What are 10 common bathroom renovation mistakes people make?

Strictly speaking you don’t have to do anything and can put your trust in your renovation company.

Although, have an idea of what you want before organising bathroom renovation quotations. Pull out pages from bathroom magazines, grab pictures from Instagram or Pinterest, follow bathroom designers or even use websites like Reece. You want a basic idea of the look you want for your new bathroom. 

This might be the start of a project to renovate your entire home so maybe it will kick off the style theme. Or you might be trying to get the bathroom to match the rest of the homes style, either way you want to make sure it flows. You don’t want a bright and bold bathroom when the rest of your house might have an earthy colour scheme. With our experience we have seen first hand what can happen if you aren’t clear about what it is you are after. You won’t even be able to get accurate quotes. It’s important to know what you want prior to starting your renovation as it can be costly to change your mind once work has started.

There is no point purchasing a bath or vanity prior to having a plan in place. If you are on the second floor of an apartment block how will you know if your new free standing 100kg bath can be placed on the floor without falling through the ceiling? So it’s important to make sure the building, plumbing, electrical and legal aspects are going to be covered before you start buying things.

The biggest thing we see people do is select lots of things which can then crowd the space available in the bathroom, less is more. It’s hard to visualise the glossy showroom pieces that are on display in big showrooms with high ceilings, very few walls, lots of space and nice lighting. Your bathroom will have 4 walls, a low roof etc so sometimes getting too carried away won’t result in the right design to suit your space. 

So have someone do a measure and quote to find out what is going to be suitable as you will be surprised what can be achieved in all room types. 

We uncover poor waterproofing work all the time, it’s the area you can’t see because it is covered by flooring, tiles and fittings. Waterproofing must be done by a licensed professional and is not one of those DIY areas. One small leak can lead to damage to a building foundation, wall or worse, neighbouring properties. 

A shower could leak and slowly rot the timber in the floor beams, that damp area can attract white ants and then, well, you know the rest, it is a small disaster. Using a reputable bathroom renovation specialist that will do the job from start to finish means everything is managed correctly and you avoid one tradesperson blaming another one. We are a bathroom renovation specialist and use a team of tradesmen who have worked together for years and follow each other seamlessly.

Apart from your kitchen, the bathroom is the statement room for any property. You might be tempted to put in a freestanding bath, however, this style of bath does not suit all bathroom spaces or even building types. The same can be said for double vanities. Yes they’re practical, but be sure that your bathroom space can accomodate a larger sized vanity. Having a plan drawn will give you an idea of what size bath and vanity will work best. 

Luckily there are many modern baths and vanities that come in a variety of sizes and styles to suit all bathroom spaces. The more floor space you make visible, the larger the room will feel so design details like wall mount vanities in particular, are a fantastic way to show off more floor space.

We’ve all seen the judges on The Block and their most common critique is ‘storage space’ It is so easy to choose slim, sleek pieces for your room and forget about the practicality aspect.

So, this has to be planned for during your bathroom renovation. Nothing spoils a newly renovated bathroom more than having toiletries sitting all around your sink, bath or shower floor. We have come across lots of storage and space saving ideas.

Recessed shaving cabinets are a fantastic way to store toiletries and appear to be a large mirror alone, avoiding crowding the vanity area. Shower niches are innovative way to add a feature to your bathroom and keep your shower toiletries off the floor.

The list goes on but again it’s wise to work with an experienced bathroom renovator.

It may seem like a great idea to move the location of your bath, shower or toilet, but remember moving these items means relocating the plumbing. It is not anywhere near as easy as moving furniture around. Relocating plumbing is the perfect way to create a more functional bathroom and correct poor design layouts, but you have to weigh up the expense. Relocating bathroom plumbing will add to your bathroom renovation budget.

So, sometimes a retrofit may make more sense, either way because we are qualified plumbers we can make sure whatever is required can be done.

So many bathrooms still contain a traditional small window to maximise privacy. Although this severely limits the natural light that flows into the bathroom and even more importantly airflow. Having good natural light and airflow within your bathroom reduces mould and can make the room feel larger and more fresh. If your window is small you can expand it in most cases to fit a larger one, as a qualified builder we can help with this. We can also do things like install a skylight or exhaust system fan etc.

It sounds boring but sometimes sticking with classic themes is the more sensible approach to take long term. A bathroom renovation is a considerable investment that you don’t want to date in just a few years time. Just as fashion trends come and go, so do trends in home decor. Only it’s a lot more expensive to change your bathroom tile colour than it is to change your wardrobe. When deciding your colour scheme and choosing your fittings, stick to classic colour schemes and styles that are timeless such as whites and neutrals. You can always add a particular style or colour with decor and towels to your bathroom and change these to suit the latest trends.

Be sure the items you choose are practical not just beautiful. 

A deep free standing bath is an amazing piece but then it may not be ideal to use for your kids. An incredible pendant light may look stunning in the showroom but will it provide the right light to do your makeup? An above counter basin feels like you are in a hotel, but because they are normally raised they are harder for children to use.

Want to date in just a few years time? Just as fashion trends come and go, so do trends in home decor. Only it’s a lot more expensive to change your bathroom tile colour than it is to change your wardrobe. When deciding your colour scheme and choosing your fittings, stick to classic colour schemes and styles that are timeless such as whites and neutrals. You can always add a particular style or colour with decor and towels to your bathroom and change these to suit the latest trends.

One if the biggest variables for renovating is the budget and how well it is planned. Nu-Trend can help you to plan your bathroom renovation, here is our guide to bathroom renovation costs in Sydney.

We are often asked if we can renovate a bathroom for $5,000, of course it is possible, but it also means that different choices are made in relation to what gets renovated, materials, time taken and quality of the labour used to complete the job. It is like buying any item, there are always super cheap options, mid-range and high-end – getting a bathroom renovated is a similar scenario.

A high quality vanity unit might cost $1,000 on its own and has beautiful design details, unique materials or finishes. Although you can also get a second hand vanity for $100. So you can see just with one item there is a variable of $900 and there are so many elements needed to finish a bathroom like the toilet, shower, floor tiles, wall tiles, lighting, taps, mixers etc.