Last we chatted about the basement bathroom, I had gutted the space and re-tiled the floor with a pretty penny tile. Well, since then, the space has been sitting untouched as I’ve been getting quotes from plumbers and electricians for the next phase of the project.

Bringing In The Pros

While I could handle the demo and the tiling myself, moving bathroom plumbing and adding electrical are jobs that are best left to the professionals. I don’t recommend DIY’ing these aspects of a bathroom remodel. In the past, I’ve always hired general contractors for large renovations around our home, like our kitchen and upstairs bathrooms. For this, I just needed individual subcontractors (licensed plumber, licensed electrician) to get the job done.

I don’t really have go-to people for these types of jobs, so I ended up asking a few neighbors and checked out our neighborhood message board for past referrals. People are always asking me how I find good pros, and this is usually my best advice!

Centering The Vanity

From the start, my plan was to center the vanity on the wall in this bathroom. Before, it was smushed all the way to the left wall, leaving an awkward amount of space to the right. I loved the idea of centering a larger vanity on the wall and adding sconces next to the mirror for additional lighting.

However, the first few plumbers who checked out the job quoted me some outrageous numbers to move the plumbing over a few feet. I’m talking almost $2,000! Eek.

Luckily, I had one more plumber come out and he said it wouldn’t be too difficult to move it over to the right, just a tad. My favorite types of pros are the ones who look at a job and come up with solutions, without adding so much doom and gloom to the matter. I’ve hired workers in the past who make every job out to be super difficult and intense, and those pros are not the right fit for me.

Moving Vanity & Toilet Pipes

I hired Joe from Moody Plumbing to work on the space and this is what he ended up doing. He was able to move the plumbing over to the right just a bit so we can center the vanity on the wall. He also updated the pipes because the ones before were old and in rough shape.

As for the toilet, he moved the supply line back towards the wall to account for the larger toilet. Our previous toilet was pretty tiny and this new one has a larger profile. We didn’t want the supply line to interfere with the back of the toilet, so he re-did the piping for this. I’m not totally sure how I’ll finish this once the toilet is in, but we will cross that bridge when we come to it. Perhaps I’ll paint it the same color as the wall. We’ll see.

Joe will return to actually install the toilet, vanity, and faucet once the electrical work is complete and the walls are all drywalled.

Adding Electrical Boxes

Once I knew we were able to center the vanity, I got to work calling various electricians. Again, I went with a neighborhood recommendation and he was fantastic. (Email me at [email protected] if you want his info.) He came and checked out the space and was able to add two electrical boxes for the sconces that will eventually flank the mirror. When adding electrical, you often have to open up the walls to connect all of the wires, so that’s what he did here.

Just like the plumber, he will be back to complete the job once the walls are ready!

DIY Beadboard

That brings me to our messy walls in here. My plan is to add some beadboard to these walls to cover up the holes and add some interest to the space. You know I love a wood accent wall! Even though I’ve done lots of woodworking projects, I’ve never actually worked with beadboard before, so this will be a first for me. I’m excited to give it a try and learn some new tricks along the way.

Wall Color Ideas

Penny Tile // Towel Ring // Wood Mirror // Rug // Vanity // Toilet // Gold Faucet // Toilet Paper Holder // Sconces

Finally, I need some help figuring out what color to paint the beadboard and ceiling. I loved the two-tone paint job that was on here before our basement flood, but I want to change it up for this new bathroom look. With the warm neutral floors and the dark green vanity, I can’t quite figure out what color to paint the walls. A darker paint color? Match the green vanity for a tone-on-tone look? Honestly, I’m kinda stuck. All I know is that I want it to be fun and interesting! Let me know your ideas in the comments.

What’s Next?

As mentioned, the beadboard project is next, followed by paint. Then, we can start to build this space back up and make it a functional bathroom again. Poor Finn hasn’t had a working basement bathroom near his desk for quite some time now…

Catch Up On Our Basement Bathroom

• My Basement Bathroom Design Plan
• How To Demo a Bathroom
• Tips to Prep Concrete for Floor Tile
• My Best Tips to Install Penny Tile