5 Things To Know Before Your Bathroom Renovation Begins

Tags: Bathroom Renovations

Desperate to embark on a bathroom renovation? Before you do, check out our list of need-to-know essentials. A little planning and forethought will help create a smooth renovation process and ensure you know what a bathroom renovation often involves.

1. A bathroom budget is much more involved than you think.

Don’t be fooled by your bathroom’s size. Despite generally being one of the smaller rooms in the house, there are plenty of elements and tradespersons involved in the making your room brand-new again. Think: plumbing for the shower, bath, toilet and vanity sinks; waterproofing and tiling, plastering, cabinetry and more.

For a better idea on setting your bathroom renovation, take a look at our home renovation costs breakdown or try our home renovation calculator

2. The renovation will take at least four weeks.

While the timeframe will vary depending on your renovation’s scope, you will most likely be without a bathroom for between four to six weeks. So, if your home doesn’t have a second bathroom that means moving out for the short-term or finding an alternative place to shower.

For a better understanding of the timeframe, it’s a good idea to know the steps involved in the bathroom renovation process.

3. A bathroom is usually stripped back to the frame, then replastered, waterproofed and re-tiled.

Unfortunately, it’s not just a case of pulling the tiles off and throwing new ones on.

For a full bathroom renovation, you’re basically starting the room over, which is essential to ensure your bathroom meets australian building standards. Once demolished, the bathroom needs to be strateighted (framing), plastered, screeded and waterproofed to Australian standards.

4. Don’t be surprised if you discover water damage.

It’s not unusual to find water damage issues under an existing shower base or floor.

While often the result of a failed waterproofing membrane or sub-standard waterproofing to begin with, either way the damage must be addressed and could mean replacing the sub-floor and fixing plumbing issues.

5. Research your choice of bathroom style and function.

Before you engage the experts, think about your preferred bathroom style and how you plan to use your space. Having an idea on the various bathroom elements, colours, tiles, mirror, cabinetry and lighting styles which appeal to you will help smooth out the planning and design process. Making decisions on all these options at once can quickly become overwhelming!