In Fairway a tub-to-shower conversion is a plumbing permit with its own application and its own flat fee rather than a line on a general building permit, which is how this city handles every trade. The work is a 1940s or 1950s alcove, cast iron waste that has to be transitioned rather than simply re-routed, and a subfloor that has carried a filled tub since the Truman administration. Permits here run 180 days and are renewable once at half the original fee, so a small scope has a generous window but not an unlimited one. And because Fairway enforces the 2011 NEC, any circuit that moves is checked against the oldest electrical edition in the market.
What the work covers
- Removing the tub and the surround, which usually means opening the wet wall
- Re-piping the drain, including relocating and resizing the trap for a shower
- Building the pan, either a pre-formed base or a sloped mortar bed with a bonded membrane
- Waterproofing the curb, the corners and the wall planes as one continuous system
- Blocking for a bench, a niche, grab bars and the glass
What we find in Fairway homes
- Galvanized supply feeding the valve in a house built during the 1940s or 1950s build-out.
- A separate plumbing application and flat fee rather than a line on a general building permit.
- Any circuit that moves being checked against the 2011 edition rather than a current one.
- A schedule that has to fit inside a 180-day permit term, renewable once at half the original fee.
Working in Fairway, KS
Fairway is a single build-out. Of roughly 1,817 housing units, about 1,278 went up between 1940 and 1959, close to 70 percent of the entire city, and not one unit was built during the 1980s. The median year built is 1951. The practical consequence is that a Fairway remodel starts from original post-war construction: cast iron drain stacks, early sixty or hundred amp service, ungrounded two-wire branch circuits and plaster on lath rather than drywall. The city runs its own Building and Planning Department with a CitizenServe permit portal, and it enforces the oldest code cycle in this market. Fairway is on the 2012 International Residential Code with appendices A, B, C, G and J, adopted by Ordinance 1610 effective December 14, 2015, alongside the 2012 energy code and the 2011 National Electrical Code. MrImproveIt carries the Johnson County contractor licence that Fairway's code requires be shown to the Building Inspector before any work requiring a building permit.
How this job goes wrong
- A shower run on the old tub drain and trap, which drains slowly and is not compliant
- A pan sloped the wrong way, or a membrane that stops short of the curb
- A curbless entry attempted without lowering the framing, so the slope has nowhere to go
Planning range
$9,000 to $26,000. A solid-surface base in the existing footprint with a standard framed door sits near the bottom. A tiled curbless pan with frameless glass and an accessibility package sits at the top. Plan on one to three weeks of active work.
What moves the price on a tub to shower conversion in Fairway
A Fairway conversion is priced around the two items that change after demolition and one that does not. The cast iron drain is the first: transitioning it to modern material is a different job from re-routing modern material, and it is quoted as its own line. The subfloor at the outside corner is the second, for the same reason. The one that does not change is the permit, which is a plumbing application with its own flat fee, valid 180 days and renewable once at half the original fee. On a scope this size the permit window is generous, so the schedule is set by the work rather than by the clock.
Permits and inspections for this work in Fairway
The conversion is filed as its own plumbing permit with the Building and Planning Department through CitizenServe, at a flat fee, rather than as a line on a general building permit. Any circuit that moves is checked against the 2011 National Electrical Code, the oldest edition in force in this market. A Fairway permit runs 180 days and can be renewed once at half the original fee. The Johnson County contractor licence has to be shown to the Building Inspector before work requiring a permit begins. We confirm current requirements with the department on every job.
Common questions about this work
Is a tub to shower conversion a permit job in Fairway?
It changes the drain and usually the valve, so it generally is. Permit requirements are confirmed with the local building department before work starts.
Should I keep one tub in the house?
Worth considering at resale, particularly if this is the only one. If another full bath has a tub, the concern mostly goes away.
Can the shower be curbless?
Sometimes, and the answer depends on the floor framing below. It has to be decided before demolition, because it is a framing change rather than a finish change.
Tub to Shower Conversion questions from Fairway homeowners
Do I need a permit for a tub-to-shower conversion in Fairway?
Yes, and it is its own plumbing permit with its own flat fee rather than a line on a general building permit. That is how Fairway handles every trade.
How long is a Fairway permit good for?
180 days, renewable once at half the original fee. On a small scope that is a generous window, so the schedule is set by the work rather than by the clock.
What makes a post-war conversion different?
Cast iron waste that has to be transitioned rather than re-routed, a narrow alcove that a modern shower base does not simply drop into, and a subfloor that has carried a filled tub for seventy years. All three are quoted as their own lines.
Call (913) 395-8571 or request a written estimate before any work starts.