Most people have never watched a bathroom get pulled apart and put back together, so the middle of the job can feel like nothing is happening. It usually is. A fair bit of a renovation is waiting for something to cure before the next trade can start. Here is the order it runs in and roughly what each stage looks like from where you are standing.

Before anything comes out

We agree the scope in writing, you choose your tiles, tapware, vanity and screen, and we order them. Anything with a lead time gets ordered early so the job does not stop halfway through waiting on a delivery. We also agree which days the room will be unusable, so you can plan around it.

On day one we cover the floors on the way in, set up dust protection at the door and get a bin on site.

Strip out

Everything comes out. Tiles, screed, vanity, toilet, screen, sometimes the wall sheeting as well if we are going back to frame. This is the loud part and it is usually over in a day for a normal bathroom.

It is also the point where an old house tells you what it has been hiding. If there is a rotten stud, an old leak or plumbing that was never right, this is when we find it. We stop, show you, and price the fix before carrying on.

Plumbing and electrical rough in

With the walls open, the plumber sets the pipework for the new layout and the electrician runs cable for lighting, power, heating and the exhaust fan. If you are moving the shower or the vanity, this is the stage that makes it possible, and it is the reason a layout change costs what it does.

Sheeting, screed and falls

New wall sheeting goes on, and the floor gets screeded so it falls to the waste at the right rate. Getting the falls right is the difference between a shower that drains and one that puddles for the next twenty years. It is not glamorous work and it is one of the parts we take the longest over.

Waterproofing

The wet areas get waterproofed to the Australian Standard, and then it is left to cure. Nothing can happen in the room while that is going on, which is usually the quietest day of the job and the one people ask about. It is also the part you will never see again once the tiles go on, and the most expensive thing to get wrong.

Tiling

Setting out comes first, because where the first tile lands decides where every cut falls. Then walls, then floor, then grout. Depending on the tile, the adhesive and the grout, the room needs somewhere between 24 and 48 hours before it can be used. We tell you the exact number once you have chosen your materials.

Fit off

Vanity, toilet, tapware, shower screen, mirror, towel rails and accessories all go in. The plumber and electrician come back to connect and test everything. Silicone goes into the internal corners last.

Paint, clean and handover

Ceiling and any painted wall areas get done, the room gets a proper clean rather than a sweep, and we walk through it with you. If something is not right, we would rather hear it while we are still there than a week later.

How long the whole thing takes

Around a week for a smaller bathroom and two to three weeks for a larger one. The size of the room matters less than how much is changing behind the walls. If it is the only bathroom in the house, we will tell you before we start roughly how many days you will be without it, and we plan the job to keep that stretch as short as we can.

Ready to get started? Call Harry on 08 6261 4432 or tell us about the room and we will come and take a look.