How do you remove and replace ugly 1950s pink wall and floor tile in the bathroom?

I have a ranch style home that was built in 1958. The bathroom is all original pink 4" x 4" wall tile, and ugly pink floor tile. We have read that we could just get a hammer and begin smashing until all the wall tiles are removed, and also do the same for the floors after the toilet has been removed. O.k., given that there will be a whole load of mess to clean up....what do we do next? The wall tiles emcompass the full permiter of the room and go up the wall roughly 4 1/2 feet. The upper portion of the wall is old drywall. If we remove all the tiles, will we able to use the base underneath the tiles to set new tiles. Or, if that is not an option, do we need to purchase new backerboard or greenboard and put it in place first. The same rings true for the flooring. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. If there is a less expensive do-it-yourself route to refinish the tiles, those suggestions would also be helpful and appreciated.

How do you remove and replace ugly 1950s pink wall and floor tile in the bathroom?
I really recommend to remove the old board along with the tile, because when trying to remove the tile with any kind of tool you may damage the board especially if it is that old, and the USG green (or Georgia Pacific yellow) panels won't cost more than $8.00 or $20.00 respectively each 4'x8' board and are easy to install. Besides of the greenboard or yellow board you'll just need 1 1/4" screws (or 1 1/4" drill screws if installed on metal stud) drywall tape, Readymix compound and sand paper. For the floor applies a similar method, the only difference is that you'll need 5/8" plywood board or 1/2" durock board underneath the tile.





Any other suggestions for this you can find them at www.usg.com





Also it will be wise to check the conditions of the studs too.





Hope this helps to you. Good luck!
Reply:There are tile enamels. I have never used them but it might be worth a try.





Considering the age of the house, if you remove the tile it would probably be important to replace the green board before re tiling.