Bathroom Resurfacing

You walk into your bathroom and your heart sinks. Your bathtub is scratched and stained. Your wall tiles and shower look dated and boring. You want to tear everything out and renovate your bathroom, but your budget doesn't stretch that far. Don't despair. You can make your bathroom sparkle again.

What is Bathroom Resurfacing?

When you paint your walls, you are resurfacing them. Products and services are available that allow you to resurface almost any surface, including your bath and basin and your wall tiles. While you can buy the resurfacing products and try the DIY approach, professional bathroom resurfacing services will do a better job at a fraction of the cost of replacement.

Bath and Basin Resurfacing

If your bath and basin are scratched, worn or stained, a bath and basin resurfacing specialist can make them look like new again. Any material can be resurfaced, including vitreous enamel, fibreglass, acrylic, gel-coat or porcelain. While minor repairs may be a DIY job, you need professional help for a full resurfacing job.

The process takes about two days. During that time you won't be able to use your bathroom because it has to stay dry and clean. Two days is a minor inconvenience compared to the time and money it takes to replace your bath and basin, though.

The specialist will start by repairing scratches and nicks. Then they will remove any rust and apply a bonding agent to ensure the final coating adheres to the surface. The coating is cured with heat and polished. Finally, the service will polish your tapware (or you can replace it) and re-caulk the joints. When the job is done, it will be hard to believe they haven't replaced your bath and basin.

Do you want to change the colour of your bath and basin? The resurfacing specialists can do that for you, too. If you have or find an old freestanding bath, they can make it look even better than new by painting the interior and exterior different colours (including the clawfoot).

How much is all of this going to cost? Bath resurfacing costs about a quarter of the price of a new bath. When you get quotes for bath and basin resurfacing, choose the best service rather than the cheapest. A professional service will have extensive experience in your area and offer an extended warranty.

Tile Resurfacing

What about those dull or dated looking wall tiles? You can have those resurfaced, too. Tile resurfacing is a four step process:

1. First they will repair chips, cracks and scratches. They may also replace badly damaged tiles, if necessary.
2. The second step is to thoroughly clean the tiles.
3. Now they can apply a new finish to the tiles
4. After the tiles have cured, they can re-grout your tiles.

Tile paints are commercially available, but professionals know how to create a smooth surface and use techniques that can give you more decorative effects.

Tile resurfacing is not recommended for floors because of all the foot traffic bathroom floors are subject to. However, you can have floor tiles resurfaced if you like, but the warranty period will be shorter. Wall tile resurfacing done by professionals will generally come with a 7 year warranty.

Shower Resurfacing

Tile resurfacing is not limited to the tiles outside of your shower. You can have your shower tiles resurfaced at the same time you have your wall tiles resurfaced and shower resurfacing experts can even resurface your shower floor.

If your shower tiles are tragically dated, you can have them resurfaced and they will look modern, gleaming and new again.

The shower resurfacing process is similar to other tile resurfacing and will include repairing tiles and re-grouting. After the shower is re-grouted the grout should be sealed to prevent water from penetrating the grout.

Bathroom Resurfacing

You're sold on the idea of having your bathroom resurfaced rather than replaced. Who should you contact for bath and basin and tile resurfacing? The good news is that many services can do both for you. Start by getting online quotes. When comparing your quotes, look for:

• The number of years the service has been in operation
• The warranties they offer
• The quality of their work (most will have examples available for you to view)
• Proof the company is licensed and insured
• The number of services included in the quotes (re-grouting, for example)

Your initial quotes will be approximate, but they will give you a better idea of who to contact and ask to come to your home. After they have inspected your bathroom and talked with you about your needs, they will be able to give you a more accurate quote. Make sure their quote details everything you want them to do.

While the service representative is at your home, they should show you a portfolio of their previous work and discuss your needs with you. Together, you can work out the best colours and design for your bathroom.

Giving Your Bathroom a Complete Makeover

If you've decided to give your bathroom a makeover, discuss everything with the bathroom resurfacing service first. For example, you may also want to:

• Repaint your ceiling and walls
• Repaint or replace your vanity
• Add new lighting
• Replace fittings
• Add an exhaust fan
• Install a window or skylight
• Replace a shower screen

Because you're saving so much by resurfacing instead of replacing, you may find your budget stretches enough to do all or most of these things. Different trades will be needed for some jobs and some, such as painting your vanity, can be DIY jobs (read What kinds of kitchen cabinets can I paint? for ideas). They should be done in order, though. Talk to your resurfacing service about all the jobs you want to do. They will be able to help you with your bathroom makeover timeline.