measuring - A fundamental art

You couldn't make this up, I swear.

About a week ago I got a call from a long time customer.  Yes, Jan!  I'm going to name and shame you like I promised!!  Jan has a great sense of humour but sadly her measuring skills leave a little to be desired.  In the said phone call, Jan told me she wanted a new vanity unit in her en-suite shower-room installed.  I offered to call round and measure up but she was quite confident she could administer such a basic task and she would go and buy a new vanity then call me when it had arrived.

A couple of days ago I got another call alerting me to the fact the new vanity had indeed arrived and was sat proud as Punch in the garage waiting for me to install it.

This morning, I rocked up with all the necessary tools and, just to see how much room I had to play with measured again.  Mmmm.....had the bathroom shrunk?  Had someone been in and moved a complete wall? I was in desperate need of almost 50 mm.  Not a lot, I grant you, but enough to stop the unit sitting pretty in its assigned spot. 

I called Jan in, who brought in her tape.  The space in which the vanity was going, between the shower screen and the wall according to Jan's measuring showed a gap of over 900mm and as the unit was 895mm she seemed perplexed as to what I was talking about until I directed my gaze to the shower-tray lip, which projected almost 60mm further out than the screen.

Now, as I am always telling customers, there is always a way round the problem.  I couldn't cut the vanity to size or the door on one side wouldn't open, so my suggestion was to take it back and find something smaller.  Jan had a far better idea.  "Why dont you take down the shower screen and knock out the shower tray and make the shower smaller?"

Quite simply.  It would be nigh on impossible to find matching tiles to replace the broken ones with.

So we had a coffee, at which point Jan decided she didn't like the tiles anymore, didn't like the shower enclosure and wanted the whole thing ripped out and replaced.

LESSON #2 - MAKE SURE YOU MEASURE TWICE (AND CUT ONCE) AND CHECK THERE IS NOTHING ELSE BUTTING INTO THE SPACE YOU ARE MEASURING

The upshot is - Whole new ensuite all for the sake of a new vanity unit.  I must admit......nice unit.

After I rip it all out tomorrow, I'll tell you all about tiling and how to do it.  Most people think its really difficult and are terrified to attempt it.  Its a cinch!  And tomorrow you will start finding out how easy it is.

Until next time