Bathroom Remodeling in Owings Mills, MD

Updating a 1990s or 2000s primary bath

In many of these rooms, the goal is a better shower. A primary bath from the 1990s or 2000s may have a separate tub and a fiberglass or small tiled shower stall, and that space often works better as one large walk-in shower with glass. Census data puts about 53% of Owings Mills homes in those two decades, so plenty of these rooms are now due.

What the job involves:

• Removing the tub, stall and flooring down to the subfloor.
• Moving the shower drain and valve to suit the new layout, under a plumbing permit.
• Building a sloped, waterproofed shower floor and membrane-covered walls.
• New tile, glass enclosure, vanity, mirror and lighting. New light fixtures and a properly vented exhaust fan go under an electrical permit.

If you’d like to keep a tub, a tile surround with a window inside it can work well. One bathroom we finished pairs a marble-look tile tub surround with a white vanity and matte black fixtures.

Refreshing a hall or guest bath

A hall bath used by kids or guests rarely needs a new layout. Keeping the tub, toilet and vanity where they are holds the plumbing work to new valves, supply lines and drain connections, which still go under a plumbing permit. The money goes into the parts you notice: a tiled tub surround over a waterproofing membrane, a new vanity and top, a quieter fan, and a floor tile that handles splashes.

Powder rooms on the main level of a townhouse are even simpler. New flooring, a vanity, a toilet, lighting and paint are about all most of them need.

Bathrooms in townhouses stacked over each other

In a two- or three-story townhouse, bathrooms are often stacked so they can share drain lines. That’s efficient, but a slow leak upstairs ends up in the ceiling of the room below. Before we close up a remodeled bath, we inspect the subfloor and joists under the toilet and shower and repair anything soft.

Shared walls matter too. Demolition is loud, and tile saws are louder, so we keep noisy work to reasonable hours and cut outdoors when we can.

Adding a bathroom to an Owings Mills basement

A basement bathroom pairs naturally with finishing the lower level. Baltimore County generally doesn’t require a building permit to finish an unfinished basement unless a bedroom is added, structure or a bearing wall changes, or the home is in a flood zone, historic district or Critical Area. The bathroom’s plumbing and wiring always need trade permits pulled by a master plumber or electrician licensed with Baltimore County.

Whether the toilet and shower can drain by gravity sets the plan. If the sewer line exits higher than the basement floor, the bath needs a pump system. We check that before drawing anything. See our basement finishing page for the rest of the lower-level work.

Condo bathrooms near Metro Centre

Census estimates put about a quarter of Owings Mills homes in buildings of 10 to 19 units, and condo bathrooms come with their own logistics. Water shutoffs can affect neighbors, elevators and loading areas may need booking, and the building may limit work hours. We review those rules with you during the estimate.

Also planning a kitchen? See Owings Mills kitchen remodeling. For the outside of a townhouse, our Owings Mills deck page covers HOA approvals and county thresholds.