Nevada City Victorian Bathroom
1880s Victorian home in Nevada City's historic district, 7×9 primary bath. Period-respecting full rebuild — preserved original moldings, modernized plumbing and ventilation, hand-glazed encaustic tile, walnut floating vanity.
A representative Nevada City project: 1880s Victorian primary bath, 7×9 ft. Original cast-iron tub, hand-set tile shower with cement-board substrate, original lath-and-plaster walls, no exhaust venting, galvanized supply, and plate-rail-style original moldings worth saving.
What we changed
- Carefully preserved the original moldings during demo and reinstalled them on the rebuilt walls
- Removed the tub, demoed the shower to studs (preserving the original wall framing), replaced supply with PEX
- Built a Schluter Kerdi walk-in shower with a hand-glazed encaustic floor and small-format wall tile in a soft sage
- Ran an external exhaust vent (the original had no vent at all — common in homes of this era)
- Installed a wall-hung walnut floating vanity that didn't fight the home's vintage character
- Specified solid-brass fixtures throughout
Result
The bathroom now performs to current standards but still feels like it belongs in an 1880s home — the test we always aim for in Nevada City's historic district. Active build was six weeks; permit was pulled with City of Nevada City.
