A conversion in Lenexa's 1970s cohort is a genuinely different job from the same conversion in its 1990s cohort. In the older houses the tub is often steel or cast iron set in a tiled alcove over a mortar bed, so demolition is heavier, the wall substrate behind the tile has to be assessed, and the supply branches feeding the valve may be galvanized. In the newer houses it is a one-piece fiberglass unit against bare studs and copper supply. This is also one of the lighter jobs for Lenexa's licensing requirement, since it involves fewer trades than a kitchen, but the plumber still needs the city business license alongside the county license before the work is scheduled.
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 Lenexa homes
- Cast iron or steel tubs in mortar-set tile alcoves in the older cohort, versus one-piece fiberglass in the newer.
- Wall substrate behind old tile that has to be assessed rather than assumed once the tile is off.
- Galvanized supply feeding the valve in 1970s houses, which is a decision point rather than a given.
- City business licensing for the plumbing sub in addition to the county license, confirmed before scheduling.
Working in Lenexa, KS
Lenexa has roughly 25,600 housing units and a median year built of 1991, but the median hides the detail that matters most on a jobsite here: the single largest cohort is the 1970s, at about twenty-two percent of the stock. That puts a large share of Lenexa houses at exactly the age where original wiring, galvanized supply lines and first-generation subfloors stop being background detail and start setting the scope of a remodel. A 1970s house and a 1990s house in this city need two different conversations, and the address decides which one.
Permits and inspections run through the Community Development Department's Licensing and Permitting division, filed on Accela Citizen Access. Lenexa is one of the few Johnson County cities that stacks its own business license on top of the county contractor license, and it applies that requirement to every subcontractor rather than to the general contractor alone, which is why the credential check here happens before trades are scheduled instead of after. The trade qualification itself is the Johnson County Contractor License, and MrImproveIt holds Class C residential. The code package is its own combination: the 2018 International Residential Code, adopted by Ordinance 5696 and implemented April 1, 2019 then updated by Ordinance 5890 effective August 1, 2022, alongside the 2017 National Electrical Code and a still-in-force 2012 International Energy Conservation Code. Neighborhoods we work in include Old Town Lenexa, Falcon Valley, Canyon Creek, Four Colonies, Greystone Estates and Timber Rock.
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 Lenexa
Two versions of this job exist in Lenexa and they do not cost the same. The 1970s-cohort version removes a cast iron or steel tub from a mortar-set tile alcove, which is heavier demolition, more debris and an unknown wall substrate behind the tile, and it may find galvanized supply at the valve. The 1990s version pulls a one-piece fiberglass unit off bare studs with copper behind it. Beyond that, the drivers are the same everywhere: whether the drain moves, whether the alcove needs reframing, and whether the walls are tile, which is labor, or a solid-surface system, which is material and a shorter schedule.
Permits and inspections for this work in Lenexa
A conversion is filed on Accela through Licensing and Permitting and reviewed against the 2018 IRC as adopted by Ordinance 5696 and updated by Ordinance 5890. The trade qualification comes from the Johnson County Contractor License, where Class C Residential covers single-family remodeling and the D-series classes cover the specialty trades, and Lenexa layers its own business license on top of that for the general contractor and for the plumbing sub. Because this is a smaller scope than a kitchen the credential list is shorter, but it is still verified before scheduling rather than on the day. We confirm current submittal requirements with the division on each job.
Common questions about this work
Is a tub to shower conversion a permit job in Lenexa?
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 Lenexa homeowners
Is a Lenexa conversion different in an older house?
Substantially. In the 1970s cohort, the largest in the city, the tub is often steel or cast iron set in a tiled alcove over a mortar bed, so the demolition is heavier and the wall substrate behind the tile is unknown until the tile is off. In the 1990s cohort it is a one-piece fiberglass unit against bare studs. Those are two different scopes and two different numbers.
Does my plumber need a Lenexa license for a job this small?
Yes. The city's business license requirement applies to every subcontractor working in the city regardless of the size of the scope, in addition to the Johnson County contractor license that establishes the trade qualification. It is a shorter list than a kitchen, but it is verified before the work is scheduled.
What actually decides the price on this job?
Whether the drain moves, whether the alcove needs reframing, and whether the walls are tile or a solid-surface system. Tile is a labor number and a longer schedule; a solid-surface or acrylic system is a material number and a shorter one. On older Lenexa houses, the condition of the supply at the valve is the fourth variable and it is called out rather than assumed.
Call (913) 395-8571 or request a written estimate before any work starts.