Budget half bath renovation

My wife is sick of our 1960 half bath in our lower level. It's a long narrow room off of our 2nd kitchen and family room. Spending huge money isn't really worth it, but I'd like it to look nice. I have a few questions for the hive:

1. Textured walls. She hates them. Is the fix skim coating them? Or is it sanding the texture off? see pics at https://goo.gl/photos/PCjGbCQTBgi4qJtT6

2. Countertop. I really don't want to spend the big bucks on granite. I'm kind of debating between one of the big box prefab counters (under $200) or installing new laminate. If I do go with new laminate, can I just go over the existing or do I need to remove and install new?

3. Flooring. Current floor is 9x9 vinyl tiles. I have been told not to disturb them because of the possibility of asbestos in them or the mastic holding them down. It is not flaking or chipped, just bright red. I'd love to do ceramic tile, but have no idea what to use over the vinyl. Other thoughts were sheet vinyl, snap tiles, or an engineered hardwood.

I just got finished doing something very similar, with a very small budget.

1 - will the texture scrap off? sanding is a lot of work. what about a couple coats of a high build primer to cover the texture instead?

2 - the counter top is all going to depend on that can be down with that sink. is it embedded or attached? if attached i'd remove the countertop and go prefab, but shop around there is places that would have one that was cut wrong (how i got mine cheap). If embedded, thats a whole different ball game. what the issue with it?

As well you won't really want to place anything over top of the existing as it will change the high of the coutertop that you are used to and will bother you every time you use it.

3 - high build primer to seal it all in and then ceramic tile it the way you want.

I would try to get the texture damp and see if it scrapes off with a putty knife. Have you ever though about painting the floor?

Thanks Canadian.

The texture won't scrape off, it has several coats of paint over it. I would much prefer to build it up even than sand it down. I watched some youtube videos of people watering down joint compound and building it up over the texture.

I plan on replacing the sink, mainly because I don't like the metal trim but its also rusty around the drain.

What sort of product to they make as a high build primer for the floor?

asoduk wrote: Thanks Canadian. The texture won't scrape off, it has several coats of paint over it. I would much prefer to build it up even than sand it down. I watched some youtube videos of people watering down joint compound and building it up over the texture.

I can almost guarantee it will take far less time to gut the room and re drywall it. Spackling an entire room is a horrible job for an amateur.

Second the gut and redo vote. Drywall is cheap and you can get the green board that resists moisture. Good time to hone your skills!

I'd recommend you rip out the sink and base as well. New from LowesDepot isn't too much money and will look 100% better than the 55 year old stuff that you're replacing.

The floor, well here you have an issue. Yes, there is a 99.99% probability that either the 9x9 tile or the mastic beneath it contains asbestos. But the thing with asbestos is that it only poses a problem when sanded or ground and it becomes a dust. Wear a mask and work wet and you can abate it yourself. Then ceramic tile will be a breeze and you'll have a whole new room. Under $1,000, some DIY, and you'll be showing off how cool your new 1/2 bath looks.

are you on a slab or wood subfloor or?

Let me ask my flooring expert, aka wife, if you can pour floor leveler over the tiles.

asoduk wrote: Thanks Canadian. The texture won't scrape off, it has several coats of paint over it. I would much prefer to build it up even than sand it down. I watched some youtube videos of people watering down joint compound and building it up over the texture.

the high build primer is the same concept, this is just a high effort lost cost option.. the other guys are right that its easier to reno and rebuild but will cost a bit more.

asoduk wrote: What sort of product to they make as a high build primer for the floor?

For my application i used this product KILZ HIGH BUILD