Reconditioning
Sometimes the surface doesn't need replacing either.
Not every tired bathtub needs a full reglaze. When the surface underneath is still sound — no chips, no rust, no failed coating — what it usually needs is a deep clean and new silicone in the corners. Nothing gets sprayed on, and it costs a lot less.
Reglaze it, or recondition it?
This is the whole decision, and it gets made on the estimate — not on the phone, and not by you.
Reconditioning
- When The surface is intact. It's dull, dingy, scaled or stained — but not damaged.
- What it is A deep clean of the surface, and the old silicone in the corners cut out and replaced.
- What goes on it Nothing. No coating, no spray, no product left behind.
- What it isn't It won't fill a chip, stop rust or change the color.
- The look Your existing surface, brought back — not a new one.
- The cost Less than a full reglaze.
Reglazing The full job
- When Chips, cracks, rust, a failed old coating — or you want a different color.
- What it does Damage is repaired first, then a new surface goes on.
- What goes on it Several coats of finish, sprayed. A genuinely new surface.
- The look A new surface, in whatever color you pick.
- The cost More, because it's more work.
What actually happens
Two things, and that's the whole job.
- The surface gets deep cleaned. Not wiped — stripped of the scale, soap film and mineral staining that ordinary cleaning stopped touching years ago. On a sound glaze, that's most of what you were looking at.
- The silicone in the corners comes out and goes back new. Old sealant goes black from the inside and no cleaner reaches it. It's a small thing that makes a clean bathroom still read as dirty, and replacing it changes the room more than people expect.
Nothing is sprayed on and nothing is left on the surface. You end up with the surface you already own, doing what it was doing when it was new — which is the point, and also the limit.
Why we'd ever recommend the cheaper one
Because selling someone a full reglaze they didn't need is how you get one job instead of a customer.
A good number of the tubs we get called out to look far worse than they are. Years of hard water, years of the wrong cleaner, and a bathroom that never gets enough ventilation will make a perfectly sound surface look finished. It isn't, and you can tell the difference by hand.
So the estimate is a real assessment, not a formality. We look at the material, we look at whether the glaze has actually worn through, and we check for the things that rule reconditioning out:
- Any chip down to the metal. Once there's a chip, rust has already started underneath it.
- A surface that's gone porous. If it stains again within a day of being cleaned, the glaze is gone.
- A previous coating. Anything sprayed on before has to come off.
- You want a different color. Then it's a reglaze, whatever condition it's in.
If none of those apply, we'll say so — and you'll pay less than you expected to.
Be careful who you let do this
"Reconditioning" is not a protected word, and it gets used to mean completely different things. Before anyone touches your tub, ask them two questions:
- Is anything going onto the surface? Whether a product is being applied or the existing surface is being cleaned changes what you're buying — and how long it lasts. Our answer is no: a reconditioning from us is a deep clean and new silicone, and nothing else.
- If something IS going on, what is it and what's the warranty? A coating sold as a "recondition" is a reglaze with a nicer name and a worse price. If it's being coated, it should carry the same written warranty a reglaze does.
Ask us both and you'll get the same answers you just read. Call — (424) 308-4060.
The full jobs
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