The plumbing is the part of a bathroom remodel that has to be right before anything pretty goes on top of it. Tile, vanities, and fixtures are all reversible. Drain locations, vent connections, and rough-in heights are not, at least not without undoing finished work. Getting the rough-in correct is what separates a bathroom that works for thirty years from one that has a soft spot in the floor by year five.
What Moving a Fixture Actually Involves
Homeowners are often surprised that moving a toilet three feet is a bigger job than moving a sink across the room. A toilet needs a three or four inch drain with continuous fall to the stack, and in a joist bay that fall has to be achieved without notching structural members in ways that are not allowed. Sinks and tubs use smaller lines with more routing flexibility. Every fixture also needs venting, and a fixture moved beyond the distance its vent can serve needs a new vent path, which is the detail most often missed on remodels done without a plan.
Decisions to Make Before Demolition
Final layout, because the rough-in follows it. Whether the tub is becoming a shower, which changes drain size and depth and often the framing. Whether you want a freestanding tub, which needs its own supply routing. Shower valve type and depth, set for the finished wall thickness rather than the studs, since it cannot be adjusted after tile. Whether the vanity is single or double, and whether it is wall-hung, which puts supply and drain locations inside a narrow tolerance. Deciding these on paper costs nothing. Deciding them after tile is expensive.
What We Look For Once the Wall Is Open
Demolition is the only chance to see what is actually there. We check for galvanized supply lines at the end of their life, cast iron drains that have scaled internally, subfloor and framing that have been quietly wet from an old wax ring or shower pan failure, missing or improvised venting from a previous remodel, and supply valves that will not close. Fixing these while the wall is open costs a fraction of what it costs later, and skipping them is how a new bathroom develops old problems.
Waterproofing Is Plumbing Too
In this climate a shower that is not properly waterproofed will find the framing. Pan slope to the drain, a correctly lapped membrane, curb detailing, and a drain assembly matched to the waterproofing method all matter more than the tile that covers them. We would rather spend the time here than come back for a repair that requires removing that tile.
Coordinated With the Rest of the Project
Because we also do HVAC and electrical, exhaust ventilation, GFCI protection, and any heat supply to the room get planned alongside the plumbing instead of colliding with it. Our remodel and construction page covers how we work with builders. Louisiana license 40204, in business since 1967, 4.9 stars across more than 200 Google reviews. Call (985) 632-6428.
