I Finally Started Construction

A "point of no return" is just that - the result of a decision or action from which there is  no going back.  Kind of like the minute your toe leaves the diving board.  You will get wet.  After a year of gathering materials and, honestly, just procrastinating, I cut a big hole in my basement floor.  And we are not looking back.  This unused space is on its way to becoming a working bathroom.

This bathroom was designed and roughed in to be a mere half bath.  But we realized that we needed one more full bathroom in order to make it easy for guests to shower.   It is not too difficult to add a shower - except for the drain.  The drains are already plumbed for a sink and a toilet, but not for a shower.  In order to add a shower drain, I have to connect to to the existing drains, and vent the line to an existing vent pipe.  That means cutting a trench in the concrete.  Not too difficult, right?


I was initially going to cut the floor with a circular saw equipped with a masonry blade.  It probably would have worked.  But it would have taken a long time.  It turns out that the floor was 5" thick in some places, so it would have taken a really, really long time!  When my friend Brett heard about my project, he volunteered to bring his gas powered concrete cut-off saw with a 14" blade.  That did the trick.  It even has a water line attachment, to which we connected a garden hose.  Nice!  We vented the room and covered the doors, furnace and laundry machines with plastic.  I ran the wet vac and Brett sawed the floor.  He broke up the concrete and I pried out the chunks.  It went fast!

The shower will sit here

We thought we were done - but if you know how construction projects work you already know that we were not done.  We assumed that the sink drain connected to the toilet.  So cut the trench and find the pipe, right?  Wrong.  It turns out they weren't connected.  So we cut another section, going around the toilet drain, and I will have to tie it in there.

Here is where we tie into the drain

So my basement sits with a long trench inside a soon-to-be bathroom.  Next I will plumb the drain line and the vent.  Then I will frame the walls and run the water pipes.  At that point, I get to call the inspector and hope it passes.


Thank you, Brett Parsons for helping me!  If you live in the Kansas City area and are looking for a massage therapist, give Brett a call.  If you are a looking for a chiropractor, give his dad, Charles, a call.  They work together at Parsons Chiropractic in Peculiar, Missouri.  You can reach them at (816) 7791022.

One more thing - I discovered a new tool today.  Of course, I have heard of a hammer drill.  Who hasn't right?  But did you know that Makita (and maybe a few other companies) make a combination hammer drill/chisel?  Basically, with the flip of a switch. you can turn off the rotating drill and use the hammer feature only as a chisel.  Want one for yourself?  Here it is at Amazon.  (And yes, I get a small commission if you buy it)