A Bath for Fenchurch - Part 3: Tub Away

Fenchurch's leaking bathroom had a cast iron tub which was built into an alcove.  It was clearly going to take a great deal of effort to remove it, so Zaphod and Fenchurch opted to remove the shower walls in hopes that they could gain access to the troublesome pipes.

After a great deal of levering and nail pulling, they discovered that the pipes were plastered in on all four sides.  Additionally, an opening in the floor revealed that a couple of joists had been cut away to make room for cast iron waste pipes from the toilet.  Zaphod deemed the tub "structural" - somehow contributing to the support of the surrounding walls since the joists were clearly compromised.

Not only did the leaky pipes need to be identified and repaired, but the joists would need to be strengthened before the bathroom could be reassembled.



First, Zaphod and Fenchurch-Dad set up some supports in the dining room as a precaution.  "You can't support a house on 2 inches of framing," said Zaphod.  Trillian and Fenchurch agreed with him that, in principle, it was a bad idea for anyone or anything to come crashing through the dining room ceiling.

Then Zaphod and Fenchurch-Dad took sledge hammers to the tub and carried it out in buckets.

More floorboards came up revealing a patch work of "fixes" made to the compromised joists, one of which is clearly not attached to anything at one end and can be lifted with no resistance.

And this is the state of Fenchurch's bathroom today while work is ongoing in other areas of the house.

Posted by Fenchurch