Hi all,
My bathroom remodel project is chugging along with one nasty surprise after another.

The old vanity has been removed. There is no tile or mud job under the vanity as you can see in the attached image.

The new vanity will fit in that area, and maybe there could be about a quarter inch gap between the mortar border and the new vanity.

What is the best way forward? Install the vanity onto the area and cover the gap with a quarter round? Or, build up the area under the vanity to be level with the rest of the floor and tile all the way before placing the vanity?

Thanks
Tbone

 

I'd fill it in and tile. If you don't want to buy the extra tile you could use plywood to make up the difference. Not having the new vanity set in the hole gives it extra height which means something to me

 

Hate that when I see that.
Is the new vanity bigger then the low area? If so the fastest easy way is to add a piece of plywood the same thickness as the low area.
Those old stops should have been removed and capped off to make it far easier to work around, and replaced with new ones.
Better yet take the time to run them up through the bottom plate and out the wall instead to bring it up to modern codes unless that's an outside wall behind it..

 

You don't tile under a vanity unless it has legs. Fill in with plywood to raise the vanity, and then add a solid wood to kick in front, baseshoe as needed.

 

I disagree. Tiling under the cabinet makes for a much easier time. Everything is level and the same. And any new vanity will fit regardless of the size difference. And the cost for that extra tile is minimal.

 

I agree with X. Tile should not be under cabinets unless cabinets have legs.
This is kitchen or bath.
Just wanted to add: Ensure your buildup (if you use wood) is securely screwed into floor so you have a solid base for vanity.

 

Not every floor is level. When the floor is not level, tiling under a vanity forces you to scribe the vanity to fit an uneven floor, or else forces you to shim the cabinet up so it sits level which forces you to use baseshoe... and it's preferable to avoid that wherever possible.

If the floor is level I have no problem with it. When it's not I want to kick someone's a$$. Most often a tile layers idea of level and a finish carpenters are two different things. Grouting up to a vanity is a sure way to have no gaps under the vanity that have to be caulked or trimmed out. (Which is the case when the vanity is slightly recessed below the surface of the tile.)

But I guess theres always more than one way to do it.

 

This is my point and pet peeve. If you install a lot of cabinets, or just one, it's not good shimming cabinets to a tile floor. The tile is slippery and a little uneven. Both bad situations when you are trying to shim.

 

Thank you guys! Gotta love the variety of answers.
The new vanity has a toe kick, but behind that are 4 legs.

I do have enough tiles to cover the area, but it seems to me that building up with plywood and get the top of the plywood to be level is a good compromise. So, I'll shim the plywood itself if needed and try to avoid directly shimming the vanity. I too would prefer to not lose an inch of vanity height.

Best
TBone

 

I would put down tar paper, wire lath and pour self leveling compound to be even with the surrounding floor. The strongest and easiest way to get a level floor without custom cutting shims to go under a piece of plywood. Chances of the mudbed being even close to uniform thickness is somewhat suspect. You also don't have to worry about cutting around the pipes coming out of the floor. I probably would take a piece of 1/1/2" pvc pipe around 2" long and slip it over the supply lines so they provided clearance to the leveling compound. You can also just wrap them with pipe insulation. Then you have the option to tile or not. I personally would not, but everyone has their opinions. But IMO, this would give you the strongest, level floor that you can just drop a vanity down on to without hassle.

 

If you you use plywood, floor leveler or thin-set with tile, the most important thing is that the floor be level. Shimming the vanity is a last resort. Don't even try to install a vanity on an uneven floor. By using tile across the whole floor including under the vanity makes for a clean and smooth install. You don't need to worry about where grout lines fall (maybe at the edge of the cabinet or right on the grout line). In addition, laying the tile is a lot easier if you don't need to work around a vanity.
If you need to shim the vanity you will be using a consistent surface. Nothing other than the same surface will be perfectly level. Toe kick is never an issue. The vanity should be fastened to the wall and not rely on the floor for stability. Any future change in vanity will be a snap because the flooring will not even enter into the change over. If a leak should occur, a tile floor will handle it better that just plywood. If you have the extra tile use it. I've installed about four vanities in bathrooms and every time I made sure the floor was the same both under and around the vanity. Floor and vanity install was very easy. I use the same procedure when installing kitchen cabinets and dishwasher machines.

 

Thank you all and I have benefitted greatly from all your contributions.
I combined the ideas and am proceeding with the following steps:

1) Reroute plumbing and have them come out from the back wall - DONE
2) Tar paper + wire lathe + self levelling compound to get the area even with the rest of the floor - IN Progress. Needed only about 12 sq ft of tar paper, but the big boxes sell by huge rolls of 300 sq ft. Thankfully, it's under $20. If anyone of you is in Southeast PA and need the rest, let me know
3) Tile the entire floor (Should be ready to tile by this weekend). It's quite a relief to not worry about vanity dimensions or whether they have legs etc...

Thanks again!
Tbone