A bathroom renovated in an old home in Leichhardt
3 Weeks to complete
$27 – $30,000 budget
Ground floor
Complete renovation
I would not hesitate to recommend Nu-Trend to anyone looking for a high quality bathroom renovation.
The team were simply superb, right from the quoting stage through to completion. Our renovation resulted in a complete new floor plan (including removing a wall), new floor joists, ceiling and a skylight. Other companies declined to quote due as it was more than a ‘standard’ renovation, but Nu-Trend were able to offer a complete solution for us.
Nu-Trend involved key trades (plumber, carpenter etc) during the quoting stage, whereas other companies who provided us quotes only sent their salesperson.
Nu-Trend’s approach gave us confidence in the quoting process and this confidence continued right through until the job was completed. Nu-Trend’s attention to detail was outstanding and this shows in the overall execution of the job.
Renovating the main bathroom in a home in Leichhardt, Sydney
Nu-Trend is a bathroom renovation contractor that can demolish and then build a brand-new bathroom in old homes in suburbs like Leichhardt in Sydney. We do complete room renovations for homeowners that want to build a brand new, modern bathroom design, with this example that needed new tiling, bath, shower, vanity, toilet & even floor repairs.
For all the complete bathroom renovations that we construct in Sydney, we always recommend doing a full demolish of the existing room. It means we are stripping back every item from the furniture, fittings, tiling and even the waterproofing to be able to work with freshly prepared surfaces. Taking this approach can ensure everything is renovated to a high standard because any new renovation work is done from scratch compared to trying to make adjustments to pre-existing conditions in a building. This is even more important for older homes like the ones around Leichhardt that may have old plumbing systems or flooring.
Fortunately for these home owners it was a good renovating decision to make because we discovered asbestos in the ground under the bathroom which is a health danger of course. The owners had decided to do a full bathroom renovation that included;
- Moving some of the taps.
- Adding a separate laundry to make the bathroom larger.
- Increasing the size of the toilet room.
- Adding underfloor heating.
- Checking all the sewer pipes to make sure nothing was cracked or broken.
- Repairing the entry doors
- Installing a new combination bath and shower unit
- Excavate the sub floor to remove all the asbestos
- Install new timber flooring
- Skylight installation
- Hot and cold water rough in
- Electrical rough in
- Fit off fixtures and fittings
- Grouting
- Wall tiling
- Floor tiling
- Waterproofing
- Screeding gradients to correct falls
- Priming walls
- Render correction of all walls
- Painting
Renovating an old style bathroom in Lewisham, Sydney
A renovating contractor for 1980’s style bathrooms in Leichhardt
This old bathroom in Leichhardt was quite dated and the home owners wanted something more modern and contemporary. As you can see in the before and after photo comparison it is a complete bathroom renovation that totally transforms the available space with a new style and look. This has been made possible by making changes to the floor plan layout, new bathroom plumbing and using the latest, modern, building materials.
Renovating a bathroom that has asbestos
One of the problems that you might encounter when renovating an older home are issues relating to the flooring, sub floor or even the ground underneath the room. While the room might still be in one piece, what you can’t see is any potential damage underneath. In the case of this home once we demolished the room we discovered asbestos in the rubble underneath.
For every modern bathroom you have to have a required amount of ground clearance to ensure there is proper ventilation and space or all the plumbing. Once we excavated some of the dirt we found small pieces of asbestos mixed in with the rubble. This was pretty common in the early days where rubbish would be mixed into the soil, assuming no-one would ever disturb it. It isn’t dangerous if it is left there and not disturbed but once the soil is moved it poses a health risk.
Unfortunately it means we had to halt all renovation work and the home owner had to make a quick decision on how they wanted to proceed. The building site has to get shut down and can’t be worked on until it is cleared to be safe. All of the asbestos has to be removed and signed off by a professional before work can commence to complete the renovation.
So we had to;
- Stop all renovation works
- Immediately create an asbestos removal control plan which involves;
- Suiting up during demolition with protective safety suites
- Separating all asbestos
- Disposing of asbestos at licensed yards
Are cheap renovations really worth it?
The other aspect we had to deal with was all the previous renovation work that a family friend had completed on the site. The work was done in the last 10 years and they used a friend to save time and money. Although it also meant it wasn’t done correctly so for example;
- There was only a 50 mm concrete and cement slab on-fill in the bathrooms with no steel.
- Gyprock stuck directly onto the brick wall
- Timber floors built on 70x45mm joists and bearers that were the wrong size
- Bathroom fixtures that didn’t work according to room finishes as well as poor spacing.
- The door jam had no lintel to support 1M of brick header,
- Old termite damaged timber joists were just built on top of rather than replaced, so offered little under floor support.
Can you change the layout of an old bathroom in Leichhardt?
If you have an old home in Leichhardt (or any other suburb for that matter) its possible to change the layout of your bathroom by moving the plumbing locations.
Concrete slab
For a home that is built on a concrete slab we might have to cut into it to re-route pipes.
Brick pillars
For traditional homes built on brick pillars we can normally get under the flooring to adjust the existing piping.
How difficult this is will depend on the property & the existing plumbing that is in place. Old clay pipes that are deep in the ground or thick concrete slabs will be harder for us to work with vs PVC piping that is within easy reach under the home.
The amount of work required will also depend on how much is being changed. In this bathroom the toilet, shower and vanity was all being moved, so it was quite an extensive process to get all the new bathroom plumbing installed correctly.
The benefit of doing this is that you can create more space, install a bath plus a shower, move the toilet and more. We can give you a quote and some options so you can figure out your renovation costs.
You don’t need council approvals to renovate your bathroom in Leichhardt in most cases, unless it is heritage listed and you may need to check what is or isn’t possible.
Design ideas for a bathroom renovation in Leichhardt
Lighting
When people ask us to provide a quote to do a renovation in Leichhardt we go through quite a lot of detail. The reason we do this is because there are lots of small things that can be included to really enhance the look of the finished room.
For this bathroom, lighting was a bit consideration so the owner agreed to have under cabinet lighting to illuminate the sink, new down lights on the ceiling and a brand new skylight.
This combination means that any time of day the bathroom will be well lit, feel inviting and also be practical for doing make up or getting that selfie just right.
These small details can change the small bathroom renovation costs quite considerably and be the difference between a ‘cheap’ and ‘expensive’ quote, so it pays to keep an eye on the details.
Custom shower and bath combination
A custom made shower and bath combination is a great way to save space in a small bathroom but give you the best of both worlds.
Instead of needing the space for a separate bath and shower you can have them built to use the same space so you have the choice of using either.
Drain waste
To save money on renovations of a shower some people will choose to install a simple drain waste that you can buy from Bunnings or Reece.
These are fine of course, but if you want a touch of luxury then, a custom made floor waste can be integrated into the floor tiling so that it becomes almost ‘invisible’ when you look into the room. The wider opening can also capture more water too.
Depending on the model you choose, we may even be able to disguise a Reece strip drain depending on the shape & the floor tiling being used.
Underfloor heating
Old bathrooms can have underfloor heating installed. Just because it is an old home doesn’t mean it can’t have modern technology added. The owners wanted to make sure the bathroom felt quite luxurious, so underfloor heating was installed after we finished the new flooring and waterproofing.
Skylight installation
Old homes in Leichhardt normally have quite small windows or are built quite close to each other which means getting natural light into a room can be tricky. With the bit tall ceilings the owners decided to also add a new skylight to help with natural light and ventilation in this old home.
What else did our renovation company complete
in this bathroom renovation in Leichhardt?
#1 PROTECTED THE PROPERTY
Doing as many house renovation projects as we do, we understand how stressful they can be for people trying to live through them. Most tradies also make a big mess. We make sure we protect your property with floor and wall coverings to make sure nothing is damaged while we are renovating your house.
#2 PLUMBING & FLOORING INSPECTION
Nu-Trend is a licensed plumber which is an advantage when you are renovating a bathroom. For every project we inspect all the plumbing to make sure it is ready for use. We conduct a CCTV Camera Inspection of your piping and if required a high pressure jet blast to make sure everything is ready.
#3 TAKING CARE OF THE PROPERTY
It is the small things that count. We will check things like how your pets get into the house, if neighbours require access to driveways or other things that are important to how you live in your home to make sure everything goes smoothly during a renovation.
#4 RUBBISH REMOVAL
Some renovation contractors will not include this in their service, they might leave the rubbish from the demolition in your backyard or on the street. Nu-Trend will make sure all the materials and rubbish that are not used are removed neatly ensuring your property isn’t left in a mess and neighbours are happy.
#5 PRECISE MEASUREMENTS & PREPARATION
We make sure that each part of the renovation project is not only done in accordance to Australian Standards but is precise, measured and correctly prepared.
This includes things like doing a laser level check for the screed and tile height pre start off the plan to make sure the right falls are created.
#6 CUSTOM DRAIN GRATES
For every bathroom renovation project we do we will typically have custom designed drain grates created so they fit your space perfectly.
Same applies for most shower renovations that we do, rather than use off the shelf screens, in most cases we will recommend a custom cut shower screen so it can perfectly fit your room.
