A tub-to-shower conversion in Leawood benefits from an amendment most homeowners never hear about. City Code 4-939 repeals IRC Section R315.3, the provision that requires carbon monoxide alarms to be added in existing dwellings when alteration work is permitted. In some neighbouring cities a permitted interior alteration triggers a whole-house alarm retrofit; in Leawood that specific trigger has been repealed, so a conversion stays a conversion. The work itself is governed by the 2018 IRC as amended, with the 2017 NEC for any circuit that moves. Submittal is through Access Leawood, and the city asks for at least two sets of construction documents even on modest residential scopes.
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 Leawood homes
- A 1990s alcove tub in a secondary bath that the household stopped using years ago.
- A drain located for a tub, several inches off where a shower base needs it.
- Existing CO alarm coverage that is worth improving on its merits even though Leawood repealed the retrofit trigger.
- A subfloor that reads sound until the tub is out and the outside corner is exposed.
Working in Leawood, KS
Leawood is about 13,861 housing units with a median year built of 1989, and the stock is unusually uniform: 11,749 one-unit detached houses, 642 attached, no mobile homes, and 12,023 of 13,174 occupied units owner-occupied. Construction peaked across two adjacent decades, 2,711 units in the 1990s and 2,707 in the 2000s, but the city also keeps an older northern core with 1,846 units from the 1950s and 525 built in 1949 or earlier. Median value is $620,400, which is why a Leawood scope tends to be larger and more finish-driven than the same room a few miles north. Permits are issued by the Codes Administration Division at 4800 Town Center Drive and run through the Access Leawood portal. Residential work is reviewed against the 2018 IRC with Leawood amendments and the 2017 National Electrical Code, both effective May 1, 2020. MrImproveIt carries the Johnson County Class C residential contractor licence Leawood requires. Leawood also requires contractors working in the city to obtain a City of Leawood Business License.
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 Leawood
A Leawood conversion is priced tightly because the scope is genuinely contained here. The repeal of IRC R315.3 means a permitted alteration does not drag a whole-house carbon monoxide alarm retrofit into the job, and the repeal of the arc-fault trigger for circuit extensions means a moved light or receptacle does not either. What remains is the real work: relocating the drain, setting a base in a correctly prepared opening, and a waterproofing assembly that is a system rather than a product. The subfloor at the outside corner is quoted as its own line because it is the item that changes after demolition rather than before.
Permits and inspections for this work in Leawood
The conversion is filed on Access Leawood and reviewed by Codes Administration under the 2018 IRC with Leawood amendments, with the 2017 NEC governing any circuit that moves. The amendment worth knowing on a small interior scope is the repeal of IRC R315.3, which in other cities is what turns a permitted alteration into a whole-house carbon monoxide alarm retrofit. Two sets of construction documents are called for even at this size. The city sets no numeric review turnaround, only the reasonable time standard in City Code 4-907. We confirm current requirements with the division on every job.
Common questions about this work
Is a tub to shower conversion a permit job in Leawood?
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 Leawood homeowners
Will a small bathroom permit force alarm upgrades through my house?
Not in Leawood. City Code 4-939 repeals IRC Section R315.3, which is the provision that requires carbon monoxide alarms to be added in existing dwellings when alteration work is permitted. Some neighbouring cities keep that trigger and a permitted interior alteration there does pull a whole-house retrofit into scope.
Does a tub-to-shower conversion need construction drawings here?
Leawood asks for at least two sets of construction documents on residential submittals. How much drawing a small conversion actually needs is a conversation with Codes Administration, and it is worth having before the package is prepared.
How is the price set if the subfloor might be bad?
It is quoted as its own line rather than folded into the lump sum. The outside corner under an alcove tub is the item that most often changes after demolition, and pricing it separately means the number moves by a known amount rather than by negotiation.
Call (913) 395-8571 or request a written estimate before any work starts.