Making progress...

So he selected contractor #2 who seems like a nice guy and has done work with a colleague. The photos looked good and a contract (work order) has been drafted up and awaits signatures. He plans to start between Dec 1 and 15th.

There have been issues with the tub removal. Currently, for condos there is a 3/8 drain requirement, and if a slab were to go in that would not allow for the 2" space needed for draining. As a result, he's decided not to order the slab and go with custom 4x4" or 2x2" tiles in the shower base. The small size will allow for sloping. We went to CIOT again and they have a nice variety of small porcelain tiles. We liked the 2x2 Golden Nugget at $4.95/sq ft.

We also went to Lowe's and picked up accessories like a toilet paper holder, towel ring and hooks. They were chrome, looked similar to the high end ones but were a fraction of the cost.

Olympia Tiles

On Sunday we went to Olympia Tiles and it was packed! We viewed a variety of tiles and skipped the natural tile section (marble, etc.) since we prefer low maintenance. We spent most of our time in the porcelain section and what was interesting was that you could buy a sample of the tiles you like and if you return them within 4 weeks you receive a full refund. This is a great idea since the lighting in the tile stores vary and it's nice to check it out against your own bathroom floor.

We are planning to go back to CIOT, etc. and get tile samples of the ones we liked there also.

Next we went to Home Depot where we learned that they (along with Lowe's) carry Kohler faucets, toilets, etc. We're wondering if it's less expensive to buy Kohler through Kohler or through Home Depot since they buy in bulk?