Child Item

Repairing a water-damaged bathroom cabinet

i have never done anything DIY and the interior of my bathroom cabinet has rotted away. I have decided to try my hand at fixing it myself so I went out and bought some power tools to help, now I just have to figure out how to use them, gut the interior and replace it. I am concerned about getting the back wall off and really hope I don’t have to remove the whole bench top and sink but I feel I probably will need to. Fingers crossed it works

Find more posts tagged with

Renovation

Accepted answers

All comments

Jason

Welcome to Workshop @Juststarting. We're pleased you could join us and trust that you'll get some great advice for this project as well as many others to come in the future.

You might like to show us a wider shot of your bathroom vanity, including the sink and top so members can better see what you are working with. You might also like to share your plan of attack so you can get some feedback on your approach.

Thanks again for joining in the discussion, and we look forward to reading more about your projects and plans. Feel free to post whenever you need a hand or have a new project to share.

Jason

BIM_Engineer

@Juststarting

Unfortunately Cabinets aren't that easy to fix

Unlike Retiling Your leaky shower

You will need to make sure your cabinet and surrounding tiles aren't beyond repair

check for Water moister and swelling in the cabinet base frame (Particle Board)
leaking pipes within the wall

Juststarting

thank you that would be great. The damage was caused by a crack in the shower screen glass and this has caused the water damage to the cupboard. I am praying the damage isn’t too bad. I decided to start my first ever DIY so I appreciate all the help and advice I can get

Juststarting

Hi Jason

this is a wider view of the bathroom cabinet. My plan is to remove the damaged interior of the cabinet without too much hassle or difficulty then get new melamine to replace it and install this. I did get a quote to have it done professionally but it was over $2000 which is way out of my budget. Note to self ! When buying a new drill make sure it undoes screws 😢 back to Bunnings for a second drill today.

BIM_Engineer

Melamine is difficult to intall on the inside you might want to consider a vinyl

Use the harder wearing Melamine on the bench top

Here's one I've done recently

Although the colour is not a perfect match, it's damn close and only cost me less than 100 bucks and a couple of hours

Tools...Laminate File and Routerbit

Goodluck

New laminate top.jpg

Isobel

What's your budget @Juststarting?

Could it extend to something like this as a replacement? https://www.bunnings.com.au/cibo-design-750mm-white-function-slimline-vanity_p4843935

You would just need to add a tap.

Juststarting

Hi Isobel

my budget is very low, I am not currently working at the moment. I am going to go step by step and just remove the damaged wood first, then re-assess what is needed and what I can afford. Due to the layout of the bench top I can’t put in a purchased vanity but I can’t afford a custom vanity. Half the fun is going to be getting creative with solving the problem. I am really glad I found this site as it gives me hope that I have a chance of succeeding.

Isobel

Good luck with it @Juststarting. There are lots of clever people around here who will be happy to help if you get stuck. I hope the damage isn't too widespread and you find a good solution.

Juststarting

Hi Isobel

thank you, I am so happy I found this site as it has given me some much needed focus and inspiration.

cheers

Juststarting

So I have run into a slight problem 😢 the first drill I bought was a hammer drill and did not undo/ do up screws, so back to Bunnings I went for a drill driver. Third trip back to Bunnings to figure out how to use drill bits from first drill with second drill, turns out I was turning the wrong part 🧐
However the pesky screws are rusted in so tight even the drill isn’t working and I can get them undone. Enter the easy out kit from Bunnings to remove the pesky screws only problem is it didn’t come with instructions and I have figured out how to use them.
Bathroom = 1
Me = 0
So to distract myself I started what I thought would be a quick easy flyscreen replacement as my dog had ripped the mesh, oh silly me !
3 hours later, lots of swearing, sweat, blood and tears 😭 I managed to do 1 side. I am leaving the other side until my poor arm and wrist muscles recover.

Juststarting

Before mesh replaced right hand side

Jason

Have you seen this @Juststarting? - https://www.bunnings.com.au/diy-advice/home-improvement/windows/how-to-replace-flyscreen-mesh

I'll also add the video below.

If you let us know what you were having trouble with, then I'm sure a member would be happy to assist.

Jason

Juststarting

Hi Jason

Thank you for the video. I hadn’t seen that beforehand but I have replaced the screen mesh in our sliding doors before, about 5 years ago. The front door was so hard as I can’t take it out and lay it flat. I have done the back sliding door for the second time yesterday and will work on finishing the front door this week. Then I am slowly going to fix up the other doors and windows damaged by our gorgeous dog 🐕

thank you so much for all your help, it is truly appreciated

Child Item