Service area ยท Burbank, CA
Burbank bathroom remodeling for post-war homes
The pink tile, the recessed tub, the five-by-seven room. Many Burbank bathrooms are still close to how they were built, and most of them need to work harder now than they did then.
A lot of Burbank's housing went up in the 1940s and 50s, and a surprising number of hall bathrooms still show it.
The post-war houses that fill much of Burbank were well built and modestly sized. Their bathrooms follow a familiar pattern: a recessed tub with a shower head over it, glazed wall tile to wainscot height or higher, a small vanity or wall-hung sink, and a window over the tub. The tile is often a color: pink, mint, yellow, powder blue, sometimes with a contrasting black or maroon trim line.
If yours is intact and you love it, it can be kept and cleaned up. More often, the tile has cracked around the tub, the grout has failed, the window over the tub has let water into the wall for decades, and the owner wants a room that is easier to clean and easier to get in and out of. That is where bathroom remodeling in Burbank usually starts.
The most common change
Turning the tub into a shower
In a small hall bath, the tub takes the most space and gets the least use. Replacing it with a shower is the project we are asked about most in Burbank. The general sequence looks like this.
Check the drain and floor
Burbank post-war houses are often on raised foundations, which makes relocating the drain for a shower more manageable. On a slab, it is still possible but involves cutting and patching concrete.
Deal with the window
A window inside the shower can stay, but it needs a proper sill slope, a water-resistant frame and careful waterproofing around it. Sometimes it is better raised, shrunk or replaced with a glass block or obscured unit.
Choose the threshold
A low curb or a curbless entry, depending on the floor structure and how much the floor can be recessed. Curbless is easier to walk into and harder to build.
Build the waterproofing
A sloped base, a continuous membrane on walls and floor, and a properly integrated drain. This is the part that determines whether the shower lasts.
Finish and glass
Tile, a niche for storage, a fixed glass panel or door, and a valve with pressure balancing.
Our tub-to-shower conversion service covers the design options in detail. If you want to keep a tub somewhere in the house, that choice is worth making before you remove the only one.
A bathroom that works as you get older
Many Burbank owners have lived in their houses for a long time and plan to stay. For them, the remodel is often about safety and ease more than style. Planning for that from the start is usually simpler and less costly than retrofitting later, and done well it does not look institutional.
- A shower you can step or roll into, with a bench or space for a seat
- Blocking in the walls so grab bars can go where they are needed, now or later
- A hand shower on a slide bar in addition to a fixed head
- A comfort-height toilet with clearance on at least one side
- Slip-resistant floor tile and even lighting without dark corners
- Lever handles on faucets and doors
See our accessible and aging-in-place bathroom service, or read the aging-in-place planning guide first.
What we work on in Burbank
Hall bath updates
Replacing original tile and fixtures in a compact room, with better storage and light. Our approach to remodeling small bathrooms starts with the door swing and the vanity depth.
ADU bathrooms
Garage conversions and backyard units have become common across the Valley. Each needs a compact bathroom that holds up to daily use. We build bathrooms for ADUs as part of the larger project or alongside your ADU builder.
Ventilation for Valley heat
Hot summers and closed-up houses with air conditioning running make an effective exhaust fan more important, not less. A remodel is the time to replace a noisy, undersized fan and duct it properly to the outside.
Permits, and a few local questions
Burbank has its own building and safety division, separate from Los Angeles. Converting a tub to a shower, moving plumbing, adding circuits and building an ADU are the kinds of work that commonly need a permit.
Check current requirements for your property with the City of Burbank's building department. ADU rules in particular have changed in recent years. We confirm what applies during planning.
Is the original pastel tile worth saving?
Sometimes. If it is intact, well bonded and you like it, a regrout and new fixtures can freshen the room while keeping its character. If it is cracked, loose around the tub or hiding water damage, replacement is usually the better investment. Matching old colors for repairs is difficult.
Should I keep a bathtub for resale?
If the house has only one bathroom, many owners keep a tub for flexibility, especially for households with young children. If there is a second bath with a tub, converting the hall bath to a shower is common. It depends on your plans for the house.
Can the old tile be removed safely?
Older tile installations and some materials in houses of this age can contain substances that call for testing before demolition. We discuss testing at the walk-through when the age of the materials suggests it.
Call us
Talk to us about your bathroom
Call and tell us what isn’t working in the room. We’ll talk through scope, materials and timing, then set up a visit to measure and see the plumbing and structure.
Call for a consultation
(213) 566-7696Open daily, 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM
- Tell us whether it’s a house, condo or ADU
- Describe which bathroom and what you’d like to change
- We arrange a visit to measure and look at the room