Bel-Air Bathrooms Remodel

Two bathrooms taken fully wall-mounted, which meant reframing walls, cutting into a concrete slab, and replacing leaking skylights along the way.

Neighborhood: Bel-Air
Project type: Bathroom Remodeling
Permit authority: LADBS

The brief

Two bathrooms in an older Bel-Air home. One is a full bathroom, the other a guest powder room. Both were rebuilt around wall-mounted fixtures, with large format tile at 48 by 48 inches.

Going wall-mounted changes what a bathroom remodel actually is. It stops being a finish job and becomes a framing and plumbing job with finishes at the end.

The challenge

Wall-mounted toilets need a carrier frame hidden inside the wall, and the wall has to be built to hold it. We modified framing in both bathrooms to take the concealed carriers, then rerouted supply and waste to meet the new fixture positions. None of the old rough-in was where the new layout needed it.

The vanities needed their own changes. A wall-mounted vanity puts the supply and waste at a specific height inside the wall, not under a cabinet where there's room to adjust. Every connection had to land exactly where the fixture expected it.

The house sits on a concrete slab. Finding the sewer connection meant cutting into the concrete to reach it. It's an older house, and once we were in there we found things in the original plumbing that explained how it had been put together over the years.

The walls weren't square either. In an older house they rarely are, but 48 inch tile doesn't forgive it. A tile that size has nowhere to hide a deviation, and the grout lines make any run-out visible across the whole wall.

Both bathrooms had dropped ceilings. We removed the soffits, which raised the ceiling height in each room. Anything living inside a soffit has to go somewhere else.

And the skylights were leaking. Both rooms had them, and both had to be replaced. That's not something you find in a bathroom scope until you're already inside the ceiling.

The solution

We sequenced it so framing changes, plumbing reroute, and electrical runs all happened while the walls were open, rather than solving them one at a time.

The slab was cut, the sewer connection located and tied in, and the new waste lines set to the fixture positions. The soffits came out, the skylights were replaced, and the walls were brought true before any tile was considered.

New low-voltage wiring went in for the fixture features. The mirrors have integrated LED lighting and Bluetooth speakers, so each one needed its own run placed before the walls closed. The bidets are high-end units that run on electricity and are operated by remote, each on its own circuit.

Once the rough-in passed, the walls closed and the tile went on. Then the fixtures: wall-mounted toilets on concealed carriers, floating vanities, the bidets, and the mirrors.

The work was permitted through LADBS. The project took about a month and a half.

Scope of work

Demolition of two existing bathrooms
Soffit removal to raise ceiling height in both rooms
Framing modifications for concealed wall-mounted toilet carriers
Concrete slab cutting to reach the sewer connection
Complete plumbing reroute for wall-mounted toilets and vanities
Skylight replacement in both bathrooms
New low-voltage wiring for integrated mirror lighting and audio
Dedicated circuits for electric bidets
Wall correction and substrate leveling for large format tile
48 by 48 inch tile, walls and floors
Wall-mounted toilets with concealed carriers
Wall-mounted vanities
Electric bidets with remote operation
Lighted mirrors with Bluetooth

Before & after

The original tub and shower with white subway tile and a sliding glass door, dropped ceiling visible above — The original tub and shower before renovation, with the dropped soffit ceiling still in place above it.

The finished full bathroom with a tub and shower beneath a skylight, a wall-mounted toilet, and a floating vanity — The finished full bathroom — tub and shower beneath the new skylight, wall-mounted toilet, and a floating vanity with an LED mirror.

The work

The original vanity before any work began, with a dated tile countertop and oval drop-in sink — The original vanity, before any work began — a dated tile countertop, oval drop-in sink, and floor-mounted toilet.

A close view of the original tile countertop with an oval sink and gold double-handle faucet — A close view of the original countertop and fixtures — the same builder-grade tile and gold hardware found in both bathrooms.

The original bathroom with a floor-mounted toilet and a decorative diamond-pattern tile floor — The original bathroom, wall to wall — floor-mounted toilet, dated cabinetry, and a decorative tile floor from the home's earlier era.

Demolition complete, with walls stripped to the studs and insulation and old fixtures broken down on the floor — Demolition complete — walls stripped to the studs and insulation, old fixtures broken down and cleared from the room.

A ceiling soffit opened up, exposing old insulation, wiring, and the original skylight opening — The dropped soffit ceiling opened up, exposing the original skylight well and old wiring inside it.

The old skylight removed, leaving an open ceiling well with a work light lowered through it — The old, leaking skylight removed, leaving the ceiling well open before the new unit went in.

The concrete slab cut open on the bathroom floor, with the old shower valve rough-in exposed in the wall — The concrete slab cut open to reach the sewer connection, with the old shower valve's rough-in exposed in the wall above it.

A round hole cut into the concrete slab with a new waste pipe stub reaching down to the sewer connection — The slab cut through to the sewer connection below, with the new waste pipe stub set into the opening.

A plumber sweating copper pipe fittings with a torch, with the cast iron waste stack exposed in the open wall — Sweating copper fittings during the plumbing reroute, with the cast iron waste stack exposed in the open wall.

A new brass shower mixing valve installed on copper pipe runs inside an open stud wall — The new shower mixing valve installed on copper runs, positioned inside the open wall.

A freshly cut section of concrete slab with rubble, a reciprocating saw, and tools scattered around it — Cutting the concrete slab to reach the sewer line below — rubble and tools mark work still in progress.

A galvanized vent pipe and copper stub-outs exposed in an open stud wall with tools on the floor — The vent stack and copper stub-outs exposed during the rough-in, with tools staged on the floor.

A new black ABS waste pipe connected into a cut opening in the concrete slab, tied to a coupling below — The new waste pipe connected into the slab opening, tied into the sewer line with a rubber coupling.

Two installers measuring the exact position for a new shower valve in an open stud wall — Measuring the exact position for the new shower valve — with wall-mounted fixtures, every connection has to land precisely where the fixture expects it.

A worker test-fitting a TOTO wall-mounted toilet bowl onto its concealed carrier frame while measuring its height — Test-fitting the TOTO toilet bowl onto its carrier frame, measuring to set the exact mounting height.

A cut trench in the concrete slab with a level laid across the waste pipe to check its grade — Checking the waste line's grade with a level, in the trench cut for the new sewer connection.

A close view of black ABS waste pipe fittings joined together inside a cut slab opening — A close view of the waste pipe fittings joined inside the cut slab opening.

A concealed carrier frame for a wall-mounted toilet, built into the open stud wall — The concealed carrier frame for a wall-mounted toilet, built into the open stud wall before the walls closed.

A TOTO concealed carrier frame next to electrical junction boxes and yellow low-voltage wiring in an open wall — The concealed carrier frame alongside the low-voltage wiring run for the mirror's lighting and speakers.

A second concealed carrier frame with a waste pipe running down into a cut trench in the slab floor — The second bathroom's carrier frame, with its waste line running straight down into the cut slab trench.

Copper and black ABS pipe fittings joined together inside an opening cut in the concrete slab — Another slab opening with the copper and waste pipe fittings tied together at the sewer connection.

A new bathroom exhaust fan being installed in the attic, with yellow low-voltage wiring run to it — A new exhaust fan going into the attic, with low-voltage wiring already run to the fixture location.

A worker building new stud framing with a nail gun and level inside a gutted bathroom — Framing modifications inside the gutted bathroom, built to take the new fixture layout.

The base of a concealed carrier frame with its waste line running directly into a cut trench in the slab — The carrier frame's base, with its waste line running straight into the cut trench below.

Spray foam insulation filling the wall and ceiling framing of a gutted bathroom, with an electrical box in place — Spray foam insulation filling the walls and ceiling — an upgrade from the original batt insulation.

A fully spray-foam-insulated bathroom with a TOTO carrier frame centered in the far wall — The bathroom fully insulated in spray foam, with the concealed carrier frame centered in the wall.

A new skylight installed in a ceiling patched with purple moisture-resistant drywall, with a bath fan nearby — The new skylight installed, with moisture-resistant drywall going up around it and the exhaust fan beside it.

Red waterproofing membrane applied over cement board on a tub surround with a niche, tub protected in plastic — Waterproofing membrane applied over the cement board tub surround, with the niche formed and the tub protected below.

Two laser levels projecting reference lines while a worker sets the first course of large-format tile — Setting the first course of tile against two laser levels, with the waterproofing membrane already complete.

A worker cutting a large marble-look tile slab to size outdoors on a wet saw — Cutting the 48 by 48 inch tile to size outdoors on a wet saw.

A worker using suction cup handles to carry a large cut tile slab from an outdoor cutting table — Handling a large-format tile slab with suction cup handles after it's cut to size.

A close view of a tile saw blade cutting along a marked guideline on a large tile — A close view of the wet saw cutting precisely along a marked guideline.

Laser cross-lines guiding tile installation around a partially tiled shower niche — Laser cross-lines guiding the tile layout around the shower niche, still mid-installation.

The new skylight seen from below, with large-format tile installed on the wall underneath it — The new skylight, with large-format tile going up on the wall below it and waterproofing membrane visible at the shower niche.

A wide view of a bathroom with tile progressing across two walls, skylight visible above, laser level in use — A wide view of tile progress across two walls at once, with the new skylight overhead and a laser level guiding the layout.

A large tile with pre-drilled holes for a faucet, held with suction handles against a partially tiled wall — A tile cut with holes for the faucet, being test-fit against the wall with suction handles.

A small powder room with tile progressing from floor to ceiling, guided by a laser level — Tile going up in the powder room, guided by a laser level from floor to ceiling.

A large tile slab held outdoors with a precise rectangular niche cutout, deep marble veining visible — A tile cut with a precise niche opening, held up outdoors before installation.

Two workers collaborating on tile installation around a protected tub — Two installers working the tub surround together, tiling from both sides of the room.

An installer using a laser level to align large-format tile on a bathroom wall — Installing the large-format tile with a laser level for reference — a wall even slightly out of square shows immediately at this size.

A worker mixing tile mortar in a bucket while standing on a platform in the powder room — Mixing mortar for the powder room's tile install, standing on a platform bench.

A fully tiled shower alcove nook with toilet rough-in visible at the base of the wall — A tiled alcove nearing completion, with the toilet rough-in still exposed at the base.

A nearly complete tub and shower room with tile on every wall and a built-in stone bench seat — The room nearing completion, tiled on every wall with a built-in bench seat taking shape.

A tub and black shower valve set into a finished large-format tile surround — The tub and shower valve set into the finished tile surround, with the fixture spec sheet still taped to the wall.

A fully installed matte black shower system with rain head, slide bar, and hand shower, with instructions taped to the wall — The shower system installed — rain head, slide bar, and hand shower in matte black, with the install instructions still taped up.

A near-finished tub and shower with black hardware, the tub filled with water, toilet flange visible on the floor — The tub and shower near finished, filled with water to test the plumbing, with the toilet flange set and waiting.

A worker assembling the flush button hardware for a wall-mounted toilet's concealed carrier, crouched on the floor — Assembling the flush button hardware for the concealed carrier, working at floor level near the vanity.

A near-finished powder room with a wrapped vanity, lit mirror, and a toilet with its bidet remote taped to the seat — The powder room near finished — vanity still wrapped for protection, mirror light on, and the bidet remote taped to the toilet seat.

The result

The finished bathroom with a tub, black shower hardware, wall-mounted toilet, and a backlit LED mirror over a floating vanity — The finished bathroom, another angle — tub, black hardware throughout, and the backlit LED mirror over the floating vanity.

The finished bathroom seen from the doorway, with the vanity, mirror, and tub all visible together — The finished bathroom seen from the doorway, with the vanity, mirror, and tub all in view.

The finished bathroom with the toilet lid open showing the bidet control panel, tub and vanity beyond — The finished bathroom, toilet lid open to show the bidet control panel, with the tub and vanity beyond.

The finished powder room toilet, wall-mounted against a large-format tile wall with a flush plate above it — The finished powder room toilet, wall-mounted on its concealed carrier, with the flush plate set into the tile above it.

The finished powder room with a floating vanity, backlit mirror, and wall-mounted toilet against floor-to-ceiling tile — The finished powder room — floating vanity, backlit mirror, and the wall-mounted toilet against floor-to-ceiling tile.

The completed powder room with floor tile installed, toilet paper holder mounted, and the vanity in place — The powder room fully complete — floor tile down, hardware mounted, ready to move in.

Common questions

What does it take to convert a bathroom to wall-mounted fixtures?

A wall-mounted toilet needs a concealed carrier frame built into the wall, and a wall-mounted vanity needs its supply and waste set at an exact height inside the wall rather than under a cabinet. Both usually mean opening the wall, modifying the framing, and rerouting plumbing to meet the new fixture positions before anything gets closed up.

Does a concrete slab foundation make plumbing relocation harder?

Yes, since reaching a sewer connection under a slab means cutting into the concrete rather than working from an open crawlspace or basement. On this project that was the only way to relocate the waste line to where the new wall-mounted fixtures needed it.

Can large-format tile go on walls that aren't perfectly square?

Only after the walls are corrected first. A 48 by 48 inch tile has no way to hide a deviation, so installers use a laser level to keep the wall true and bring the substrate into line before setting any tile, which is exactly what this bathroom remodel required in both rooms.

What's involved in replacing a bathroom skylight during a remodel?

It means opening the ceiling around the existing skylight, removing the old unit, and installing a new one before the drywall and tile go back up. On this project both bathrooms had leaking skylights that were only fully diagnosed once the ceilings were already open.

Considering wall-mounted fixtures for your bathroom?

Call (310) 717-0432 or request a consultation — we'll walk through what it takes to frame for concealed carriers and reroute plumbing behind the wall.

Call (310) 717-0432