Have been thinking about remodeling your bathroom? Wondering if it's a project you can handle yourself? Why not start with DIY bathroom plumbing and before you know it you'll be redoing the entire bathroom all by yourself.

You've got to start with a plan. What is it you want to do with your bathroom? DO you want to complete strip it out? Change out the fixtures? Or do you want to give it just a partial facelift? Once you decide you need to move fore ward to budget. For this article lets assume you are going to redo the entire bathroom from top to bottom.

A budget of $4000 wouldn't be unrealistic. Here's a rough list of what you might need to buy. Realize that the investment of $4000 is going to increase the value of your home substantially more.

Shower kit and door $800 Tub $450 Shower faucet $200 Vanity & Top $800 Faucet for Vanity $100 Toilet $200 Water Resistant Drywall $50 Floor Tile $200 Grout $20 Pre-hung door $80 Light Fixture $100 Mirror $100 Paint and Wallpaper $100 Rough Plumbing $800

Total $4000

If you are going to need some serious movement of existing sewer and water lines then you'll need to hire a plumber and that will be an additional cost however if all the new pieces are going in the same place as the old ones lived you should be able to avert this cost. It's very room dependent.

When it comes to starting your project safety needs to come first. That means you need to take all the precautions - wearing gloves, goggles for your eyes, a mask, or any other safety equipment that is necessary. Now lets get started:

1. Spread out the builder's paper to help trap all the demolition material. It's not 100% but it sure does help keep things in one place.

2. If you are tearing out walls now is the time to get busy. Nothing neat here just fly at it.

3. Next you will need to pull the fixtures - tub, sink, and toilet. Dismantle it all!

4. Once you have everything stripped out of the room it's time to do your cleanup.

5. The sub floor will be the first to go in and then any replacement dry wall.

6. Once that's been taken care of it is time to start the fixture installations. The tub and shower installation can be a big one so you may need some additional help.

7. After all the fixtures are in place you'll have the finishing touches such as lighting, flooring, and paint and wall paper.

How much plumbing changes you will need to make will depend on what is occurring in your bathroom. If fixtures are in the same place as the old ones your biggest plumbing job will be hooking up the new taps and the toilet. But if you moved things around you may have to redo some basic plumbing. You can attempt this yourself if you like or hire an experienced plumber. There are some great books and online resources that can help you complete this.

DIY bathroom plumbing doesn't have to be that difficult as long as you follow the directions. And with so many terrific resources around finding step by step help shouldn't be difficult at all. And won't you feel great when that bathroom is finished and you can take full credit for the transformation?

Miller's Guide to Home Plumbing

Miller's Guide to Home Plumbing Introducing the Carpentry & Construction Series from McGraw-Hill

The experts show you how to tackle any wiring, remodeling, or plumbing project

Written by authors of McGraw-Hill's popular Carpentry & Construction, Fourth Edition, this new, dollar-saving series is great for do-it-yourselfers, weekend repairmen and home owners, as well as seasoned pros who want to stay on top of the latest methods, materials, equipment and code requirements. Organized according to the actual stages of construction, these titles detail everything needed to successfully plan, manage, and complete a job. All are heavily illustrated and contain valuable tip-boxes throughout.

* Covers roughing-in fixtures and installing the most common home equipment such as sinks, bathtubs, shower stalls, and septic tanks

* Includes emergency repairs and remodeling