Bathroom renovation help

[georgepag]

I'm getting ready to do a partial bathroom renovation and have some plumbing questions. I pretty much just want to make sure that my assumptions are correct and I'm not going to get any surprises when I open up the wall to get at the plumbing. I have a fiberglass shower stall and a whirlpool bathtub on the same side of the bathroom. I am pulling out the very small shower stall and moving the shower so that it is in the tub. Looking at that side of the bathroom, the shower stall is on the left with the plumbing on the left wall, then there is about 18" of wall space followed by a whirlppool tub in a tiled enclosure. The tub plumbing is also on the left side. [With an 18" wide wall in between the two units, is there any valid reason they would not have just out the plumbing back to back?]

- I am assuming that the stall drain is connected to the tub drain and that I can easily (hopefully) cap it off.

- I am assuming that the water lines to the stall connnect with the lines for the tub and that I can rip those out and, best case, cap any stubs, worst case put in a new length of pipe to remove the stall connections.

- I also expect that adding a shower to the existing plumbing for the tub is not a big deal. Pretty much just replacing the current tap setup with one that allows for a shower extension.

- I am also assuming that there is no functional reason that there is

18" of wall space between the shower stall and tub. That this wall just needs to be wide enough to hold the plumbing.

Does everything sound right? Are there lurking gotchas that I haven't thought of? Ok, there are always lurking gotchas. What might they be?

Thanks,

George

[georgepag]

I forgot to add another bit of information that is important. This is a second floor bathroom. That's pretty much the basis of my assumptions. I'm assuming (another one!) that there would be one set of lines run to the second floor bath and then split rather than two sets of lines run from the basement. I know I'm making a lot of assumptions. What I'm trying to get at is, according to standard plumbing practice (Northeast), should my assumptions be correct. I know there is always the possibility that I get in there and find a "why the hell did they do it THAT way" situation.

I'm really not worried about the water lines too much. My biggest concern is possible issues with the drain. For example, any reason why I can't just cap it and leave it there? The space above it will become a closet.

I will probably get a plumber to come over and give an opinion before I start. Just thought I'd check here first.

[Joseph Meehan]

That is a lot of assuming there. I can't see inside your walls so I can't really guess. You need a good plumber in there to take a look and tell you what he thinks.

[bambam]

Sure. Well, not sure, but maybe. Then again, maybe not. And even if the assumptions fit standard practice wherever you are, there is no reason to assume they fit your house.

Whatever can go wrong, will.

I assume you will be up front. Tell him you have no intention of hiring him, that you only want him to tell you how to do it yourself.

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There is only one way to know and that is to do.

You can open up the drywall to see what if anything is in that 18 inches. Your assumption that the drains are connected is the same one I'd make, but who knows? Pull the existing tub and shower, then you'll know.

Ken

[William Brown]

How old is this house? I ask because pipes deteriorate and this may be an opportunity to upgrade everything with little additional work. Also, if it is an older house, some of what you have may have been added later, possibly with shortcuts.

On my older home, I could go into the basement and see where the stack and supply lines started; stacks are almost always straight, so that should give you some idea of where in the walls things are. I had a tub that was across the room, but I could trace the drain (which didn't go where I had guessed) by running hot water and feeling where the floor heated up.

When we redid the bath, we tore out all the plumb> I'm getting ready to do a partial bathroom renovation and have some