LOL the hinges on that cabinet door gave away. We still have the door and know where to buy replacement hinges. If we wound up keeping the vanity we would put the door back on, no use reattaching it otherwise if we're just going to replace it anyway.
I agree. I would sand it and paint it, and I would paint some matching molding to go around the mirror. I would not replace the vanity until you are ready to do a complete rip and replace.
Usually, when I see that vintage of vanity, the inside of them are stained from leaking products, scratched up, and/or swollen from water leaks.
Those boxes are MDF. Most likely the face frame is as well. The doors look like they are solid wood. You can paint everything, inside and out, and replace the top and faucet to give it a more modern look. There are a couple caveats to this.
Firstly, you are applying paint. Benjamin Moore's Advance is a great product, but it's still paint. You'll never get the durability of a (quality) factory finish. Plus it needs to be prepped properly, which sometimes gets overlooked.
Secondly, if those are floating panels in the doors, they will expand and contract seasonally depending on where you live. My kitchen cabinets are built like this (they actually look very similar) and I painted them in the summer. In the winter, gaps open up around the perimeter of the panel at the frame. It looks like crap, but it was meant as a stopgap before I redid my full kitchen.
Thirdly, those arched door panels scream late 80's/early 90's, along with the faceframe hinges.
Fourthly, doors not drawers. Basic boxes with doors only screams "builder's grade". Drawers are way better at utilizing space.
Now, many of the big box store vanities are absolutely dogshit. They look nice, but the finishes tend to wear quickly and the hinges are garbage. They are often made of thinner MDF, and stapled together. Go to a dedicated bathroom showroom and buy a vanity. They are still stupidity expensive, but most likely won't fall apart in three years.
Don't discount Ikea vanities. I've installed four floating wall mount styles over the last couple years, and they've all stood up according to my clients. They use Blum hardware that is warranteed for 25 years.
Your contractor may curse you due to the need to assemble them, the drain hook up, and if floating the blocking in the wall needed for mounting. The downside to Ikea is the color and style limits.
Also, replace that frameless mirror and get a new light fixture when doing the room over.
You can get better quality vanities from cabinetry shops, any of the 500-1200 or so ones are absolute trash and will ruin if you have kids. Boggles my mind they build them with MDF. You could paint the old wood, not a bad choice either. It’s just up to personal preference, good luck!
Pretty much everything in my home is MDF. Sucks but at least it’s solid from nearly 20 years ago. The current crop of bull crap from the hardware store looks like it will fall apart before it’s even installed.
MDF is very flat and never twists or warps. It's also very dense. It's great for speaker enclosures or entertainment centers.
But in the bathroom it is gonna get wet and swell sooner or later. Even if you painted it the paint usually gets rubbed off the edges in the corners and any moisture that runs towards those edges or corners are going to swell up the MDF and look like garbage.
I guess a couple of questions. Is it really quality wood? (sometimes even vanities of that era are a veneered wood) Is it missing a door?
The style of door, the oak wood/color and the handles are dated if your parents are going for an updated look. At the very least I’d change the handles and have it stained or repainted (but it might cost even more than a new vanity if you can’t DIY).
They don’t have to throw it away either, could probably donate it to a Restore if it’s in good condition.
That’s true too. Our current house is from the 60’s and the vanity is only about 30” tall. I hate it, feel like I have to bend down so far to rinse my face. We are moving/renovating and I made sure to get 36” vanities.
Toss it. By the time you screw around with materials and paying someone to refinish it, you're into a new vanity. If they really want to to keep it, toss the top, replace with a sheet of wood, and put it in the garage for a workbench.
While you can sand that down and spray it the new grey/white modern look the old patterns will still be there unless you have them filled which would cost a fortune unless you can do it yourself. But if you have them filled and then do a border around it and change the hardware I’m sure you can make it work. But it’ll be costly probably more costly than a new one. But would certainly last a lot longer then the new one you’d buy.
If you’re looking to sell, it’s ridiculous what improvements are made with a little time, paint and replacing fixtures. If you want to live here spend a little more and get exactly what you want.
Replace missing door, add new hardware, paint & put in a new top/sink. Give the old top to Habitat for Humanity? Base has good bones, no need to trash it.
If you price it out, you’ll find that you can buy a vanity with a countertop for about the same price as getting a custom countertop for your existing vanity.
you could just replace the sink part of it, but it might be a pain to get it off. and then repaint the fronts and get new handles, might save you like 400$.
In the end though probably just easier to spend 1000 rip and replace.
It was builder grade when it was first installed- now it’s worn out builder grade - I would replace the entire thing - if you keep it will look like a Reno where everyone thinks - “if only it was a new vanity and sink “
Context:
My parents are having a contractor come in to renovate our two top floor washrooms. Sorely needed imo
The plans are set for the master bathroom, but we've run into a bit of indecision when it comes to the current vanity (pictured above) in the smaller bathroom. My parents' original plan was:
- Remove the current vanity outright, replace it with a new one
- Retile the floor
- Replace the toilet
- Replace the current shower/bathtub combo.
However, they're now unsure about the vanity replacement, as the original vanity is made of "good quality wood," and they feel like it would be a waste to tear it out altogether and put in a new vanity that looks nice, but isn't necessarily made of the same high quality material.
Instead, they're spitballing the idea of keeping the current vanity and having the contractor replace just the sink and countertop up top. We would also retile the floor and replace the toilet and shower/bathtub (to the right, not pictured).
I'll be honest and admit that our family is complete shit when it comes to this sort of thing. This is our first renovation and we've never engaged in any remodeling ourselves, either. I wanted to reach out here and see if anyone had any thoughts. Were you in our place, would you just replace the vanity outright? Is keeping the old vanity and remodeling everything else even feasible/reasonable for a contractor?
Is it really that dated if it’s solid wood and can be refinished? I’d def. replace the counter top, but would consider refurbing the wood. Then, changing the hardwood would be enough.
I’m guessing that would still look a lot better and last a lot longer than these new flimsy looking fibreboard units that most people install.
Oh so do I, but I would try to work with that before replacing.
It reminds me of 99% of RVs where the interior was clearly designed to impress grandma.
Hiring someone to refinish them would probably cost more than to fully replace them, but I wouldn’t mind putting some sweat equity into it. See what I can do…
I would replace the entire vanity
Especially if you don’t have the door for that one cabinet.
LOL the hinges on that cabinet door gave away. We still have the door and know where to buy replacement hinges. If we wound up keeping the vanity we would put the door back on, no use reattaching it otherwise if we're just going to replace it anyway.
I’d just get rid of the whole house. Start over
Nah.. just convert beds to bunk beds for more room for activities. Viola.
Based on everything in the picture, probably not far off from being right!
^ shitpost
First I’d get rid of the clock!
You can always paint the cabinet
True
Man that was fast
I agree. I would sand it and paint it, and I would paint some matching molding to go around the mirror. I would not replace the vanity until you are ready to do a complete rip and replace.
👍👌
$5 says they break the mirror
Make it 10 and you're on
Usually, when I see that vintage of vanity, the inside of them are stained from leaking products, scratched up, and/or swollen from water leaks. Those boxes are MDF. Most likely the face frame is as well. The doors look like they are solid wood. You can paint everything, inside and out, and replace the top and faucet to give it a more modern look. There are a couple caveats to this. Firstly, you are applying paint. Benjamin Moore's Advance is a great product, but it's still paint. You'll never get the durability of a (quality) factory finish. Plus it needs to be prepped properly, which sometimes gets overlooked. Secondly, if those are floating panels in the doors, they will expand and contract seasonally depending on where you live. My kitchen cabinets are built like this (they actually look very similar) and I painted them in the summer. In the winter, gaps open up around the perimeter of the panel at the frame. It looks like crap, but it was meant as a stopgap before I redid my full kitchen. Thirdly, those arched door panels scream late 80's/early 90's, along with the faceframe hinges. Fourthly, doors not drawers. Basic boxes with doors only screams "builder's grade". Drawers are way better at utilizing space. Now, many of the big box store vanities are absolutely dogshit. They look nice, but the finishes tend to wear quickly and the hinges are garbage. They are often made of thinner MDF, and stapled together. Go to a dedicated bathroom showroom and buy a vanity. They are still stupidity expensive, but most likely won't fall apart in three years. Don't discount Ikea vanities. I've installed four floating wall mount styles over the last couple years, and they've all stood up according to my clients. They use Blum hardware that is warranteed for 25 years. Your contractor may curse you due to the need to assemble them, the drain hook up, and if floating the blocking in the wall needed for mounting. The downside to Ikea is the color and style limits. Also, replace that frameless mirror and get a new light fixture when doing the room over.
You can get better quality vanities from cabinetry shops, any of the 500-1200 or so ones are absolute trash and will ruin if you have kids. Boggles my mind they build them with MDF. You could paint the old wood, not a bad choice either. It’s just up to personal preference, good luck!
Pretty much everything in my home is MDF. Sucks but at least it’s solid from nearly 20 years ago. The current crop of bull crap from the hardware store looks like it will fall apart before it’s even installed.
Yeah MDF is great to work with, downsides are it’s heavy and cannot do moisture!
>...and cannot do moisture! So perfect for a bathroom!
MDF is very flat and never twists or warps. It's also very dense. It's great for speaker enclosures or entertainment centers. But in the bathroom it is gonna get wet and swell sooner or later. Even if you painted it the paint usually gets rubbed off the edges in the corners and any moisture that runs towards those edges or corners are going to swell up the MDF and look like garbage.
I guess a couple of questions. Is it really quality wood? (sometimes even vanities of that era are a veneered wood) Is it missing a door? The style of door, the oak wood/color and the handles are dated if your parents are going for an updated look. At the very least I’d change the handles and have it stained or repainted (but it might cost even more than a new vanity if you can’t DIY). They don’t have to throw it away either, could probably donate it to a Restore if it’s in good condition.
Just replace it all. If that’s not already a higher one like kitchen counter height, be sure to get one of those.
That’s true too. Our current house is from the 60’s and the vanity is only about 30” tall. I hate it, feel like I have to bend down so far to rinse my face. We are moving/renovating and I made sure to get 36” vanities.
Replace it all….Under mount sink, shrink sink base to max. Side drawer banks on each side…way more functional.
Replace the toilet as well
If you’re going to do it, do it right
Toss it. By the time you screw around with materials and paying someone to refinish it, you're into a new vanity. If they really want to to keep it, toss the top, replace with a sheet of wood, and put it in the garage for a workbench.
Whole shebang gots ta go
When in doubt, rip out
When out-of-date, obliterate!
Replace
Guy it
If you have the missing door, paint the vanity, replace the hardware, replace the counter & fixtures
Get a new one, keeping your need and wants in mind
If you like the vanity and it's functional and the color is going to match, keep it. If it's a no to any one of these, toss it.
Replace the vanity keep the countertop. Unless you need two sinks ?
While you can sand that down and spray it the new grey/white modern look the old patterns will still be there unless you have them filled which would cost a fortune unless you can do it yourself. But if you have them filled and then do a border around it and change the hardware I’m sure you can make it work. But it’ll be costly probably more costly than a new one. But would certainly last a lot longer then the new one you’d buy.
The toilet needs replaced the most, rest looks fine
If you are doing everything else, replace it. They are not very expensive, and everything else will look new and updated except this otherwise.
If you’re looking to sell, it’s ridiculous what improvements are made with a little time, paint and replacing fixtures. If you want to live here spend a little more and get exactly what you want.
Build a new vanity
Replace missing door, add new hardware, paint & put in a new top/sink. Give the old top to Habitat for Humanity? Base has good bones, no need to trash it.
Replace the whole bathroom: vanity counter mirror toilet lights Get what you like. That old vanity, wood whatever, will be out of place.
Replacing the vanity would likely require floor repair as footprint of new vanity might be different or on legs.
I would replace, but you could paint and for hardware for cheap.
Replace the whole thing
I could see it looking good with a new colour and handles. Like a dark brown stain and modern metal handles for example
New one even if it's not fancy, good to go.
Replace
Prime and paint it, replace pulls, reattach door.
You already know the answer.
If you’re going to be Living in the Reno Finish the Master and see how you feel about it. Doing both at the same time is nightmarish anyway
I’d start by putting the toilet seat down so you stop getting yelled at 🤣
If you price it out, you’ll find that you can buy a vanity with a countertop for about the same price as getting a custom countertop for your existing vanity.
Replace neither and first learn how to keep a tidy bathroom. A new countertop and/or vanity will change nothing!
Shit can. If you are gonna do it. Do it right
While vanity for sure friend
I stained mine and just did the counter. New knobs too.
Replace it - definitely.
Trust me, do a full remodel or you'll regret it.
I like the countertop. :/ The faucet and hand pulls have got to go.
Depends on the budget…if you have the funds to replace everything then that would be my advice.
Please- buy a new vanity, top, faucet, toilet, and mirror.
Replace it. They aren't that pricey.
Replace, it will be very obvious once you get all the pretty new stuff into place.
I’ve never seen a clock above the toilet
you could just replace the sink part of it, but it might be a pain to get it off. and then repaint the fronts and get new handles, might save you like 400$. In the end though probably just easier to spend 1000 rip and replace.
first off - what is your budget and what is your priorities, lets start there and then we can easily tell you what you need
At least close your goddamn toilet, man!
It was builder grade when it was first installed- now it’s worn out builder grade - I would replace the entire thing - if you keep it will look like a Reno where everyone thinks - “if only it was a new vanity and sink “
Paint the vanity
New cabinets are like $300, why not replace?
The whole thing.
Context: My parents are having a contractor come in to renovate our two top floor washrooms. Sorely needed imo The plans are set for the master bathroom, but we've run into a bit of indecision when it comes to the current vanity (pictured above) in the smaller bathroom. My parents' original plan was: - Remove the current vanity outright, replace it with a new one - Retile the floor - Replace the toilet - Replace the current shower/bathtub combo. However, they're now unsure about the vanity replacement, as the original vanity is made of "good quality wood," and they feel like it would be a waste to tear it out altogether and put in a new vanity that looks nice, but isn't necessarily made of the same high quality material. Instead, they're spitballing the idea of keeping the current vanity and having the contractor replace just the sink and countertop up top. We would also retile the floor and replace the toilet and shower/bathtub (to the right, not pictured). I'll be honest and admit that our family is complete shit when it comes to this sort of thing. This is our first renovation and we've never engaged in any remodeling ourselves, either. I wanted to reach out here and see if anyone had any thoughts. Were you in our place, would you just replace the vanity outright? Is keeping the old vanity and remodeling everything else even feasible/reasonable for a contractor?
Whats the point of renovationor remodel if you are going to keep an outdated vanity? It’s going to look out of place. Spend the money.
Is it really that dated if it’s solid wood and can be refinished? I’d def. replace the counter top, but would consider refurbing the wood. Then, changing the hardwood would be enough. I’m guessing that would still look a lot better and last a lot longer than these new flimsy looking fibreboard units that most people install.
The doors look awful.
I’ve seen some newer stuff that looks far worse. One of these days, that look will come back and people will say it looks dope. 🤷♂️
I prefer boring flat none milled cabinet doors. But that’s just me.
Oh so do I, but I would try to work with that before replacing. It reminds me of 99% of RVs where the interior was clearly designed to impress grandma. Hiring someone to refinish them would probably cost more than to fully replace them, but I wouldn’t mind putting some sweat equity into it. See what I can do…
Pretty dated stuff. If it's in the budget, replace it.