The Historic District

The only way to have a durable restoration would be to completely strip the tub down to cast iron, re-fire it in a kiln and re-do the porcelain. That is cost prohibitive for all but the rarest fixtures. RetroRenovation did a couple of stories on places that offer this. Your tub would have to be rem...

Save your money and get a replacement tub.

I spent at least an hour watching shower failure videos last night. I'm grateful for my clawfoot tub ! It's good that you have the area opened, including the room below, so there can be no guesswork about the state of things within the walls or floor. The videos I watched all seemed to have the comm...

A nightmarish video of a contractor who went back to investigate why his tile job failed:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYEzZa4n5xE

Hire a competent professional to install a shower pan/membrane system that they have reliably used before. The last thing you would ever want to deal with is a ceiling leak below, and having to rip out all that tile to repair or replace. I would look for an older person who understands what you are ...

But what if you have etching in the tub? Someone must have poured chemicals into my cast iron tub, because there is a furrow down the center of it. I was planning on getting it refinished. Honestly - unless your tub is etched down to the cast iron or is unbearably gritty, I would leave it alone. Th...

Wow - it sounds like you really made out on the vintage window fan front !

The late 50's into the early 60's seems to be the last period of mass manufacturing when things were really built - before the notion of planned obsolescence got its fangs in.

That looks like a real workhorse ! A long time I had an antique table fan someone had given me, that needed some work. I stumbled on an antique/vintage fan collectors forum - where the participants were SERIOUS. The repairs were over my head so I passed the fan onto someone more competent. I cannot ...

I haven't had very good luck with stone suppliers and fabricators in Connecticut. Their eyes instantly glaze over when I bring up the subject of small bits and pieces. (I've been looking, without success, for a translucent slab of marble for the ceiling of the shower.) I've seriously considered tel...

It looks fantastic ! The weight of the trims kills me anew each time I see it. The details really stand out.