the original.

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