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My wife and I are looking to get a larger bathtub for our 1929 house. We'll need someone to remove the original tub and install the new one. The plumbers who were recommended to us--in the 'burbs--are dragging their feet at the prospect of doing work in Detroit. Anybody have any other plumber recommendations for us? Thanks.
Pm Django, he isn't a plumber, but he knows how to remove a bathtub . From personal experience an old cast iron tub weighs in at a chunky 500 lbs and the only way to remove them is by breaking them apart with a sledge hammer. Very noisy. Very messy. Pure tough labor.
I second Gnome's recomendation. Hired him [[Django) to do work and ultimately became friends. He is way more skilled than he lets on. He has also done work for most of my family members and also many friends.
Consider this an endorsement.
Sumas
Call Joe the Plumber from Toledo.
if you got an old cast claw tub you may want to sell it. people like those old tubs.
Id love the work but would do my best to get it out whole for resale. I love those old tubs. The newer tubs from Home Depot dont hold enough water to soak all of me at one time. Either my feet are sticking out or my head and shoulders are sticking out. In an old clawfoot I can get the complete soak.
Thanks Gnome and Sumas.
Have you considered having someone come in to refinish it?
Django, when I said that tearing out a tub required brute labor, I did not mean to give the impression that you were a brute. Rather I should have said that Django is a delicate philosopher prince who peels grapes on the eastside and can wield a sledge like Thor.
How's that?
Let's just say that he can delicately balance 50 lb rocks.
Thanks for the suggestions so far, but some more information should go out there:
--The tub is not a claw foot, just a regular tub. It doesn't need to be reglazed or anything, just want a wider tub for a more enjoyable bath experience.
--We're looking for someone who's reputable, licensed and insured, and affordable.
--We'd like someone who shows up when they're supposed to. Roulo's is out. We had an appointment and they never bothered to show or call to say they weren't coming. We wasted time waiting for them.
--Someone who is professional, definitely knows what they're doing and will do a good job--and isn't afraid to come into the city and won't charge us extra [[like more than double the previous estimate!!) to do it.
--No semi-shysters -- "oh, looks like it'll be an extra $500 at least if you want this basic but essential thing to be done..." [[been there, done that, never again--and the contractor lost out on a much bigger job in the future because of his nickel and diming ways).
--We'd like someone whose work can stand up to a permit [[if we decide to get one) and can't be freaked out by the prospect of us requesting one.
I have used many times and can recommend Frank Bisaga in Hamtramck. Google his name and you will find his contact info. He is skileld, reliable, and - best of all - very familiar with older, urban homes.
1953
I messaged you a solid General Contractor. Check your inbox
I had a 1967 era Bathtub replaced in a colonial I'm renovating. The contractor cut it into section before tossing it in the dumpster. Not sure what kind of saw he used.
Someone should put up a statue to Django, never mind Robocop. Dem tubs are heavy all right. I like them too and as you say Django, they hold a lot more and it is worth getting a refinisher in there to fix it up.
I read my follow up post and wanted to clarify that we were ideally hoping to get somebody who could remove and install [[which is why I didn't respond to the suggestions of Django). I'm sure he does great tub demo work, though...and I'd never want to get on the bad side of a guy who can bust up an iron tub. :D
Its not that hard to remove yourself. A sledge hammer, it would take you about an hour to break it up and take the pieces out of the bathroom
We did a full remodel [[for the second time) of our bathroom over last Thanksgiving. I did a lot of the demo work myself, although I really didn't want to. The cast iron tub is a little bit of a bitch to sledge and some of it will break into tiny slivers if you don't do it right. I suggest you work the inside just under the top of the tub, working either clockwise or counter depending on your dominate hand. Try and keep the pieces large enough to remove in chunks but not too big because this material is heavy and sharp as Hell. If loaded into a contractor bag it will most likely slice its way out if there is too much in the bag; I suggest using a garbage can that has wheels on it and wheel it outside and transfer into bags. I got lucky with mine. The folks who dropped off my stuff from the chain materials supplier noticed that the material in my driveway was metal and they took it away for scrap. PS if you still need a contractor let me know and I'll forward one of the best I ever had work for me. They are very reliable, reasonable, responsible, license and insured.
They used lead as a bonding material between the cast iron and porcelain if you have small children around you might want to take some precautions before using the sledge hammer route.
Im not your man. Very nice of the referrals but I dont care much for licenses.or codes. If you needed a bathtub broken up and out of the way Ill do it cheap but all that by the book stuff isnt me so much. Not to say I dont know how to build to code if necessary Im just more of a need to get it done now kind of guy. Jack of all, master of none. Particulars and I just dont jive.
I can peel a mean grape though.
When you are licensed&insured there are lots of added costs so one needs to charge accordingly and I used to charge a fuel surcharge when gas was high and delivery charge for time spent at home depot it is a time is money thing.
Just because one carries a license it does not meen they are any better then a non licensed person or does it meen that one has satisfactory recourse claims.
Where I am at you are supposed to pull a permit to change a toilet, 2 weeks for the permit 15 minuits to swap the toilet out,and people wonder why it costs $350 to have a commode changed.
I wonder how a larger tub will even fit through the door of the bathroom without added labor, most older bathrooms have a 28" door.
When I did my bathroom several years ago, I had to take the door and the jamb out to get the tub to fit through the door