Tub-to-shower conversions in New Albany
New Albany is the newest housing stock we work in regularly, most of it built from the 1990s onward, and that produces a specific and very common misconception: that the house is too new to need anything. A bathroom finished in 1998 is coming up on thirty years old. It was built to a taste that has moved on, and its waterproofing is the same age as everything else in it. The year-built figures for every town are on the house styles page.
Last updated August 2026 · No prices on this page; the Estimate Builder carries those · Part of the knowledge base
New is not the same as recent
The arithmetic catches people out. A house built in the late 1990s still reads as a new house to anyone who watched it go up, and its bathroom is nonetheless older now than the mid-century bathrooms were when those houses were first being remodeled.
What that means in practice is not that anything is failing. It is that the fixtures reflect a particular period. Almost every primary bathroom of that vintage was planned around a large soaking tub, with a shower treated as the secondary fixture, and thirty years of daily use has usually settled the question of which one the household actually wanted.
What we are usually asked to do here
The same project as in Dublin and Powell: take out the soaking tub, put the space into the shower, and end up with one good shower instead of one unused tub and one cramped stall. In New Albany's larger primary bathrooms that often leaves room to spare, and what to do with the leftover space is worth deciding deliberately rather than defaulting to a bigger shower.
The other common request here is a second bathroom, rather than the primary. Guest and secondary bathrooms in this housing tend to be builder-standard and untouched since construction, which makes them straightforward and predictable work.
Homeowners associations and architectural review
New Albany has more neighborhoods under association governance than most places we work, and it is a fair question whether a bathroom needs anyone's approval. Generally, architectural review covers what can be seen from outside rather than what is inside a bathroom, so interior work is not usually the association's business.
We would not want you to take that as a ruling on your particular association, because they differ and yours is the one that counts. If there is any doubt, ask them in writing before work is scheduled. What associations do sometimes govern is practical rather than aesthetic: where a dumpster or a work vehicle may sit, and what hours work may be done. Those are worth checking, because they affect the schedule.
Two counties
New Albany addresses fall in both Franklin and Licking counties. As everywhere else, that can change which building department a project answers to and does not change anything about the work.
What a New Albany project looks like
- One to two days on site for a conversion, three to five for a full remodel, and a separate longer wait beforehand while your selections are ordered.
- An itemized price before anything is torn out, with changes signed rather than assumed.
- Taped floor protection from the door, a barrier wall at the bathroom, air scrubbers through demolition, at least two full cleanings.
- Lifetime leak-free guarantee on the pan and walls we install, five years on workmanship, finish and adjustment items.
Common questions
Our New Albany house is not that old. Is it too new to remodel?
Almost certainly not, and the arithmetic is what surprises people. A bathroom finished in the late 1990s is approaching thirty years old. Nothing has to be failing for it to be worth changing: it was planned around a large soaking tub because that is what was done then, and thirty years of use has usually settled which fixture the household actually wanted.
Does our homeowners association have to approve a bathroom remodel?
Usually not, because architectural review generally covers what can be seen from outside rather than the inside of a bathroom. Associations differ and yours is the one that counts, so ask in writing if there is any doubt. The rules more likely to affect you are the practical ones: where a work vehicle or a container may sit and what hours work may be done.
Can you do the guest bathroom rather than the primary one?
Yes, and in this housing they are often the more predictable job. Secondary bathrooms here tend to be builder-standard and untouched since the house was built, which means fewer surprises behind the wall than in a room somebody has already worked on.
Is a New Albany address in Franklin County or Licking County?
Both exist. The city spans the county line, so it depends on the address. It does not change the work and can change which building department the project answers to.
The primary bathroom is big. Do we have to fill the space with shower?
No, and it is worth deciding rather than defaulting. When a large soaking tub comes out of an already generous room there is often more space than one shower needs. Some of it is better spent on storage, a bench, a wider opening or simply floor, and a shower that is much wider than it is deep can throw water at its own entrance.
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