has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

i dont want to ruin the tile in my bathroom by ripping out my tub and thougght about just having it reglazed, but i dont know if its worth the money?

anyone ever have this done?

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

We had it done a almost 2 years ago and it still looks great.

We have a cast iron tub and live on the top floor of a 4 story walk up - DH re-did our bathroom and was NOT carrying that down

So we had it reglazed. We paid around $350 for it (I can't remember the company name - some place in Astoria) and are happy with the results.

I will say that if this was our forver home we would have replaced the tub...I don't envision it lasting in the condition that it currently is for another 10 years.

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

we had our tub re-glazed twice and twice it started to peel and crack within months, we live in a coop and the tub is an oversized cast iron tub so replacing it really wasnt an option for us. Our contractor was the one who did it and I dont think he had much experience with reglazing so if someone has a reputable company I would love to know also so I can have it fixed.

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

We had ours reglazed 3 yeas ago for $400 & still looks really good. I imagine that we'd have to have it reglazed in 2 years or so with our DS banging his toys on the tub while taking a bath.

Message edited 2/21/2012 3:43:48 PM.

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

I did mine myself, with a kit from HD. Except for the parts that are peeled up from my dog jumping in there in a scared panic every time there was thunder, with claws digging at the floor for traction, it's in great shape! It's been over 10 years. Now that I don't have my dog anymore, I'd like to redo the floor of the tub, since I know it will last a long time this time around.

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

shawn,was it easy?

and what about the outside of the bathtub? how do you protect the floors while youre doing it?

i wouldnt mind doing this and not paying someone else to do it for me.

im sure there are several non the market, do you remember which one you used?

TIA

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

I did a whirlpool tub, which was mounted in a wooden platform, so I didn't have to worry about the floor. I just taped off the edges. You would protect the floor the same as any other painting project. Tape the edges, and use tarps for the larger areas.
Make sure you follow the directions exactly. If the tub isn't prepped well enough, it will peel.

I don't remember the brand (it was well over 10 years ago), but I might still have a can floating around at home somewhere. I can check.

The tub will be out of commission for a couple of days, so make sure you prepare for that. We had 2 bathrooms at the time, so we were still able to shower in the other bathroom.

I used my Wagner spray painter gun. It actually gave it a cool texture that I liked. You're supposed to paint it on, so it smooths itself out, but I liked the textured finish on it. Not too much that it hurts, but just enough to give a little more traction. When I redo the floor of the tub, I'm going to try and mix a little sand in the mixture, to give even more texture on the bottom.

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

thank you so much!

i pretty much live at lowes now so i'll start looking into this.


and im not living there yet so it's all good.

thanks again. let you know if i do it

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

There's a place in Hicksville called, LIK-NU. I've used them dozens of times (I am a landlord for work.) I believe they charge $250. The tubs always come out looking great!

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

I just spotted this on NPR's website. PLEASE READ IT before redoing a bath tub to be sure you or a loved one does not use this product:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/02/24/147351453/chemical-used-for-stripping-bathtubs-kills-13

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

I would not do it if you plan to stay in the home. It doesn't last forever. You have to be careful how you clean it, and it can chip even if done right.

If you only want it to be a temporary fix, then sure, do it. JMO based on experience

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

I read up on this process before we hired our glazer. To properly prep and glaze tub and surrounding tiles it shld take 7-9 hours and thats exactly how long our guy took. He filled in tiny cracks and grouted any areas that were bare. He used an Dawn to get soap scum off then an acid wash to prep tiles after that it was 3 layers of color and 3 layers of top coat. He put skid proof striped on bottom of tub so we dont have to use mat anymore (thats a no no). We did not smell any chemicals and he cleaned up perfectly. He was a lil anal with his work but in the end it is gorgeous. We will never get mildew and just need to dish washing soap to clean. Best part is the 10 yr warrentee. He even matched the white on the toilet to match perfectly.

ps: read read read everything about this process before attmpting DIY

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

we did it on our spare bedroom when we moved in about 3 yrs ago.
i can't comment on wear and tear b/c we barely bath in there but it looks soo much better than what we had.
it was white but didn't look nice and there were handicap bars in there and they covered up the holes and made it look nice. i have no idea who did it b/c the contractor took care of it.
i'm happy with it.

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

We did it in our last home and after a month, a shampoo bottle fell and it chipped. It looked brand new but you really need to be careful.

Like others already mentioned, if you plan on being there for a really long time I would leave it and when you can do the entire bathroom I would change it.
If you plan on being there 3-5 years I may consider it. We actually did it while our house was on the market.

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

We used European Reglazing in Bohemia. They cost a lot but your bathtub is warranted for 5 years against flaking, peeling, crazing and sagging. We already have had flaking and they came at no charge to fix it.

At my last house we replaced the tub and I would not recommend it. We had to have at least 3 rows of white tile replaced and it did not match.

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

In the old house we did and it looked great. We moved shortly after so I can't speak to the longevity of it. I do know you have to be very careful with what cleaning products you use. We were told no abrasive cleaners, scratchy sponges etc...

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

thanks all for the great responses.

im redoing almost everything in my house and im just not ready to redo the bathroom. its actually nice and the most updated thing in the house, but the tub is icky. i wont be redoing the bathroom for a few years so it would be worth it to me.

catt, id love to get the name of your glazer.

thanks again everyone

Re: has anyone ever reglazed a bathtub?

BEFORE PIC OF TUB

AFTER

Pic does no justice to how great this stall looks. Would never know i had an outdated pink bath..