Tub Surround

[Sputnik]

Hello,

I'm VERY new to home improvement having just bought for the first time ever. We have hideous 70s tile in the bathroom that I want to put a tub surround over. I see these ads for Bath Fitter that will come and do all the work for you, but I think it would save me a lot of money to try and do it myself. My question is, do I have to turn off the water to the bathroom before I attempt any work? I've done some searching on installing tub surround and seen the DIY stuff on the web, but none mention turning off the water.

Another question, maybe someone can answer... if I buy my tub surround at something like Home Depot, can they cut out the holes for the shower head and faucet?

Thanks very much

[Dave Balderstone]

Nah, don't worry about it unless you have to remove a tap assembly (IOW, open the pipe).

Sure they can! Can you guarantee you'll tell them the right place to make the cuts?

Are you and they willing to take the risk?

Cautionary questions... You don't want to get burned with a useless surround because it's been cut wrong.

[Sputnik]

Measure twice, cut once right? ;-) If I cut it myself, what kind of saw should I use? Right now I don't even own a saw. I borrowed my dad's for our laminate floor install (and we still have no baseboards which drives my boyfriend crazy - but thats for another thread).