Bathroom Water Damage

The challenge

A clog in the main-floor bathroom had been sitting on top of a break in the original cast iron drain line. The pipe had corroded with age, and the blockage was the only thing holding the water back. Once it let go, the walls, ceiling, and floor were wet enough that patching was never realistic.

Our approach

We took the room down to the studs, replaced the failed cast iron with new drain line, and dried the structure before any finish work started. With the bathroom already open, the rebuild swapped the old cast iron tub for a tub-shower combination and reworked the layout around the existing window.

The results

The bathroom came back with white subway tile, a black hexagon floor, and a walnut vanity against a muted, natural palette. A half-glass grid panel keeps water in without a curtain, and floral wallpaper on the ceiling gives the small room a lift without crowding it.

Cause of loss: a corroded cast iron drain line that failed behind the wall. Style direction: boho, modern, clean.

Cast iron drain lines do not fail all at once. They corrode from the inside over decades, and a clog will often sit on top of the break for a while before anything shows in the room. That is what happened here — by the time the water appeared, it had already been finding its way into the walls, ceiling, and floor.

That is why this became a full gut rather than a repair. Once the water damage reached the structure, drying and replacing the failed pipe had to come before any of the finish work, and at that point the room was already open.

What went back in makes better use of a small footprint than the original did. The old cast iron tub became a tub-shower combination with a half-glass grid panel, so there is no curtain to close. White subway tile keeps the walls bright and easy to clean, black hexagon floor tile adds contrast underfoot, and the papered ceiling does the decorative work in the one place a small bathroom has room to spare.

Before & After

Original bathroom tub with a shower curtain and dated white square wall tile before water damage restoration — Tub & shower

The same tub alcove rebuilt with white subway tile, a black grid glass panel, and a teak bath shelf — Tub & shower

Original bathroom with a light laminate vanity, white square tile, and a wood door before restoration — Vanity & window wall

The same view rebuilt with a slatted walnut vanity, black fixtures, subway tile, and a black hexagon tile floor — Vanity & window wall

Bathroom Water Damage

The challenge

Our approach

The results

Before & After

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