December 13, 2012

Bathroom Window: What About the Inside?

In my last bathroom remodel post, "Installing That Pretty Bathroom Window", I showed you the installation challenges we faced with the outside of the house. In this post, I'll show you the challenges we had with the inside. I'll start with a before shot.

Bathroom before, with old window

Tearing out the old window was no problem.

Moulding torn down. You can see the old  sash weights on the sides.

I already mentioned that it wasn't nailed to framing, it was simply stuck into the side of the house, so it pulled out easily.

Window out. Happily the weather was lovely that day.

Framing for the octagonal window

As you can see from the framing Dan built for the new window, it is quite a bit smaller than the original window.

Window in with insulation & exterior siding
Details on all that in this post.

Since he had cut away the tongue & groove wall boards, the framing and studs remained exposed after the window was installed. If our walls were drywall, this wouldn't be a problem because drywall can be patched. Our old oak tongue & groove can not.

What to do. The original plan was to simply replace the window and paint the walls. Dan is not real keen on our old T&G but he agreed paint would be simpler than gutting the room and putting up new walls. That was before we got the octagonal window. Replacing at least that wall with drywall would be a logical choice, but as much as Dan doesn't like the T&G, he doesn't like doing drywall either. He put it in the kitchen for me because I wanted wallpaper, but he didn't enjoy doing it.

We spent quite a bit of time discussing this. How about paneling? (Yuk.) Well, maybe the same beadboard paneling we used as wainscoting in the kitchen bath? He wasn't very enthusiastic about that either. More brainstorming. Then I suggested, "How about something like T1-11?" Not your typical interior wall covering, but Dan likes the look of T1-11 (example photo here) so he liked the idea.

To ensure the new wall would be flush with the window, he tore the T&G down on the window wall only.

Pulling out the T&G

We'll leave the T&G on the other three walls, and nail the T1-11 to that. We'll lose a teensy bit of floor space, about 3/4 of an inch total, but that is more acceptable than tearing the rest of the walls down.

Wall gone.

The wall is filled with blown-in insulation. What is amazing is that there is insulation below the window. This wasn't the case with either one of the windows in the kitchen!

Dan added a wall stud (hidden by the step ladder)

Because there was no wall stud under the window, Dan added one to have something to nail the panels to. We used both canned foam insulation and foam board to fill in some spots that needed it.

Window in and wall ready to cover

Lastly he covered the entire wall with plastic to keep that loose insulation from falling out or blowing around. In the photo above, you can see the beginnings of a drop ceiling frame. More on that later. 

Now I'm looking forward to getting the walls done, although the electrical and plumbing have to be done first. Another advantage to adding new wall panels is that Dan can tear into the old wall to fix the plumbing and update the wiring, without our having to fix the wall.

The T1-11 has a rough cut look, and combined with a stained glass window, the overall effect is going to be what I call rustic elegance. There's probably no way I would have considered the combination, except for the problems we ran into. And we like the idea. All the result of working toward a solution we're both happy with.

16 comments:

The Cranky said...

This going to be another gorgeous renovation...and perhaps an inspiration for our bathroom as well.

Nina said...

Your bathroom reno is coming along really well. I do love the look of stained glass windows. I'm sure you'll be more than thrilled when you have a lovely, new bathroom all finished up and ready to use.

Anonymous said...

It will look good but it will be hard to clean. It will get dusty and when you wipe it, little pieces of rag or gathered up dust will stick on like velcro. We have a cabin with that as interior walls.

I love, love, love your window.

Heidi

Leigh said...

Jacqueline, I hope so!

Nina, I'll just be glad to have it done, period! I'm thankful for the teeny bath off the kitchen, but this will be so much nicer as well as convenient.

Heidi, good point. That's the trouble I have with the T&G walls now, they are hard to keep clean for the reasons you mention. I'm planning to use a heavy semi-gloss bathroom enamel wall paint on the T1-11. Maybe that will help(?)

Theresa said...

Drywalling is like the Spanish Inquisition. No one likes it. Interesting solution though. My only gripe with rough cut anything is dusting it. We have old and I mean historic barn boards in our bathroom upstairs. I love the look, but when it comes time to free them of dust...not so much.
An aside, the cat likes to use it for a scratching post.

CaliforniaGrammy said...

I was thinking it before I read your comment, that a good coat of paint might smooth down some of the roughness of the T1-11 when it comes to cleaning it. That beautiful little window just makes me smile seeing the sun coming through it!

Anonymous said...

I don't want to be negative Nelly but I think you are going to regret not using drywall. I don't think paint is going to work on it. But I wish you luck :). Why don't you paint a board before you install it and see if it will work. I have a feeling it will 1. soak up paint.

By the way, I just discovered your blog on the barn hop and read the whole thing yesterday (as if I really had time to do that:))I really like your blog and seeing the changes you have made over the years. Thanks for writing about your journey. ----Heidi

Anonymous said...

I don't know where my #2. point went. To clarify: the sentence should read I have a feeling it will 1. soak up paint and need a lot of coats and/or 2. be rough and still catch dust/dirt/germs.

Sorry for the confusion.

Leigh said...

Theresa, yeah, I love the barnboards in your bathroom. Too funny about the cat! Like I told Heidi, all my other walls are dustcatchers LOL.

Janice, one of the paints I looked at rejected for our barn board look siding panels, was an ultra expensive house paint with super duper leveling qualities. The sales person couldn't assure me that it would fill in the barn board impression. So quality of paint would likely make a difference.

Heidi, no problem. I didn't take you comment as negativism. I took it as your opinion based on your personal experience. As I mentioned, the T&G walls are also dust catchers, so after your comment I figured nothing would change there. Dan has already nixed drywall, and obviously I'm not going to make a battle over it. :) We used a barn board look panel on the outside of the house, so I know what you mean about rough textures and soaking up paint. I'll do a sample on the T1-11 with a good quality primer and good quality leveling paint, see how it turns out, and go from there.

I'm amazed you read through my entire blog! A lot of changes based on experience. Quite a record of our personal growth, or at least I'd like to think. :)

Renee Nefe said...

sounds like a great plan.

I was looking at the insulation and thinking that I wanna tear my walls down and put in a bunch more insulation. Hubby doesn't like that idea though. He says they have the required amount.

One day I would like to build a house with really thick and well insulated walls.

It always bothers me reading historical novels and seeing how they went from having nice thick walls in log cabins to thin walls with no insulation and thought that cut wood was an improvement. *rolling my eyes*

Megan @ Purple Dancing Dahlias said...

I love the window. :)

We looked at T1-11 for an inside project here but decided against it because of the chemical load it contains and not able to get a clear answer of what hazard chemicals or how much it contains, only that it contains some hazardous materials and that it will off-gas.

Anonymous said...

You are an inspiration!!! I love your blog! I wish so badly that I could meet you! Better yet, I wish we were neighbors so I could come over and help you work and LEARN everything you know! Incredible! I don't currently homestead but it is a dream of mine! I would love to raise/grow everything I eat for the health benefits and to be able/have the knowledge/experience to take care of me and mine if the need were to arise! You never know what's going to happen in this crazy world! Hubby just bought me a chest freezer for Xmas/birthday! So excited to start preserving and stocking up! Thanks for all you do Leigh! I love you!!! Merry Christmas! Love amber

Leigh said...

Renee, I agree with you, a house can never have enough insulation, LOL. And I agree about the log home to stick built home as being considered a improvement on one's situation. I thought it odd as well. Seems to be tied up with the concept of 'civilized '. :)

Home construction does seem to be moving away from 4 inch walls to 6 inch walls, as we found out when trying to buy windows. Of course, neither is a true 4 or 6 inches!

Megan, thanks for that information. We'll have to research that. So far we've not gotten out of the idea stage for about 80% of the project!

Amber, thank you! I have to say though, that we are simply learning as we go, like most other homesteaders. This blog has been the journal of that. :)

And congratulations on your chest freezer! I didn't have one until a few years ago and love having it full of good, healthy things to eat. :)

DFW said...

Leigh,

It warms my heart that you guys just keep trucking along & tick one project after another off your list. I know of so many that get started, then stop & sometimes rarely finish.

Everything is looking so good!

Leigh said...

Debbie thanks! I have to say that Dan is a stickler for finishing projects. In fact, he goes nuts with too many loose ends. I appreciate that in him because it means we get things done!

Richard said...

I know the trouble you are going through all too well. I'm currently extending my house and renovating the bathroom and hallway. Last weekend, I had the spa bath delivered to the house however, it was far too large to fit through the front door or window. Consequently, it took three of us to pull the spa bath up and through the floor boarding of the extension (still being built) and then through the corridor. And we have now realised the spa bath take up the majority of the bathroom! It's hilarious! but the years of savings has allowed us to buy it.