I have started a major remodel. project and have a few questions. I have a 50 year old house and started remodeling the bathroom. I gutted the room to the studs and I am replacing everything.

First question. I was going to us a cast iron tub. I wanted something that could take abuse and not crack. Is there any reason to not use a cast iron tub?

Second, I am tiling around the tub. Can I tile over the "wet use" dry wall or should I put up backer board? Can I attach backer board straight to the studs or install it over dry wal? Or should I do a motor bed like the books say? I have done tiling before but it was a counter top not a wall.

The water pipes are galvanized, the rest of the plumbing was replace 2 years ago went I had an addition done. Should I replace the pipes with copper or will the galvanized pipe be ok?

Last, The floor around the toilet was dry rotted. Can I replace the 2 X6 tongue and grove with straight 2 x6s. It is a 2’ x 3’ area that needs to be replaced.

Thanks for the help

I don't know about the other stuff, but for replacing the water pipes, do you have the wall already opened up the wall  and the galvanized pipes are exposed? Are the galvanized pipes the original, and are they leaking/seeping at the joints? If you have the wall already torn-out you may want to replace those pipes if they are old. But this is will add to the cost of the remodel job, but it would be cheaper than waiting to do it at a later date when the pipes are leaking and you are getting a lot of iron particulates in your water for galvanized pipe deteroiation.

About the tub, my wife and I also put in a room addition with a full bath, and we put in a cast iron tub because they don't crack over time like a fiberglass ones, even though the fiberglass ones are a lot cheaper. We put in a Kohler tub from Home Depot that is a little larger in capacity than the standard one.

Other than the fact that they weigh a friggin' ton, a cast iron tub is fine.  Make sure you have a few friends and a lot of beer for them when you move it into the bathroom.

You can tile over water-resistant drywall (greenboard or blueboard), but why do it half-assed?  Put up Durock and be done with it.  
Yep, you attach it right to the studs.  It's not a bad idea to put up some visqueen behind the durock as a vapor barrier.

Mortar bed?  Are you talking about the floor?

Either way, use the Durock and a latex-modified thinset to bond the tiles.  You'll have enough work just getting that monstrosity of a tub in place. [;)]

REPLCE THE GALVANIZED PIES ASAP!!!!!


I tiled around a tub 7-8s ago. wished I hadn't.

As for the 2x6s, if the joisting is OK, replace it with straight 2x6s and use screws.

hope it helped.

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Cast iron tubs are the best really.  They don't sound hollow, don't crack, chip, or break.  They weigh a lot, so make sure the joists under it are in good shape.

You can use greenboard, but that'd be a mistake.  Use the concrete backer board, and tape and mud the seams.  Actually, make sure to put up 30lb tar paper between the board and the studs.  Use thin set mortar to attach the tiles to the board.

Replace the pipes!  The old galvanized pipes are probably clogged to shit buy now, and will only give you a headache down the road.  

The tongue and grooved 2x6's I assume are the boards on the joists, the not joists themselves. You can go ahead and use normal 2x6's for that although 3/4" plywood would be a better choice IMO.