Bathroom floors

[Suzie-Q]

My bathrooms are back to back, and the floors are in serious need of repair. They're "sagging," and one day I expect to sit on the commode and go thru to the ground underneath.

I think this is a simple question, but I'm not entirely sure of the answer. It may seem like a dumb question. I'm sorry if you think so.

Whom do I contact to fix the bathroom floors? Do I hire a carpenter? Should a plumber be involved?

My house was built with a crawlspace underneath and the sub- flooring is all wood. In the bathrooms the wood subfloor is covered with ceramic tile.

Thanks for your advice.

[nestork]

You would need to contact a carpenter to see if he can fix the situation from below.

If not, then you'd need a carpenter to first rebuild the floor, and then a plumber to install the toilet drain pipe.

That may involve tearing up your existing ceramic tile flooring.

[krw]

A decent carpenter should be able to do the entire job but if you're a bit handy it's certainly not an impossible DIY task. Any plumbing that's needed should be quite minimal and within the capability of a decent carpenter.

[krw]

If the floors are sagging, a plumber isn't going to fix anything, except perhaps your bank account.

[Nate Nagel]

I suspect you may need both, as there's a reason that the floors are soft to begin with, usual suspect is toilet leaking around the wax ring and flange.

nate

[krw]

Right. If she's lucky, she caught it before the floor joists have been compromised.

--Keith

[DerbyDad03]

Just be careful when you choose a carpenter. There are trim carpenters, furniture carpenters, framing carpenters, etc. A sagging floor could mean serious structural issues and you want to make sure the carpenter you hire is familiar with whatever your actual problem is.

For example, if the subfloor is rotted, most contractors and many general handyman types could easily do the repair. However, if you have rotted joists or beams, sunken or cracked concrete piers/footers, or other structural issues that are causing the floor to say, you'll want to make sure whoever does the work is familiar with that type of repair.

[Ed Pawlowski]

First step is to determine the root cause of the sag and repair it. You may need bracing, jacking, possibly wood replacement. Toilets may have to be removed, but a handyman can do that cheaper than a plumber. It you need drains repaired you will need a plumber.

If the floor is sagged or the wood is rotted, you may lose the ceramic tile.

[hrhofmann]

ir. They're "sagging," and one day I expect to sit on the commode and go th ru to the ground underneath. I think this is a simple question, but I'm not entirely sure of the answer. It may seem like a dumb question. I'm sorry i f you think so. Whom do I contact to fix the bathroom floors? Do I hire a c arpenter? Should a plumber be involved? My house was built with a crawlspac e underneath and the sub- flooring is all wood. In the bathrooms the wood s ubfloor is covered with ceramic tile. Thanks for your advice. -- Sue 8^)~~ (remove the x to email) ~~~~~

First thing to do is to speak to your neighbors, tell them what you told us here, and ask them for recommendations for a nearby handyman. Start with an experienced handyman to find the problem, and then report here and we ca n give you better advice. We need to know if this is a new problem, how old the house is, more details about the sagging, locations and amount, etc.

[Norminn]

It would depend on the extent of the work and the local trades. It is pretty commonplace for flooring around a toilet to become rotten due to a leak.....replacing part of a floor would be part of the job for a plumber repairing a leak. Taking up and replacing tile complicates matters, with the potential need to replace it all (if you are lucky, that won't happen). First thing to do is get into the crawl space if you can and assess the extent of the damage, the condition of structural members and plumbing lines. Then grab a book on home repair and at least be familiar with what is involved in making the needed repairs. Then you will have an idea of how to approach contractors for estimates (in writing!). It is possible that you could do it yourself, unless the floor damage is extensive.

[dadiOH]

It sounds as if your fix will need a carpenter, plumber and tile man. The work involved for each is pretty basic so if I were going to hire this done I'd be looking for a "handy man"...someone competent in the basic application of numerous trades.

Where to find one? Check Craig's List; maybe your local paper has a section of want ads for various trades; ask your friends. Regardless of where you find one, ask for references AND check with his previous customers.

[trader4]

That depends on what's wrong and how the plumbing was done. It's not unusual for a plumber to gut the joists just to make it easier to run pipes. Part of the solution might be re-routing pipes that run through cut joists, etc.

And as Nestork pointed out, what about the tile floors? Are they OK or are they cracked from the sagging, need to be replaced too, etc. If it's just sagging, no tile, then I'd probably start with a carpenter. Find out why it's sagging, what the suggested strategy is, etc. If it's more involved, then a general contractor may be the place to start.

[krw]

The joists still have to be repaired.

Chances are, even if the tile is secure, it's got to go to get to the problem. But a carpenter is the one to call. They're more of a generalist than a plumber and will usually do light plumbing, too.

[trader4]

No shit Sherlock. But as I pointed out, if the joist are sagging because plumbers gutted them to run sewer lines through, then a plumber may be needed and they won't be just "fixing your bank account". Good grief.

I didn't see anyone suggesting to call a plumber first.

[krw]

A plumber isn't going to fix them.

A carpenter will often do small plumbing jobs like that. A plumber will *NOT* do carpentry. Good grief, yourself!

You did, in fact. My point was that a plumber isn't likely needed at all, unless perhaps, you live in a fascist state like NJ?