Bathtub refinishing in Hawaiʻi Kai and East Honolulu.

1960s and 70s homes, original bathrooms

Hawaiʻi Kai was developed from the early 1960s, and a large share of its houses and marina-front townhomes still have the steel tubs they were built with. The same is true of ʻĀina Haina, Niu Valley and Kuliʻouʻou, where most homes date from the 1950s and 60s.

These are well-kept homes where the tub is often the one thing that gives away the bathroom's age: dull, a little rough, rust at the drain.

Kāhala and Diamond Head

Older Kāhala and Diamond Head homes frequently have cast iron tubs, including large and unusually deep ones that would be very hard to replace like-for-like. Refinishing keeps them.

Ocean air on every side

East Honolulu is surrounded by water — the marina, Maunalua Bay, the Ka Iwi coast. Salt air finds any break in a tub's enamel. A poured coating seals the whole surface in one seamless layer, and because it's poured rather than sprayed, it goes on thick even at the edges where sprayed films run thin.

Price

A flat $635 for a standard tub, same as in town. Extra-large or unusual tubs are quoted from a photo.