A Full Bathroom Remodel That Addresses What's Behind the Tile
We strip to the stud, assess the subfloor, and waterproof the assembly before rebuilding — every time.
What a Full Bathroom Gut Renovation Covers — and What It Protects
A full bathroom gut renovation rebuilds everything from the structural frame out — not just the surfaces you see.
It covers the shower pan, waterproof membrane, subfloor, plumbing supply and drain lines, electrical circuits, exhaust ventilation, tile, vanity, fixtures, and finish work. The difference between a gut renovation and a surface remodel isn't cosmetic — it's structural. A surface remodel puts new tile over whatever exists behind it. A gut-to-stud renovation removes everything, inspects what's underneath, and rebuilds the assembly correctly from the inside out.
That matters because water damage doesn't announce itself. It travels. A failed caulk joint on Monday becomes a compromised subfloor by the following year. Proper waterproofing stops that process at the source. The bathroom remodel San Mateo County homeowners get from Bark and Build starts with the waterproof membrane system — not the tile.
Licensed by the CSLB under CA #1119304 — active & publicly verifiable.
Bathrooms in Older Homes and the Water Damage Pattern We See
Most homes built in Redwood City and across San Mateo County between 1945 and 1980 used a tile method that predates modern waterproofing standards — tile set directly onto mud-set mortar, or later onto cement board, without a continuous waterproof membrane underneath. That worked until the grout cracked, the caulk failed, or the grout lines absorbed enough moisture to saturate the assembly behind them.
Here's what most homeowners don't realize: the tile itself isn't waterproof, and neither is the grout. The only thing keeping water out of the framing is a properly installed membrane system — a continuous liquid-applied or sheet membrane like Schluter KERDI or RedGard, installed over the shower pan and all wet walls before any tile is set.
Redwood City has a configuration that makes this common: many two-story homes in Farm Hill and Emerald Hills have a bathroom directly above the garage. When the shower pan fails, water reaches the subfloor — and then the garage ceiling below. By the time a stain shows on the drywall overhead, the structural floor sheathing has often been wet for months. A gut renovation catches that damage and corrects it before tile goes back up.
What the Subfloor Revealed in a 1968 Redwood City Home on Demo Day
The job scope said tile replacement. When we opened the shower walls of a second-floor bathroom in a 1968 Redwood City home, the surface showed only a single cracked grout line near the base — nothing that suggested significant damage.
Demo started Monday. The tile came off in sheets, and the cement board behind it was soft in two places — soft enough to flex when pressed. That's moisture. Behind it, the assembly had never been waterproofed: the mud-set mortar bed sat directly against kraft-faced insulation in the stud cavity, and the insulation was black. We stopped and inspected the subfloor at the base of the shower. The structural floor sheathing — the plywood that carries the load of the shower floor — had delaminated across roughly a four-foot section. Not a collapse, but a subfloor that would have supported a new pan for two or three years before the same problem returned.
We replaced the damaged sheathing, added blocking between the joists for a solid nailing surface, and installed a full membrane system — Schluter KERDI on the walls, RedGard over the pan — before any new tile. Vanity and exhaust fan came after rough-in inspections cleared. The project ran a week longer than scoped, and the homeowner understood why. That's what a gut renovation actually requires: a full inspection of the assembly underneath, and a rebuild that accounts for what was there.
Every Shower We Build Gets Waterproofed to the Stud
A waterproof membrane system is what protects your framing when grout fails — and grout always fails eventually. Every full bathroom renovation we complete includes a continuous membrane applied to the shower pan and all wet wall surfaces before tile begins. This is the standard, not an upgrade.
The membrane goes on regardless of whether the existing assembly shows visible damage. Grout and caulk joints fail over time in every shower; the membrane is what determines whether that failure stays cosmetic or becomes structural. We use Schluter KERDI sheet membrane on shower walls and RedGard or equivalent liquid-applied membrane on the pan — both industry-recognized systems with documented performance data.
We coordinate tile, plumbing, and electrical under CA License #1119304, keeping the waterproofing, rough-in plumbing, and tile in the correct inspected sequence under one accountable contractor. No waterproofing step gets skipped because a separate tile sub arrived before the membrane inspection cleared.
Gut, Waterproof, Rough-In, Tile, Finish
Every bathroom remodel follows the same sequence — and the order is not negotiable.
How We Handle the Permit-Required Plumbing & Electrical
When a Permit Is Required
A bathroom remodel triggers a San Mateo County permit when the scope includes moving plumbing supply or drain lines, adding or upgrading electrical circuits, or making structural changes. A fixture swap or in-place tile replacement with no plumbing changes typically doesn't — but most gut renovations do.
What We Submit
We prepare and submit the permit application directly — scope of work, plumbing and electrical drawings as required, and any supporting documentation the building department requests. On permit-required scopes, the permit is pulled before demo begins.
Inspections During Construction
Plumbing and electrical rough-in inspections happen before walls close, and the exhaust fan upgrade is confirmed during the electrical inspection. Because one contractor coordinates every trade on a single schedule, there's no coordination gap — the plumbing rough-in and the tile stay in the correct order, and nothing gets ahead of its inspection.
Cities & Neighborhoods We Work In
From San Jose to Half Moon Bay — we design and build ADUs and remodels for homeowners across the Peninsula and South Bay.
Updating the kitchen too? See our kitchen remodeling page.
Bathroom Remodeling Questions From Redwood City Homeowners
The trigger is what changes behind the wall, not what changes at the surface. San Mateo County requires a permit when the scope includes relocating a drain line, adding or upgrading electrical circuits, moving plumbing supply lines, or making structural modifications to framing. A straight cosmetic update — swapping fixtures in place without any plumbing or electrical changes — typically falls below the threshold. We review your specific scope before demo starts and pull the permit when the work requires it.
Most full gut renovations run two to three weeks from demo to final finish, assuming the subfloor and framing come back clean. When hidden damage is found — delaminated sheathing, compromised framing, saturated insulation — the timeline extends. That's not a scheduling problem; it's the correct response to what demo revealed. We communicate it immediately and adjust scope before proceeding.
A waterproof membrane is a continuous barrier — either a sheet system like Schluter KERDI or a liquid-applied product like RedGard — installed over the shower pan and wet wall surfaces before any tile is set. Tile and grout aren't waterproof on their own; grout absorbs moisture and cracks over time. The membrane is what keeps water from reaching the framing behind the tile. Every shower we build receives a full membrane system, regardless of whether the existing assembly shows visible damage.
Yes. If the vanity, flooring, and fixture locations are staying in place and the work is isolated to the shower enclosure, we can scope the project accordingly. The shower assembly still gets a full gut — demo to stud, subfloor assessment, waterproof membrane, rough-in, and tile — even when the rest of the bathroom isn't touched. The permit requirement depends on whether plumbing or electrical work is included.
Bark and Build runs your bathroom as a single project under CA License #1119304, keeping the waterproofing, plumbing rough-in, and tile work in the correct inspected sequence under one accountable contractor. The sequence is critical: the membrane has to be in place and inspected before tile begins, and the plumbing rough-in has to clear inspection before walls are closed.
Scope drives cost more than anything else. A full gut renovation of a standard 50- to 60-square-foot bathroom — including waterproofing, new tile, vanity, fixtures, exhaust fan, and permit — generally runs in the range of $18,000 to $35,000 depending on materials and whether hidden damage is found during demo. Bathrooms with custom tile layouts, niche work, or significant subfloor repairs run higher. We provide a detailed written estimate after the site assessment so you know what's included before any work begins.
Request a Bathroom Assessment
A bathroom assessment tells you what's behind the existing tile before any demo decisions are made. Share the home's age, the current tile condition, and whether the bathroom sits over a garage or another occupied space — we'll schedule a site visit and give you a clear picture of structure, permitting, and sequence before any commitment.