As with any project we do, Demo Day seems to be Michael’s absolute favorite day of the entire project. Honestly, I am starting to see this as a growing trend amongst all of our friends and their husbands and my boys? It’s got to be the smashing of walls and anything we really don’t need that gets them going. I’m not going to lie, swinging a hammer through the wall is pretty liberating!

A STEP BY STEP GUIDE TO GUTTING YOUR OWN BATHROOM image 1

To make this demo project more fun for everyone we’re going to break it down with a step by step guide for you all to get in on the DEMO DAY ACTION! Clearly this part is brought to you by Michael ?. BUT first, take a look at our week 01 post to see what we have planned!

M: Hello everyone! Now, I’m no Chip Gaines but I’ve been taking part in demo days since before it was a cool thing to do. It’s been almost 20 years since my first ever demo and each it just gets better every time. But it isn’t a game where you go in, swing a hammer and let everything drop to the middle of the room. There’s a level of planning and precision that must be in place to ensure a safe, sufficient and streamlined process. This is especially important for anyone living through a renovation, like we are.

My step by step approach as outlined here:

Clear the space – Begin by removing any personal items from the space you’re about to demo. This doesn’t mean store them in a corner of the room – actually move them clear of the space. You want to keep those valuable items (for us this meant the abundance of shampoos and perfumes) clean and safe.
Prepare yourself and your surroundings – Load up your tool belt with the right screwdrivers, a hammer, pry bar and a knife. Cover all of the surrounding floors with tarps or sheets and place buckets/trans bins nearby to collect debris. If you’re NOT removing the floor in the space being demo’d, go ahead and cover that too.
Shut down the electrical and water – This is key before you even think about swinging a hammer. Once you shut the electrical down you can begin removing all faceplates, outlet, switches, lighting and fans located in your space. As for water, you’ll want to drain each line by turning on your faucet or shower and allowing the water to drain out. When it comes to toilet removal, do a final flush and vacuum out any left over water with a shop vac prior to removing the toilet from the floor.
It’s time to get busy – I like to begin with the larger items such as vanities or cabinetry. How you remove them depends on a few variables – if you want to repurpose them in a different space, be very careful to not destroy them. But if you’re like me, this is all about having fun and destroying everything that comes in your way. So get the pry bar or crow bar and hammers ready and start swinging! Once those are removed I recommend moving on to the shower or tub. Again, be cautious if you plan to repurpose…but this is a time where a ton of fun can be had! And it also serves as your full body workout for the day.
Removing the detail work – This means all the base trim, door/window casings and crown molding (if you have it). This should take no time as it simply requires hammering the pryer between drywall and the trim, pulling back and ripping off. Even when caulked properly this is a quick and easy step with immediate satisfaction.
Bringing the walls down – We just removed the drywall and kept all of the studs in place, so that meant making various holes with a sledge hammer and pulling down the drywall by hand. This step was repeated for the ceiling as well. If you are moving walls, you should start by taking a sledge hammer to the header to beat it out of place. Once it is loose you can start taking out the vertical 2x4s and move on down the wall until everything is removed.
Brutal floor removal – Not gonna lie, it can be brutal. We had tile floor which required a hammer drill to move the tile (the quick part) and that same hammer drill to remove all of the concrete that supported the tile. After a few hours it takes just about everything out of you, especially if you’re doing the drilling by yourself. I recommend having a partner to help clean as you go to ensure you know where and what you’re taking the hammer drill to.
Final safety check – Often times (ok, every time) there are nails and screws that get overlooked and can cause harm, especially to toddlers running through the space. Take the time to clean up and remove any stragglers, as well as any debris lingering in the seams of the subfloor and walls. Do a thorough twice over with your shop vac to remove the dust, debris and scraps and pour yourself a cocktail or crack open a beer (or water, for that matter) because your demo work is done!

When you’re finished with your demo day you’re left with a blank slate…an open canvas to plan your bathroom to look and feel just the way you want it to! As you guys know we are on week 2 of the One Room Challenge and we are loving every second of it…minus the fact that we now all have to walk downstairs to use the bathroom ? but it will be worth it in the end for sure.

Our goal for this makeover is to update our master bathroom with a modern vibe that also maximizes the space we have, including the angled roofline. And although this seems like a lot of work, it really is going to make the final product incredible!

Much love-

Danielle & Michael