Replacing acrylic bath with steel one - feasible for DIY?

[Clive Page]

We need to replace our old acrylic bath and taps with a new one, preferably steel as the plastic was just too darned hard to keep clean. I'm still not sure whether bath replacement is feasible for an only moderately competent diyer.

There seem to be two distinct price ranges on steel baths, one around £70-100, and another £200 upwards. The latter seem to come with much longer guarantees, and I've also seen comments about how easy it is to chip the enamel of baths of the cheaper sort when installing them: does anyone have any relevant experience?

I've seen weight of baths quoted from 20kg to 65kg - if 20kg it won't be too hard to lift, but if good quality ones with thicker steel and enamel are really as heavy as 50 or 60kg I can't imagine how I'm going to get it up the stairs to the 1st floor. Maybe if they are delivered, the delivery people will do that for me? It's not helpful that almost on-line descriptions of baths give all dimensions except the overall weight.

Taps: the old set had a thermostatic mixer for the shower which was nice when it worked, but I had to take it apart every year or two as it scaled up (we are in a hard water area). I've seen advice that it's a waste of time buying a thermostatic mixer in a hard water area as all of them suffer the same way - is that true, or are there any brands which have solved this problem?

Removing the old bath. I can reach and loosen the nuts on the nearer tap, but the other one is too far to reach and twist (at least without a specialist spanner). It seems to me the simplest thing might be to cut the copper pipes to both taps somewhat nearer the floor, remove the old bath, and then install flexible pipes to the new taps. Does this seem likely to solve the problem of removing the old bath? By the way, I've seen recommendations that isolating valves be fitted as well, and at least one posting saying they are now required: is this so?

[Tony Bryer]

It's not that difficult depending on what you're connecting to - modern copper is easy - 100 year old lead, probably not.

I put one in at my old home, a Kaldewei and went for a somewhat more expensive one, given that the labour is the same. Very good quality, no flexing. The new owner of my home had it in a skip within a month . Note that if you go to the right supplier there is a whole choice of lengths 1400/1500/1550/1600/1650/1700/1800 IIRC and you might find that one other than the standard 1700 makes for a better layout.

Officially most will only deliver kerbside, but IME most will help in anticipation of a suitable token. Steel bath on carpet is easy to move as you can drag it, but you probably need a second person to get a heavier one upstairs.

[Martin Bonner]

Having just removed a steel bath (to replace with a Duravit acrylic one - which is a *lot* more that =A3200), be warned that a person above and a person below was only *just* enough to hold it going down. I have no idea how it was originally got upstairs.

[John Rumm]

Yup, should be ok so long as the pipework is not anything odd like steel or lead.

You get what you pay for in general!

You will want two people regardless of the weight.

I have not in general had a problem with thermostatic mixers scaling. You might want to consider a phosphor dosing scale in inhibitor in the hot feed to the shower. That out to reduce the scale deposition in the shower itself (won't do anything for the scale resulting from evaporating water splashes).

Yup. Get it out whatever way works. Fix the new pipes to take flexi tails, fit the taps and tails to the bath first, and then offer it into position.

It makes absolutely no sense not to. For starters the isolating valve with its top nut removed is the idea thing to screw the non tap end of your tail too (either that, or use valves with a short stub of pipe sticking out the top ready to plonk a pushfit tail end onto.

Final stage once you get to fitting it, is to seal round the edges well. If the bath has a roll edge then you will have a natural moisture trap if you just butt that against a wall. In these cases its better to chop a bit out of the wall so the edge of the bath can sit in it a bit - leaving a flat bit of bath to seal against once its plastered in. If tiling, then tile down to the bath after its fitted (or if already tiled, then chop out a row of tiles before fitting and then cut in new ones).

Secure well, fill with cold water, apply and tool silicone sealant around the edge and leave it full of water for a day until the sealant it well set. Then drain. (that places the sealant under compression when empty and relaxed when full - rather than relaxed when empty and under tension when full.

[Lobster]

I'm sure that "steel" must cover a multitude of different bath types.

There are cast iron ones, obviously, which weigh an absolute ton and God knows how they were ever put in position. I've removed and scrapped a few over the years and have always needed to take the sledge-hammer/ear-defender route to even begin to move them.

I've only ever once fitted a bath that wasn't acrylic; this was a pressed steel job, a bit unusual in that it was a non-standard length which I couldn't source in acrylic. It was about 6 years ago, but AFAICR the weight wasn't significantly more than an acrylic bath; or at least, I can't recall any particular issues with getting it upstairs and fitted (which I did myself). Seemed pretty good quality too.

David

[polly filler]

When you have fitted it, don't forget to earth bond it.

[Mike Humphrey]

Why? The bath is entirely inside the room, so can't possibly introduce a potential. The water pipes need to be included in the equipotential bond, if they are metal, as does the waste pipe if that is metal. Plastic pipes don't need to be, and can't be, bonded, of course. Under

17th edition regulations you don't even need equipotential bonding if you RCD everything.

Mike

[A.Lee]

You're thinking of a cast iron bath.

[A.Lee]

I've got a steel bath, ridiculously cheap at Travis Perkins Clearance warehouse, £40. Usually around £120. I also fitted one for a customer last year. No problems at all, really pleased with it. Kaldwei (sp?) do one for around £120, I fitted one of those around 3 years ago, never had to go back, so I presume it is still good.

No problem at all getting it upstairs on my own. It is cast iron that weighs around 100kg - I can lift them up, but cannot get them downstairs on my own.

Cut the pipe. Make sure you have 3/4" to 22mm adaptors ready,if your pipe is more than 30 years old. Put the taps in place on the bath before you fit it. Have an assortment of waste fittings, as it'll be unlikely that the old bath is exactly the same as the new bath. Yes, always fit iso valves onto the pipes.

[John Rumm]

Tis ok, "earth bond" has no meaning anyway ;-)

[The Medway Handyman]

The flexible tap connectors I use have a tap connector one end and a compression t'other.

With nuts & olives removed from flexible & isolator you have 2 x male threads, so you have to use a short peice of pipe to make the join.

Usually a help, but not always.

Have you found a flexible with a female both ends?

[The Medway Handyman]

I'm not so sure thats a good idea.

Decent quality acrylic shouldn't be a problem to keep clean.

Don't steel baths take a lot of heat out of the water compared to acrylic?

[Scott M]

I wouldn't have a pressed steel bath if you paid me, horrible things compared to acrylic. Not keen on cast iron either - they probably suck more heat out of the water than steel.

[John Rumm]

I have used some in the past like that - but have not found any like it recently. These days I normally use a compression service valve and a pipe stub, then a BSP to pushfit tap connector.

[John Rumm]

A rinse round with a hot shower before filling usually solves that. If you are boxing it in, then you can stick some glass wool round it to lag it a bit.

[dennis]

Something like

[The Medway Handyman]

That has a compression each end, so removing the nuts & olives leaves you 2 x males - and no way to connect it to a tap.

Other than that - perfect.

[John Rumm]

more like:

[geoff]

You perve ...

[Scott M]

The insulation would be the winner; the faff of warming it up first (something I will do for teapots) would put me off. Even then, not having huge baths, you still end up with expanses of cold metal to touch, something that detracts from a nice bath, even just the rim as you get in.