Bathroom renovation + remodel tips
Having been involved in the renovation and remodel of hundreds of bathrooms over the past 10 years I’ve seen a lot of things that work well and many things that don’t.
Bathrooms are one of the most expensive spaces in the home and there are so many decisions that need to be made along the way.
So today I’m sharing a bit of a brain dump of some of my top tips for your next bathroom renovation or remodel project.
1: How much to spend on your bathroom renovation/remodel
The amount you spend on your bathroom renovation should be correlated with the value of your home.
The more expensive the home, the better quality bathroom you should have and the more it should cost. People expect higher quality bathrooms in more expensive houses and will look for high quality fixtures, fittings and finishes.
If your house is in a less expensive area then going with a more basic renovation is appropriate in order to not over capitalise on your renovation/remodel.
Around 3-4% of the value of your home is a good guide to think about when renovating a bathroom (for example if your house is worth $1,000,000 then a guide for your bathroom renovation is around $30,000 or so).
It's always worth thinking about resale when you renovate - even if you're not planning on selling soon! You just never know when you might need to sell and bathrooms are expensive to replace. So always think about how to make a bathroom renovation appealing to as many people as possible!
2: Plan everything in advance
Know the building regulations in your local area and make sure you are doing everything to code. If you don’t know the rules then hire a bathroom designer to help you.
Don’t assume your builder/contractor understands what you want. To avoid getting things wrong you need to over communicate your ideas and have everything agreed to in writing. Verbal decisions in a space where mistakes are expensive to rectify are a recipe for disaster.
Make sure you have drawn up everything you want in your bathroom and have a visual representation of the design - all the way down to the exact location of the toilet roll holder. SketchUp is a fantastic tool for this.
To save money keep your plumbing in the same or similar location - moving plumbing can add thousands of dollars to a renovation/remodel
If you are planning to move plumbing make sure you check this with a builder/contractor or plumber. There are certain locations where running plumbing will be impossible or extremely expensive to install, for example:
running plumbing in existing brick walls requires a lot of expensive work
if you want to move a toilet or floor waste you’ll need access under the house and enough room below the floor line for the plumbing to run
if you’re on a concrete slab then moving floor plumbing is expensive and messy
if you have plumbing running through walls then you will need to make sure this can work with what else is happening in that wall - e.g. electrical or even sliding cavity doors
Consult a builder/contractor if you want to install a heavy (e.g. stone) bath. Often the floor will need to be re-engineered to accomodate the weight, which will be an extra cost.
Plan your electrical sockets/outlets at the start of the renovation. Most building codes have strict rules around placement of these near water sources and people often over look these at the planning stage. This means they sometimes get to the end of the renovation and realise the socket over the other side of the room isn’t helpful for using the hair straightener in front of the mirror! I like to put power points inside the overhead mirror cabinets. That way they are functional but also out of sight (and away from plumbing).
Think about any luxury additions you might want at planning stage as these normally can’t be added in after the renovation has started - for example do you want underfloor heating, a heated towel rail, wall mounted plumbing (e.g. basins that are wall mounted rather than through the floor). All of this will need to be roughed in early in the process. Also think about where the switches for these will be located - e.g. I like to hide the controller for underfloor heating in the overhead mirror cabinets as these are pretty ugly to look at and don’t need to be accessed all that often.
Select all products in advance of demolition of your existing bathroom. There are often long lead times on fixtures and fittings and many people don’t realise that you will need certain parts of your fixtures (e.g. for wall mixers) at the plumbing rough in phase (i.e. before waterproofing). So make sure all your fixtures are on site before the project begins.
When measuring up remember to account for your tiling. I have seen instances where a client has selected and paid for a bath they love only to find it actually was a few mm too large for the space once the tiles had gone in.
Make sure all products that are delivered to site and checked and signed off by your contractor or site manager before they are stored away for use. Often basins, baths or tiles come cracked or broken. If you have stored them for a number of weeks or even months before install and then try to go back to the supplier to claim damages you’ll have a difficult time as they will try and argue that the product got broken on site. It will also cause a delay in your project to arrange for new ones.
3: Make the right tiling choices
Tiling can cause quite a few issues in a bathroom renovation. Here’s a few tips:
make sure to choose the right size of tiles for your bathroom, especially on the floor. For example if you choose a particularly large format tile for a very small bathroom then you will likely end up with lots of cuts and joins in the floor tiles in order to make the fall of the bathroom work (i.e. make sure the water falls back to drains and not out the door!). Discuss tiling size with a tiler before you do your purchasing to make sure it will work well in your space.
think about cleaning when selecting your tiles - penny rounds and small mosaic tiles look beautiful on the floor or up the shower wall but cleaning grout on tiles like that can be a nightmare and can look really bad over time.
choose tiles with the correct slip rating - i.e. make sure it is fit for purpose. A different slip rating is needed for use on the floor vs wall or use in commercial vs residential areas.
layout - make sure you discuss tile set out with your tiler before he/she starts. A good tiler will think through this carefully and many designers will do tile set outs in CAD or other software to make sure it looks good. In particular you’re looking out for:
cuts and joins in weird places (e.g. line of sight as you walk in the room)
symmetry and lines - how the tiles will look visually against other features or fixtures in the bathroom
floor tiles starting with or without joins at the entrance to the room
consider the quality of the tiling installation - a good tiler is worth the money, don’t go with the cheapest person as the tiling of a bathroom can really make or break the space
in higher end bathrooms avoid the use of ugly trims where mitring would have a better finish. Some tiles can’t be mitred but many can so make sure you discuss how corners and edges will be resolved with the tiler before he/she starts tiling. Often a tiler will tell you something can’t be mitred when it really can so stand your ground :)
If you do have to use trim there are quite a few colours available on the market now so don’t just go with the standard aluminium (which looks pretty ugly in my opinion). Definitely don’t leave this decision to the tiler!
Also be careful with waterproofing:
If your waterproofing is poorly installed this can cause huge structural problems that are expensive to fix.
Make sure you always use a certified waterproofing expert - this is 100% worth the peace of mind, even if it is a little more expensive to install.
Tiling selections can also make a bathroom look bigger or smaller. Lighter colours will make a bathroom feel brighter while darker colours will create a more moody feel (but can also make a room feel smaller too). And the size of the tiles is important as well. Large format tiles can help to make a smaller bathroom feel bigger.
Consider your grout colour at the time of choosing your tiles - grouting can make or break your tiling. Don’t leave this decision up to the tiler!
4: Include lots of storage options
Storage is essential in a bathroom - think through everything you need or want to store in the bathroom and make sure you have a place for it
Vanity - good for larger items like hairdryers, towels etc. - make sure your vanity will survive living in a high moisture environment. Ensure the materials it is made from will stand up to this.
An overhead mirror cabinet or other face level storage is good for things like toothbrushes and cosmetics and things that are used on a daily basis.
Remember that shower niches need to be planned at framing stage - once your waterproofing is in it is too late! So if you want storage in your shower or bath area this needs to be planned early
5: Think about ventilation
Good ventilation will increase the life of your bathroom dramatically and is generally a requirement under building codes as well - so know your local rules
Poorly ventilated spaces will never get the chance to dry out properly and will go mouldy more easily.
If you don't have an external window think about installing a skylight that can open and close (you can get some that are automated which is even better as they will automatically close if it starts raining)
You will also need some kind of exhaust fan and for this think about:
the effectiveness of the fan - is it powerful enough for the size of the bathroom?
the noise levels - some bathroom fans can be particularly noisy, especially cheaper models
where it will be placed in the ceiling (so it’s not right in the line of sight as you walk in, for example)
6: Have a bath in a family home
Pulling out a bath in a family home is a no-no and will really impact you when you come to sell your house.
If you live in a small apartment or a place where families are less likely to live, then a bath isn't essential but in any home that could be for a family there should be at least one bath in one of the bathrooms.
7: Think about lighting sources
Lighting is one of the most important parts of a bathroom and the way it is lit can make a big impact on both the functionality of the space but also the aesthetics of the space as well.
Having a range of different lighting sources will allow you to light the space at different times of day and create different moods in the space as well.
Think about lighting for all different tasks and activities that happen in a bathroom. For example:
natural lighting - try to incorporate plenty of windows in your bathroom if possible. This is great for both ventilation but also for making the room feel bigger. If you can’t install a window due to the location of the room in the house then consider adding a skylight to bring in some natural daylight.
light for applying makeup (make sure this is not overhead or backlit as this will not help even application of makeup) - front lighting sources on both sides is best for makeup application
wall lights are nice as a feature and to create a mood in the evenings
LED strip lighting (for night-time toilet trips) - can be placed on a sensor as well so it automatically comes on if someone enters the room at night
Overhead lighting is good for functionality but can cast unflattering shadows so be careful about the placement of these
8: Don’t be polarising
Try not to make too many 'on trend' design decisions as these will date quickly and bathrooms are expensive to replace!
It’s best to use simple, stylish fixtures and fittings and then add 'on trend' touches with items that are inexpensive to replace - like towels, stools and styling.
Always think about resale even if you’re not planning on selling soon - you just never know when you might need to put your house on the market and bathrooms (and kitchens) are what sell houses so don’t put people off with your polarising design choices.
Share any other tips you have for renovating a bathroom in the comments below - I would love to hear them!
Design your new bathroom in SketchUp with our fun online course for beginners…
If you want improve your work with design clients or you are about to start renovating or remodeling then you will love SketchUp.
With this software you can mock up an entire home in 2D (floor plans, joinery/millwork elevations, lighting and electrical plans and more) and 3D (renderings and perspective drawings) so you can picture exactly what it will look like when it is finished plus prepare your technical drawings for use with your clients, trades and contractors.
Learning SketchUp will save you time, money, mistakes and so much more! It is a well known piece of software in the interior design and architecture industries and will give you a solid technical drawing skill that will immediately upgrade the professionalism of the work you are doing.
I teach an online course for beginners that is focused specifically on using SketchUp for interior design purposes. We have had more than 10,000 students come through the course with so many fantastic projects designed and built!
We have all sorts of students in the course including designers and architects, cabinet makers, home renovators/remodelers, kitchen and bathroom designers, event planners, landscape designers and design enthusiasts.
To find out more about the courses we have on offer click the link below. And reach out if you have any questions I can help with :)
Enjoy the rest of your day!
Clare x
Dr Clare Le Roy
