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by ctmommy
3 months ago in Design Dilemma
Hiding vanity/wall gap
My wall isn't square and my vanity didn't fit flush. The contractor used caulk to fill in the gap. I don't like the way it looks. I want to put up scribe moulding to hide the gap, but the base moulding is tile. How difficult would it be to remove the tile, put up the moulding and retile? I don't want to be the homeowner from H3LL but it is the first thing I see when I walk into my otherwise beautiful bathroom. Keep in mind, we haven't painted yet.
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Closet Experts I might use a scribe molding the full height of the cabinet, and scribe around the tile baseboard. A 1" belt sander might be the easiest tool for this job, rather than remove the tile.
3 months ago · ·
Yarbro Home Improvement LLC First of all, you are not the homeowner from "hell". You have a legitimate gripe. Actually not hard to remove that piece of tile base. Be prepared for minor drywall repair if in fact some of that drywall comes off with that piece of tile. First score the paper on the face of the drywall with a sharp utility knife so that it does not tear the surrounding paper when you remove that piece of tile. It'll save you some minor drywall repair above that piece. No guarantees that the tile won't break, but if its only applied to drywall it should come off pretty easy. Prying from the top is the safest. Not against the cabinet or the adjoining tile. The scribe, or also known as screen mold, when this is installed you want it to be a bit wider then the thickness of the tile, if not, its going to create a void if the tile is thicker then the width of your scribe. Now, if you salvaged the tile safely, its going to need to be cut before being reinstalled. The length is shortened by the thickness of the scribe you just installed. Make any drywall repairs, ( if you use drywall compound, let it cure / dry first ) clean off the back of the tile and any initial grout ( or use a new one if there were any extra) and install. Regrout next day

If you want to make this simple, have the contractor do it the correct and acceptable way
3 months ago · ·
ktiquet Your not the home owner from hell your paying him so it does not look d.I.y. he should have asked you before he put the caulk on! Good luck
3 months ago ·
Should I Go Or Should I Stay Remove the caulking - have someone or yourself re-caulk doing a better job. Then when you paint apply some of it over the caulking creating an edge where you want it. Painter's tape will help with the caulking and later with the painting. Be sure that your cabinet is securely attached and does not move - you do not want the caulking to split later. Not worth having a hassle with the contractor. Not worth the trouble to take the tile out - some of that tile may be behind the cabinet; you will have a bigger mess.
3 months ago · ·
kdeg Why not just disguise it with a big container with greens or dried flowers or even just a simple plant?
3 months ago · ·
michaelscustomhomerepair Ugh! Scribe mould sticks out like a sore thumb. You have an overhang of the counter top of about an inch, it appears. It would be nice to find an excellent piece of trim to set in that corner. A corner plinth block carefully sanded to match the contour of the tile base with inside corner mould above finished to match the cabinet might give it a more finished look.
3 months ago · ·
3-D Contracting Inc. If you can't scribe the back of the vanity cabinet I'd build up the drywall (gap) with joint compound. We do this all the time to compensate for the uneven wall surfaces. This works well because it blends with the wall and you don't have to remove the tile base or cabinet!
3 months ago · ·
nononanna You can't change the shape of the vanity, but you can maneuver a little with the wall with the joint compound idea - but it needs to be done with some finesse, so your contractor needs to be on his best behavior...
3 months ago ·
johnordi How about a shallow bookcase the width of your vanity to hold rolled towels, as in a spa?
3 months ago ·
dolphin9 How about a panel to match the doors on the cabinet installed on the side? This will give you a furniture look. I also like the johnordi's shelf idea.
3 months ago ·
rawketgrl I hear you! I built a house years ago and could not stop the madness of little irritations like this. The eye just seems to go there. Some of them seem to magnify to the point where you can't see anything else. I wonder if *Ironwood Builders* might not be able to help you out here. He has great suggestions for weird places like this. I will ask him to comment.

1. I would hide it by adding a piece of furniture/bookshelf/garbage can/art/plant etc...to that corner. It might help us if we could see the bigger picture.
2. If this is not possible I would ask the contractor to please fix it. You are not asking too much, you have to look at it every day. If it bothers you it will always draw your eye and that contractor will not get any good marketing from you. If he/she fixes it, you can go on to recommend them to others with ease.

Good luck!
3 months ago ·
aniluap2 Don't worry about being the customer from hell- if it bothers you FIX IT NOW! You should have it the way you want and you should have it the way you want it.
3 months ago ·
ctmommy Thanks for all the great suggestions. I had the tile guy remove the last tile and we inserted the moulding. It still needs to be nailed and grouted, but it looks much more finished now.
3 months ago · ·
Closet Experts It looks much better. Good the tile guy could get that tile out without too much trouble. Glad you could get it resolved to your satisfaction!
3 months ago · ·
Fenton Furrer Home Improvements These are all good ideas. As a contractor, even for a simple vanity installation I'd either see if the cabinetry comes with a scribe molding which is best, but not likely from a supplier like Home Depot/Lowe's or many others, or I'd order scribe molding with the vanity to match, or alert the homeowner that some caulking will need to be done, which is entirely common, to a degree. In any case I try to alert the customer to the shape of the walls in advance so there is a plan. If it's small enough to caulk the price can be kept low. It's true as someone said, a scribe molding is not always more attractive than a well placed caulk line. I compound for crowns or chair rails but you have to know in advance so the GC is being compensated for extra time. Looks like yours turned out fine!
3 months ago ·
Yarbro Home Improvement LLC Ctmommy, Bingo! Sounds like it was painless. Looks finished and professional. Also, as I commented, the scribe is wider then the tile. Looks great!
3 months ago ·
passandaz The joint compound idea is very good if the gap is not too big, however I recommend mixing a little cement with the compound to help prevent shrinkage and cracking. I hope there is enough of a handyman in you to help things along.
3 months ago ·
markfisk A matching piece of quarter round should do the trick.
3 months ago ·
summy9 If you have the room as you enter, and you won't be bothered by 'just knowing' it's there, why not just cover it with something decorative. A planter, a little rack with rolled towels and spa things, a little bench seat. Maybe something you already have and love that you wouldn't traditionally think of as 'bathroom"?
3 months ago ·
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