DIY Guide: Building A New Bathroom

One area of the home that gets a lot of use is the bathroom. Like the kitchen, the bathroom will need renovating every few years, and the cost to do so can add up to a significant amount of money, especially if you engage tradies at every step.

While professional assistance is highly recommended for most tasks, it’s essential to remember that not all work requires a professional touch. For instance, if you’re not adept at sketching a floor plan to scale or using design tools, a designer can step in to guide you. This reassurance can instill confidence in your renovation journey.

Renovating a bathroom is a collaborative effort between you and your chosen professionals. It’s not just about them doing the work, but about you being an active part of the process.

Let’s explore where you can contribute and what activities you can undertake to reduce the cost of a bathroom renovation, making you feel included and part of the process.

1. Design and Plan

While you’ll be in a great position to assist with the bathroom layout, ultimately, planning where the shower, bath (if desired), vanity, and toilet will be located will depend on the placement of the existing plumbing and wiring.

Additionally, the choice of components and their sizes will impact their placement and usability. For example, you will want the toilet to be easily accessible, so it may be the first item on the layout plan.

2. Budget

Once you know what you want in your bathroom and the basic layout, the next step is to work out the cost of the items and their installation.

Do you want an entry-level job or a top-of-the-range one?

Today, you can use AI Chat to answer your questions and get cost estimates within seconds. For example, my question to ChatGPT is:

Question to ChatGPT

What is the cheapest shower, and what would be the most expensive

GPT Answer

If you’re in the US, an entry-level acrylic or fiberglass shower kit and installation will be up to $300, whereas a custom tile shower will be up to $ 16,000. Your role is to research the cost, including the installation of all the components you want in your bathroom.

The cost of a new bathroom may deter you from renovating it, but the upside is that a well-designed bathroom can significantly increase the value of your home. While a bathroom remodel can be costly, you can do some of the work yourself, such as prepping the floor area and walls and painting.

For your budget, add a 10-20% contingency for the unknown additional requirements. These could include unexpected plumbing or electrical issues, or the need for additional materials or labor.

3. Demolition and Prep

It’s not only the cost of creating the bathroom, but there is also the cost of removing the existing one. To avoid this additional cost, maybe it’s a job you can do yourself.

How to demolish a bathroom

What you’re not going to do is arm yourself with power tools and start bringing down walls. Instead, you’ll follow a removal plan like this one:

• Remove personal belongings and furnishings
• Detach fixtures like taps, the shower hose, and the unit
• Remove old tiles, flooring, and materials showing damage

Before getting too carried away with removing walls, your plumber, tiler, or bathroom installer will instruct you on what can be removed due to mold or rot. Do not touch wiring before your electrician confirms what you can remove, which may include an exhaust fan, old heater, lights, and light switches.

4. Plumbing and Electrical

If you’re not a plumber, engage a qualified tradie to run the plumbing supply and waste lines if the existing ones need replacement. There are numerous units to consider for drains and pipes serving the toilet, bath, shower, and basin.

Your electrician will inspect and, if necessary, install wiring, lighting circuits, including outlets, a heater, an exhaust fan, and sockets.

5. Framing, Subfloor, Ventilation, and Waterproofing

Once again, unless you are familiar with framing walls, waterproofing, and creating subfloors, leave these tasks to the professionals.

Building subfloors requires a qualified builder. The subfloor may be over joists or a slab, and the builder can also make the wall framing, including that for the shower. The ideal subfloor is two stacks of thick plywood placed atop each other, and you’ll also need some concrete if you’re going with natural stone tiles. Don’t forget underfloor heating!

Waterproofing is an important task, and you can get instructions from a tiler on how to do it, or for peace of mind, outsource the task.

Waterproofing involves sealing the shower wall and floor with membranes and a cement backer board product – a job best suited for an expert.

Tiling can be a DIY task. Start with the walls and use spacers for the grout. Remember to use a waterproof grout. If in doubt, use a qualified tiler, as they will complete the job in half the time.

6. Painting

Here is a task for you. Paint the ceiling and walls. Follow the set process for prepping the surfaces before and in between coats of paint, applying the recommended undercoat and top coats.

Have fun choosing the top coat colours. It’s essential to use mold- and moisture-resistant paint in the bathroom to prevent the growth of mold and mildew in a damp environment.

7. Install Fixtures

If you have an acrylic or fiberglass shower or bath you’ll need to build the pans to hold them. If in doubt use a bathroom installer to install all your fitures including the toilet and basin.

What you can do is the finishing touches, including:

• Mirrors
• Cabinets
• Storage solutions
• Window dressings

8. Clean Up

Another task is to clean up. This may take a few attempts to remove dust and dirt. Once done, apply silicone around the bathtub where it connects to the walls.