Bathroom Framing Basics

Framing requirements of a bathroom can only be decided after planning all the features that you want to install in it. Make a list of new walls to be added, old ones to be demolished and partition walls to be introduced for increased privacy and defining separate areas in the bathroom as toilet area, sink area and shower area. There may be new window openings, shower stalls, vapor barriers, insulation systems and whirlpool tub decks that you may be planning for your bathroom retreat and needed to be included in the list. The joists on the floor can serve as anchors for partition walls that can be built from scratch or framed and fastened on the floor and later secured to the wall. After finishing framing of the partition walls, make sure to add horizontal cross braces to fasten a toilet tissue holder or a grab bar.

Windows in bathrooms are always welcome and can range from skylight in the roofs to bay windows to casements, awing, bows and double-hung windows but if they are too big, they may cause a problem with your privacy requirements and you may prefer no or smaller windows instead of that gaping hole that makes you feel conscious every time using the toilet or bathroom. You may need to add siding and re-frame the window to diminish its size. For a shower stall, measure its base dimension and mark its outline on the sub-floor and mark the area from the drainage system. Then frame it; use green-board for drywalling around it and use felt strips with framing studs for better fitting of the stall.

A whirlpool tub deck is framed starting from the deck and it is better to have a built-in access panel for the tub's motor that you will be thankful for when you want to service it. Deck the plywood on top and sides of the box, apply the mortar bed before setting the tub in the hole that has been cut out and fill in the space between deck and tub's lips with spacer blocks. Set it all with mortar. Protect the exterior walls with vapor barrier as a protection against moisture and insulate them for greater comfort and energy conservation, which can be done just after electrical fittings. The easiest and most common insulation system used is that of fiber glass while many builders use clear plastic vapor barrier that is fastened to wall and ceiling framing. There are some building codes that forbid the use of plastic ones, however. Bathrooms should have exhaust fans and windows to help evaporate moisture.