Bathtub Wood Panel Cover

You know I love moldings. I also love the look of panels, so I decided to give a plain bathtub a dressed-up treatment.

For many years this is what I have seen every day (picture below), this is my kids' bath, but my bathroom is nothing different.

Boring :(

Once I started thinking about this bathroom makeover, I was determined to build a wooden cover to hide that plastic tub and to give style not only to the tub but to the entire bathroom.

The way I wanted to build it required me to use a router, and guess what...

I bought one  :)

First time using a router.

Scary at the beginning, but for nah.

It was so easy to use!

I just clamped the pieces of wood to the table.... no measuring......no aligning.....  just holding the machine with both hands ... and ... there I went!!! 

Well, the first two inches didn't look that pretty but after that  ... perfection! :)

These rabbets I was making on the wood, were the little indents where the panels were going to be housed.

This is the tip I used:

Here you can see the proof.

After routing the long pieces, they were cut to the dimensions I needed.

This is a project where a Kreg Jig is fundamental to putting it together.

Drilling the holes for the 3/4" material.

With the two pieces of wood clamped together I drove the 1-1/4" screws to tie them together.

After assembling all the pieces, it was time to nail the 1/4" plywood panels on the back.

The rabbeted pieces kept the plywood panels in place and flush with the rest of the boards.

A small molding was added around each panel. This is the profile of the molding I used:

A coat of primer was applied, and all the gaps were filled. Sanding and cleaning well afterward.

Finally, paint was applied, again the same brown I used to paint my kitchen Island and Vanity.

With the panel cover ready, it was time to put it in place.

I took off that piece of plastic molding or strip? (I don't even know what's the name of that ugly thing at the bottom of the tub), cleaned the area well, and began applying the Liquid Nails.

Then, the adhesive caulk was applied to seal the seams around the panel.

And ta-da!! Here is the new bathtub!

I really like it! It dresses up the bathroom a lot more!



06-08-14 Update:
After two years of regular use, the wooden cover is still strong. It hasn't even been re-caulked, though I should do it pretty soon, especially the top seam, just to be safe.

Click HERE for the complete bath makeover.