cast iron tub

Just got contacted by a lady who had a cast iron tub. . It's on the second floor, carpet stairs.. never had to remove something this large before, any easy way to get it out? how do I go about doing this, might have a few buddies help

Get the Buddies
Be sure to also get the feet

Sell for WAY more then scrap >> No matter how bad you think it looks or is chipped

That's true if it's the claw foot tub. There are other cast iron styles though that aren't as desirable. If it's one of the regular ones, it can be a bear to remove.

The last one I moved was a claw foot and it had to weigh close to 400 lbs. My brother in law and I had to wrestle it UP the stairs in my house and it was intense! One step at a time was the only way to move it. When we got it up there, it wouldn't make the corner into the bathroom and we had to cut a hole in the wall to push it through. Wow, that was a job.

If it's not something you can resell, you can break it up with a sledge hammer if you get permission and cover it with a blanket or something to prevent flying pieces.

If that's not an option, the best way to get it down the stairs is upside down so it's sliding on the smooth part and tie a rope to it with someone on a stable base holding it from taking off on its own.

There's a person in my town who has one in their front yard. They plant flowers in it. Kinda cool. So yeah, more uses than just scrapping it.

Be careful with this job. If yo do not personally know/ trust them either make them get it outside or in the garage, or make them sign something saying you are not liable for any damage. Otherwise if your still planning on removing it I would go at it with a sledgehammer like pnut said. Also, is there a window near the bathroom easy enough to throw it out of with a safe drop zone? This is rare but you never know.... Also make sure you have the manpower to get it out, and think about the fact if you have multiple guys helping you get it out, how much profit will you make after paying them? probably not a lot. Good luck

Probably starting to sound repetitive, but these tubs are very heavy. If it is a built in tub and has no real value, definitely break it up with a sledge hammer. It will break easily into manageable pieces. If it is a vintage claw foot, well you might want to enlist two or three buddies. If she is having it replaced, it is usually the plumber's job to remove it and they would be responsible fro getting it downstairs. Of course, the customer's plan may be to save some money. So just be careful...

I would go into this assuming it's scrap only. Say it weighs 400 lbs. that's around 32 bucks. Divide that between 4 guys and well...

I'd charge a fee to remove this thing.

And that is why I stress using the sledge hammer. I have done it many times. The tub breaks up easily into pieces that can be handled by one sound person. The mess is limited to small shards of porcelain which do not travel far. Cover any sensitive surfaces to prevent scratches and place a drop cloth on the floor. Also, seal the drain opening so it does not get plugged up (even though it will already disconnected). Be sure to sweep up well. Oh yeah, and have fun...

We just removed one yesterday actually. This is one was a craigslist freebie so there was no charging a fee. Not a vintage clawfoot one, either, so it’s definitely a scrap piece.

We briefly considered the BFH method but I had never done that before so I wasn’t about to start wailing on it in this lady’s bathroom not knowing WTF we were doing. So, it was an elbow grease job. Luckily it was right out of the bathroom, down the stairs and to the truck backed up to the front door.

But this thing WAS a monster. The homeowner said she thought it was around 600 pounds and yes, it was heavy, but I didn't think it was quite that much. We were able to get it on its flat side (the one that faces out into the bathroom) and pretty much slide it down the stairs which were covered in the brown paper that gets put down during remodeling and whatnot. Then we end-over-ended it right into the truck.

So my $0.02 here - You WILL need at least one other strong person. Get a signature saying you are not responsible for any damages. We put a small scratch into the floor when the corner came down the stairs but she wasn’t concerned as they are redoing the floors anyway, but that’s not something I want to be liable for. Consider the BFH method if the homeowner will let you and it’s not a vintage resellable piece. I’m not sure how that would go, though. I tried taking a sledge to it when I got home and couldn’t break it up. Maybe I was doing it wrong? If you go that route, make sure it’ll actually work first and you don’t end up looking like a caveman trying to wail on a mammoth’s skull.

If it's the built in kind:

1: Consider a refrigerator dolly with it standing upright.

2: If you're breaking it up in place hammer the wall & floor at the halfway point. That's where it's at it's weakest. It gets easier after the initial break but it still takes a bit of pounding.

Sorry for the double post but was just thinking ..........

There are fads -or trends in the building trades. The claw foot tubs were the "in" thing for awhile during the 90's but they went out of style. I've only had call to install one claw foot during my career and the was over ten years ago. Most folks seem to want whirlpool " step in" tubs if they're getting high end. They like tile too.

Point being .... before you lug out one of those monsters make sure that you've got a buyer already lined up on the other end. Otherwise .... ?????

The ideal thing would be if they had it sitting out there on the lawn for you. That way it's just a straight haul off job.

If you have to remove it from the house that's a demolition job. There are a lot of ways to get into a mess when you're taking out a built in tub. There's no telling what you'll run into. I've seen hot and cold water pipes under pressure. Live electrical wires .... and most times there's a rat,squirrel, or mouse nest in there. That's a bio hazard cause they pee & poop in the nest. One time i even found lobster shells.

I usually insist on doing that kind of demo work myself.

Wasn't it Burly Guys who said:

Removal is free
Demolition is charged for

... or something like that?

Jon.

I agree, the true claw foot tubs are almost always worth saving. I got one for my 1896 Victorian house, and it was free, but... Had to be removed from a second-story apartment in town, then brought here and taken up to my second-story bathroom. I was dreading the thought, so I called my local moving/hauling guys. They did the whole job for $100, and I'm grateful to this day for them. Not even a nick in the wall, floors or woodwork.

Another person in my area was not so fortunate. A contractor crew was bringing in a claw foot tub for her old house bathroom remodel. Coming up the stairway, they lost the tub and put it through the original stained glass window in the stairway landing ;( My house also has an original stained glass window in the landing, and I would not even want to imagine that happening! So yes, these things can be downright dangerous to move.

Any other cast iron tub that is not a clawfoot or "slipper tub"... Bust 'er up. That's what happened to the one that was formerly in my bathroom. It was an American Standard "alcove" tub dated 1951. I hated to see it get smashed and junked, but I couldn't imagine anyone wanting it. I see tubs like it all the time when I go to my yard with steel. Not many clawfoots on the iron pile, though. A lot of old-house remodels happen here, and the demo salvage companies get $300-500 for good clawfoot tubs. The junkyard owners know this, so the good clawfoots they get are spared from destruction.

Benny! I just got one tonight, its in the back of the truck right now!