Bathroom renovation?

[Syncope]

I need a mirror and showscreens in my bathrooms replaced. Anyone have any hookups or tips about where to go?

[doriae86]

bunnings and diy.

[[FL0SSIN]]

What yagan said^^

[V70R]

I'm redoing my bathroom as I type. DIY FTW.

Mirrors are easy. If you have a plain style mirror, you can simply dress it up by adding a frame.
I just went to Bunnings and bought 2 lengths of nicely shaped skirting board. With the 45degree cutter/saw you cut out the angles to form a frame. Paint the frame pieces to suit (I chose white gloss enamel) Fix the frame together as one large unit and adhere to the mirror. Makes a MASSIVE improvement.

Lighting: replace all shitty lights with down lights. Install down lights over basin but make sure you get the 'gimble' style ones that have a hinge for angles. Angle the down lights forwards towards the mirror as this will eliminate harsh shadows and stop the missus from whinging her face looks shit in the mirror.

Tiles. All tiles can be repainted. Wash all tiles with sugar soap. Paint over area with primer. Apply 3 coats of any tile enamel paint (again, I chose white). Paint over the grout if you wish - makes no difference. Some very simple steps using stuff from Bunnings.

Shower screens can be had from anywhere - Target / Bed Bath n Table / Lincraft / Spotlight. 30 second job.

[wormbo2]

^^WHS^^

Also, to bring your bathroom into the modern era, simple upgrades like:
A new 'square tube' shower-rail, they look flash and modern.
Shower curtains- nice simple designs, not floral or fish, ikea do nice ones for cheap. :)
Floor mat- I personally just used a neutral brown shagpile, contrasts well with the white/cream wall and bench, and feel nice underfoot!

[Syncope]

Hmm, thanks DIYers haha, just shown me how lazy i am.

I'll pop into bunnings and see what my renovating skills are.

[wormbo2]

Good luck mate!
the only thing about Bunnings, is that once you start a renovation, everything in the Warehouse seems to 'need to be' updated in your house. its addictive. haha

[V70R]

Good luck mate!
the only thing about Bunnings, is that once you start a renovation, everything in the Warehouse seems to 'need to be' updated in your house. its addictive. haha
Sometimes you have no choice with a missus who keeps damaging everything.

[Ryan1080]

Good luck mate!
the only thing about Bunnings, is that once you start a renovation, everything in the Warehouse seems to 'need to be' updated in your house. its addictive. haha

Quoted for truth!!!

Been living in my house for over 6 years and done fuck all till recently, when walls in the showers started to leak. What was meant to be a quick and simple tiling job in the area affected, ended up with everything getting upgraded, with expensive stuff mind you.

-all tiles new (entire walls covered)
-new mirrors and shower screens
-new lighting and fans
-new continous flow hws with individual temp control
-spa bath
-stone benchtops and new cabinets
-new mixer taps
-new fancy shower heads
-heated towel racks
even wasted 600 bucks on one of those tile insert shower drains, coz they look awesome

Didn't stop there.

Ripped up walls in every room for cat6 cabling, gigabit lan everywhere. Obviously had to paint the house afterwards too.

Gutted the whole backyard, ripped up paving, bushes and other shit. Now I'm installing new patio, paving, fountains, fake grass and and whatever other ideas I come across in the hardware store...

I probably should have just built a new house...

[Turbo2.6L]

I'm redoing my bathroom as I type. DIY FTW.

Mirrors are easy. If you have a plain style mirror, you can simply dress it up by adding a frame.
I just went to Bunnings and bought 2 lengths of nicely shaped skirting board. With the 45degree cutter/saw you cut out the angles to form a frame. Paint the frame pieces to suit (I chose white gloss enamel) Fix the frame together as one large unit and adhere to the mirror. Makes a MASSIVE improvement.

Lighting: replace all shitty lights with down lights. Install down lights over basin but make sure you get the 'gimble' style ones that have a hinge for angles. Angle the down lights forwards towards the mirror as this will eliminate harsh shadows and stop the missus from whinging her face looks shit in the mirror.

Tiles. All tiles can be repainted. Wash all tiles with sugar soap. Paint over area with primer. Apply 3 coats of any tile enamel paint (again, I chose white). Paint over the grout if you wish - makes no difference. Some very simple steps using stuff from Bunnings.

Shower screens can be had from anywhere - Target / Bed Bath n Table / Lincraft / Spotlight. 30 second job.

Can you paint an old bath in the same fashion? My 2nd bathroom has a hiddeous pink bath that has prevented me from doing anything in there up until now in fear of having something not match... Not keen on a $10k full reno just yet as i have other things to do first...

[V70R]

Can you paint an old bath in the same fashion? My 2nd bathroom has a hiddeous pink bath that has prevented me from doing anything in there up until now in fear of having something not match... Not keen on a $10k full reno just yet as i have other things to do first...
Yes.
You will need to get the primer + a 2pac enamel paint. Bunnings sell both. 2pac enamel packs cost about $70 each
I would strongly suggest doing this in the summer months as it takes time and temperature to cure. Some use UV lamps to accelerate the process but most important of all, make sure the surface is free of soaps, oils etc. Some shampoos and body washes contain traces of ammonia and they will strip weaker enamels - including tile paints.
I have been quoted $500-750 for a professional to come in a do it.

[crabman]

I thought you couldn't paint floor tiles due to the wear and tear they cop.

[V70R]

I thought you couldn't paint floor tiles due to the wear and tear they cop.
You can cover them with vinyl bathroom tiles.

[LarryDavid]

doesnt look like the tile paint is suitable for floors..
http://www.whiteknightpaints.com.au/specialty-paints/home-restoration/tile-paint/

also a product for bathtubs..
http://www.whiteknightpaints.com.au/specialty-paints/home-restoration/tub-%27n%27-tile/

on the topic of tubs.. what are peoples thoughts on removing a bathtub in terms of hurting re-sale value / limiting potential buyers (i.e ppl with young kids)?
personally i would rather rip out my bath and extend the vanity as the current one is tiny.

[newbie101]

Dont do it IMO

My place doesnt have a bath and it seems that just because we dont have one, the need for a bath arises more often. Would def not buy another house without one, and I dont have small kids.

[stumps.]

LOL why do you need a bath? I have gone 6 years without using one in rental houses?

Are you washing car parts in there?

[stumps.]

Checking bike tubes for punctures?

[V70R]

LOL why do you need a bath?

For reasons similar to this.
http://www.themesareus.com/wp-content/theme/bath_girl_theme.JPG

[newbie101]

^^^+11ty
(although I may need to shave my legs to look that good)

Plus, ever tried washing a rotti in winter with the garden hose? Or soaking a bedspread?

Not to mention trying to dissolve a body with no access to a wheelie bin :D

Like I said, all the kind of stuff you dont know you need one for, untill you dont have one.

[bird]

While we are on the topic for bathroom renovations, does anybody have any contacts which could redo a whole bathroom? (tiles, shower, everything)

Been getting some insane quotes and thought it might be worth asking the AL community

[[SPESHAL]]

Going off on a bit of a tangent (still home renovations though), can anyone recommend a painter? It's only a fairly small job I need done.

[Ryan1080]

While we are on the topic for bathroom renovations, does anybody have any contacts which could redo a whole bathroom? (tiles, shower, everything)

Been getting some insane quotes and thought it might be worth asking the AL community

PM sent.

[Sebdullah]

;1015588']Going off on a bit of a tangent (still home renovations though), can anyone recommend a painter? It's only a fairly small job I need done.

Jason 0430812228

[ForgedV6]

Save starting a new thread - whats a plumbers hourly rate? A mates brother is coming around to do some plumbing work and charges $50 an hour + materials. Is that good?

[SSICK]

BARGAIN

they are usually 150+

[V70R]

mates brother is coming around to do some plumbing work and charges $50 an hour + materials. Is that good?

Send him my way, I have some work for him !

[ForgedV6]

Cheers guys. My mate gasped at the price when i told him what his brother was charging me. He said to keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't piss fart around for hours and charge me for all of it. He's only just entering his 4th year.

Will see how he goes.

[XF Falcon]

I'll be spray painting the bath in my parents bathroom from a pink to a 2pac white sometime within the next few weeks, I'll let you know how that goes lol

[Turbo2.6L]

You can do mine after you learn on your parents gear Mike :p

[ForgedV6]

Need some advice.

Ive just guttered my ensuite, all floor and wall tiles are removed, vanity, shower screen and toilet is gone. Taps and spouts removed and capped.

- Does all tile adhesive need to come off? The wall adhesive is mostly off but the floor adhesive is still present. Im assuming it needs to come off completely so the tiler can level properly?
- In areas the render between the brick wall and tile adhesive has also come off so the brick is exposed. Do i need to re-apply render in preperation for the tiler?
- Do i need to apply a water proofing paint onto the render before the tiler tiles?
- What product should i use for this?
- Where the vanity was there is a 100mm drop to compacted sand/concrete pad (I broke my worklight just before this). Does the entire room need to be this level?

Cheers for any info.

[thommo]

get your advice ?

who tiled your place ?

[ForgedV6]

get your advice ?

who tiled your place ?

It hasnt been tiled yet - i had a builder cut a niche into the shower area so that has held me up a bit.

What i thought was the base of the ensuite was actually the screed so i had to remove all screed. My tiler has been in to screed and render the walls in prep for the tiles. My other half's cousin is doing the tiling.

[thommo]

bit of thread revival. Looking at doing my bathroom up soon and currently it only has tiles on the floor and in the shower.

How many places these days are fully tiled floor to ceiling? My intention was to fully tile, dark floors with white/mable look walls.
I've seen a fair few online which stilll only have tiles in the shower and they've kept that modern image. Without all those extra tiles and labour its $$ saved for somewhere else

Thoughts, suggestions?

[crabman]

Nice thread revival, I also have a question.

Can you tile on old tiles?

[Brett_J]

Heaps of places have floor to ceiling these days, I even did a separate toilet and laundry in June this year as well, looks good fully done.

One suggestion, pic a design that will be timeless, so many people these days go with stuff that looks dated in 5 years, horrible in 10.
I love a good mix of solid lights and darks with maybe a feature if it will look good.

Light wall tiles always make the room look bigger, dark floors give it the nice solid look.

Tiles are cheap these days, can get some good looking ones for cheap, measure the area, hit up tile shops and tell them what you want, I got some bargains for clients by getting tiles meant for a job but were cancelled at half the price :)


Nice thread revival, I also have a question.

Can you tile on old tiles?

Yep, scuff them with a concrete grinding cup on a grinder first, if it's in the shower recess, put a good water proofing membrane over them first :)

[Poktrokt]

Large tiles for the walls if that's the way you plan to go.
I'm not a fan of marble, can date. Large white tiles will never go out of fashion! If you want colour then make that your cabinets as that's something cheap to change down the track.
Also consider resale, neutral will always please most people whereas bold colours turn others away.
Black showers do look epic though!!!! Have seen it in a bathroom before!!

[ssinister]

One thing to make sure if tiling to ceiling is thick bottom cornice. Seen plenty of clients not wanting to spend a few extra $$$ and looks
Terrible with the tiles butting up to normal thickness cornice. Just don't stick the cornice directly to the tiles after a while is looks crap.

[thommo]

Yeah I'm going large 600x300 on the walls Rectified. Might spend some time browsing ozzy park this week.

Ssinister I've got shadow line P50 on my ceilings now, much cleaner look that's for sure

[Pete]

1 thing we're glad we have done for the ensuite is floor to ceiling in plain white, except for a feature wall in the shower, which is white tile with a curly pattern in it, and they're pearl/metallic.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xap1/t1.0-9/10527267_10153072481439616_1529714382225795254_n.j pg

[Lmx]

Anyone used/seen Laminam in the flesh? (in a bathroom area)

http://www.houzz.com/photos/6071110/Saville-Isaac-Central-Coast-Beach-House-contemporary-bathroom-sydney

Basically a 3mx1mx3.5mm sheet of tile?

[thommo]

I had actually thought about using some large sheets of mirror for one entire wall to make it look huge, still up in the air about that actually

[jr]

Anyone used/seen Laminam in the flesh? (in a bathroom area)

http://www.houzz.com/photos/6071110/Saville-Isaac-Central-Coast-Beach-House-contemporary-bathroom-sydney

Basically a 3mx1mx3.5mm sheet of tile?

my old man is building a display home in Alkimos and they have used 3x1m tiles, looks pretty mint.

[dmanvan]

bit of thread revival. Looking at doing my bathroom up soon and currently it only has tiles on the floor and in the shower.

How many places these days are fully tiled floor to ceiling? My intention was to fully tile, dark floors with white/mable look walls.
I've seen a fair few online which stilll only have tiles in the shower and they've kept that modern image. Without all those extra tiles and labour its $$ saved for somewhere else

Thoughts, suggestions? in my experience a well thought out bathroom reno with minimal tiling will always look better that a poorly thought out one using full tiling. In the last year we have done some full tile and some shower bath skirting tile and all have looked awesome. It very much depends upon the tile you choose and the look you are going for. My fav bathroom we did I actually talked the client out of full tile due to the tile they were using would have darkened the room a lot. The end result is it looks really classy and keeping with the style of the house modern and clean and what they saved they were able to get the extra big freestanding bath they wanted.

Light from other sources makes a huge difference as well.

If you get the chance take some pics and then play around in programs/photoshop to help you visualise before hand. I would not tile full height in an average ensuite. Large open plan one yes. What I mean by that is if your ensuite has a door that can close, then dont tile full height. If it doesnt and is more of an extension of the room then tile full height as it will help distinguish the area.

Also think of light and where it is coming from , ie windows, skylights etc.

If you have a smaller area to play with only, ditch the full height and add a skylight with what you would have saved.


other question: re old tiles, you can tile over, but be prepared to stuff up your levels. would only really do as a last resort. if pushed for time and it was a rental and it needed a bit of a tidy up. Have come across it heaps doing reno's and it really pisses off trades that have to do stuff years down the track....so lol on...

[Joe]

I've got 3 sheets of laminam perla oxide finish ready to be installed as my kitchen and bar splash backs.

We went 600x600 rectified porcelain throughout lower main floor and same in all wet areas, so we have no transitions between main floor and wet areas. Have 600x300 rectified to full height on all wet area walls. Feature tile is the same as the floor tile (slate grey, almost like concrete), and the rest are pure white.. Timeless.

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr131/balistc/IMAG2604.jpg (http://s477.photobucket.com/user/balistc/media/IMAG2604.jpg.html)

We have heaps of p50 shadow line but the Mrs isn't convinced so we mixed it with 3 step jazz cornice. We ended up putting cornice in our bathrooms because I simply lost that fight Haha.

[dmanvan]

.................
We have heaps of p50 shadow line but the Mrs isn't convinced so we mixed it with 3 step jazz cornice. We ended up putting cornice in our bathrooms because I simply lost that fight Haha.

shadowline good.... ever tried it round doors /windows... that can look quite good too.

you win some you lose some.....

[Brett_J]

other question: re old tiles, you can tile over, but be prepared to stuff up your levels. would only really do as a last resort. if pushed for time and it was a rental and it needed a bit of a tidy up. Have come across it heaps doing reno's and it really pisses off trades that have to do stuff years down the track....so lol on...

The only time I usually don't argue with the client about removing them, is if they are in the shower recess on the floor and it has a hob or is sunken. On the walls is crap, makes it stick out miles and looks dumb.

I did a house recently that the tiles were half way up the wall the entire bathroom, but they were flush with the wall !
So I tiled straight over them.

[thommo]

I've got 3 sheets of laminam perla oxide finish ready to be installed as my kitchen and bar splash backs.

We went 600x600 rectified porcelain throughout lower main floor and same in all wet areas, so we have no transitions between main floor and wet areas. Have 600x300 rectified to full height on all wet area walls. Feature tile is the same as the floor tile (slate grey, almost like concrete), and the rest are pure white.. Timeless.

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr131/balistc/IMAG2604.jpg (http://s477.photobucket.com/user/balistc/media/IMAG2604.jpg.html)

We have heaps of p50 shadow line but the Mrs isn't convinced so we mixed it with 3 step jazz cornice. We ended up putting cornice in our bathrooms because I simply lost that fight Haha.

I couldnt have those wall tile joins not lining up, that would make me go crazy

[Brett_J]

I can't even see a reason why they did the back wall that way, I try and tile in such a way that the joins run uniform in the entire room.
I'd have them do that wall again !

[XsQuiZiT]

I had our tiles laid the exact same way - reason is the tiles weren't exactly the same size (differing manufacturers) and I would've ended up with uneven joins which is even worse.

After it's grouted, it's barely noticeable anyway.

[Joe]

Are you talking about the white tiles not lining up with the grey ones?

Because the white ones are 0.5mm bigger than the grey ones. So we went edge to centre.

As above, once it's grouted you hardly notice due to the 1mm grout gaps.. If they were ceramic with larger gaps, it wouldn't have been a problem.

[Torquen]

I couldnt have those wall tile joins not lining up, that would make me go crazy

x2

[Joe]

I suppose it's lucky for you guys that it's not your bathroom then :-)

[Brett_J]

I suppose it's lucky for you guys that it's not your bathroom then :-)

Shut up pingpingpingping, that's why :)

Hard to see half a mil difference from my Laptop, given how anal you are (picky and receiving...), I would have thought you would have made them shave the tiles down and got in there with verniers and laser levels and shit to make sure everything was spot on :)

[Joe]

Haha, I did think about having them just centre the grey tiles with the white ones (making a 1.5mm grout gap instead of a 1mm one), but then I have different size grout gaps.

It was a massive conundrum and I was warned against this when I picked my tiles. Funnily enough, the Asian-made porcelain is infinitely more accurate in size than the Italian-made porcelain. Next time, I'll just buy the Asian stuff.

That being said, once the white tiles have white 1mm grout gaps, you can hardly notice it.

[thommo]

epic bathroom that's for sure!

Little things like shitty 30mm tile pieces at ends of walls or tiles not trimmed so the grout line is centre of a small toilet etc would worry me. Makes me wonder if I should wing it and tile myself.. Haha

[Joe]

You just need a tiler who can do decent layouts before starting.. some are better than others.

We had hardly any of these sorts of issues with our tiling, and any decisions we had to make regarding tile placement, I left to the interior designer (impartial and experienced)!

[crabman]

Yep, scuff them with a concrete grinding cup on a grinder first, if it's in the shower recess, put a good water proofing membrane over them first :)

Recently covered up painted brick walls with gyprock sheets. Should I just scuff up old tiles and water proof membrane like 30cm out from the walls and up the walls to the tap spuds (up the walls 30cm on walls with no taps)? This is for a laundry.

[Brett_J]

Recently covered up painted brick walls with gyprock sheets. Should I just scuff up old tiles and water proof membrane like 30cm out from the walls and up the walls to the tap spuds (up the walls 30cm on walls with no taps)? This is for a laundry.

I usually only membrane continual wet areas, When I scuff the tiles, it's usually for the new tiles to get a key in to stick to, but yeah good idea for the membrane as well.
It won't hurt it to do the laundry wet area, that's for sure :)

[huggy_b]

Scuff the membrane.....do you not want it to work?

[crabman]

If you read it like that I would be more worried with the fact that I am scuffing gyprock sheets with a concrete grinder.

[thommo]

One thing I didn't think of was the waterproofing. Being an apartment ill be getting all floor and shower walls done. Anyone got rough pricing or contacts that do it? Need a legit job for insurance

[Brett_J]

You could try the company I work for, not sure if we do Domestic work, I just did over 400 m2 at the new Baldivis Shopping centre.

http://www.ccmga.com.au/

[The_Senator]

Great thread, and very good timing as I am about to start on my bathroom - give it a make over.. Some very handy tips so far... I enjoy the DIY, but get a little nervous when venturing into unknown territory!

Anyone recommend a plasterer here? Or maybe even a member?