Bathroom Renovation Planner

Renovation planner

We've spoken to hundreds of tradespeople and homeowners and boiled down the 15 steps to follow to get you through a renovation like an expert without going over budget or having to do avoidable rework!

Bathrooms

Kitchens

Utilities

Bedrooms

Plan

Decision making, give yourself at least 4 weeks.

Work out what you need vs. what you want

Before you start making design decisions, ask yourself what you want and what you need to get out of your new bathroom. Who is using the bathroom, have their needs changed? Is it a guest bathroom or main family bathroom? Is this your forever home and do you want to make the space perfect for you or do you plan to move in the next 5 or so years and want to appeal to a wider range of buyers?

Create two lists, wants and needs

List out what you want - the desirables - and what you actually need - practical aspects - to work out the extent of the project.

Sort through both lists and prioritise

Create a single priority “this is what we have to get out of the new bathroom” list. If you are planning a main family bathroom and have young children, for example, while you might want a separate walk-in shower as well as a bath, the reality is you might need lots more storage and space for children to get ready and choose to prioritise that.

Work out your budget

It pays to set a budget at the very beginning to help you make decisions on layout, types of toilet or shower, fixtures and fittings to avoid disappointment (or having to find extra cash) later on. As a rule of thumb, thinking about the effort and cost of trades doing the work rather than the cost of the fittings, it will be cheapest to simply replace like for like, and most expensive if you are moving everything around. Especially if you decide to move the toilet!

The easy bit is you should have an idea of how much you can afford. The harder bit is knowing how much you need for your size of project and area! There's loads of information online for this so you can do your own research and to get a ballpark number you can use our free calculator:

Bathroom budget calculator

Plan your space

The earlier you understand what fixtures and fittings you want to use, the better. The type of shower, taps, toilet etc. impact your layout massively. If you are looking at a concealed thermostatic shower for example, or wall mounted taps, you'll need space in the wall to fit them. Depending on what you are starting with, this often means you'll need stud walls built out, which could be finished with a shelf for storage. This will likely take up 100mm of your floor space.

When it comes to laying out the bathroom furniture, there are set standards to keep you on track from a building regs perspective as well as ensuring you have sufficient room to move around and for doors to open etc. 📏🛀 A good rule is you want to feel comfortable moving around your items, opening shower or cupboard doors and importantly, make sure you can fit a hand down any gaps between your furniture like the sink and shower to clean properly!

All this planning can still apply even if you are replacing items in the same place - if you are choosing a wall hung basin to replace a basin on a pedestal, you would still need to move the pipes that are right now going straight down into the floor, into the wall. Keep this in mind while making your choices if you want to avoid having to pay twice either for items 💸 or the dreaded rework ❌!

Measure your bathroom and create a to-scale plan!

The most expensive and difficult to change items should go first.

Mark where your soil pipe leaves your room

This determines the ideal position of your new toilet.

Add windows and doors

Add any structural obstacles

Like a supporting column.

Mark your wall types solid, stud, external

Solid walls (or brick cavity walls) sound dull when you knock on them and are cold to the touch whereas stud walls sound hollow when you knock on them and may flex or move when pushed. Knowing that the wall behind your shower is a stud wall for example, could make a difference to the options you have for your layout.

Understand your floor construction

Concrete (means lots of hard work to move plumbing around 😢) or suspended timber (less work 😅)!

Make a decision on your style

Decide on the overall style of your bathroom. Are you going traditional or modern? Moody powder room or functional shower room?

Explore and choose a layout

Look at what you can achieve moving the furniture around (remembering that the more that is moved, the greater the cost) and what additional space you would need for fitting (e.g. space for hiding anything coming from “concealed” or “wall mounted” “back to wall” fixtures and fittings)

Clarify if you need planning permission

E.g. If this is part of an extension.

Make sure you've captured the work required beyond the bathroom install itself

E.g. A new door, new window, moving an attic hatch etc.

Choose your sanitaryware, materials, fixtures, and fittings

Check the dimensions of your chosen fixtures and fittings, and their delivery lead times

Ensure they will actually fit against your to scale plan, and make sure you check those delivery lead times.

Layer on your electrical plan

Think in particular about the practical lighting you'll need - a light either side of a mirror is often the best option to light your face minimising shadows

Example Bathroom brief

Get and compare quotes

Getting recommendations from people you know and trust is THE most reliable way to find quality trades.

Ask local friends and family if there is anyone they would recommend

If you're new to the area, find local community forums, Facebook and Whatsapp groups to ask for recommendations. If you do need to use sites to find a trade, make sure they vet their members for quality of workmanship as well as customer service.

When someone recommends a trade, ask questions!

You'll be working together for the best part of a month so you want to make sure you can easily communicate to get the job done within time and budget. Ask about the quality of the work, the communication, their planning, whether there were any surprises. How did they handle issues that came up?

Create and verify your shortlist

Check out reviews online. Look for pictures of past projects and customer reviews, it 100% helps if they have completed a project of a similar style to your own! Before you finalise your shortlist, take a look at their Companies House records for legitimacy and financial health.

Get three quotes from your shortlist

You won't always get a quote from everyone you ask, so ask four people / firms straight off, so you have a better chance of getting 3 back.

Request a detailed breakdown of costs

Broken down between materials and labour and make sure you are clear who is responsible for buying what, whether the costs are inclusive or exclusive of VAT.

Clarify whether it is an estimate or fixed cost quote

Estimates are an idea of potential costs but you pay 'actuals' for labour time and materials etc. whereas fixed cost you will pay exactly that amount unless you change your requirement, regardless of how long it takes or the actual cost of materials when purchased.

Ask about availability and potential start dates

Immediate availability isn't necessarily a good sign! Why aren't they busy?

Agree the terms of the work

A written contract* protects both sides - ensuring everyone knows what to expect and what's covered.

Agree payment gateways

And never pay large sums up front. If you're comfortable doing so it's fine to pay a deposit, but be sure to keep it to no more than 20-30% of the overall cost, the smaller the amount the better.

Example Bathroom quote

* If you are working with an architect they will often create a contract for you. If you're working directly with a general builder / contractor or individual trades, it would typically be the builder or trades that provides a contract. If your chosen trades don't provide you with a contract, ask for one. If they don't already have a standard contract template they use, they can easily find one online. For example, The Federation of Master Builders provide contract templates for their members to use.

Worried about what your bathroom renovation will cost?

Get to a £ figure in seconds with our free bathroom calculator.

Free Calculator

Looking for layout inspiration?

Check out our floor plan gallery to explore more plans and get layout inspiration and ideas for your new bathroom, ensuite, lounge or kitchen renovation.

Access the gallery

Prepare

From at least 6 weeks before work starts, which includes a 2 week returns window (you will need it!) dependent on lead times.

Order materials

You might think that your builders / plumbers won't need the taps and sanitaryware until later on but actually they will need most if not all of your tapware ready for the first fix plumbing.

Check lead times

Buying bathroom furniture simply isn't as quick and easy as most other things we buy online. There are lead times, sometimes very very long lead times - looking at you, tiles 🗓️!

Plan for returns

Set a delivery deadline of at least two weeks before work starts. You want to make sure you have the time to check what you've ordered (things might be damaged, or wrong) and make any necessary returns while you can, rather than risk your budget having to make changes while building work is happening! Open up your boxes and check immediately for any damages or incorrect items - get your trade to check too as they are more likely to spot potential issues or missing fittings from experience!

Work out storage

Plan where you are going to store all the items - they take up a lot of space!

Order!

Get ready for the work

You want to be as ready as possible ahead of work starting. Do this by preparing your home, and make sure to clarify all the little details with your trades, in writing ideally.

Tidy

Remove all personal items, empty cabinets and drawers, and set up a temporary bathroom space if needed.

Identify a space the builders can use for tools

Particularly when you have a small bathroom.

Cover floors

Leading to and from the bathroom to reduce the risk of damage.

Seal off rooms with plastic sheeting

Or alternative to minimise dust getting absolutely everywhere!

Establish a clear schedule

When is the start day, what time will they start in the morning?

Agree how you will communicate

Whatsapp? Group messages or a single point of contact?

Ensure trades have easy access to your home

Do they need a parking permit?

Renovation work

A typical bathroom renovation takes 3-4 weeks, however this will of course depend on the level of work you are doing and the choice of fixture and fittings.

Demolition (days 1-2)

Feels like a lot of progress has been made in little time!

Removing tiles, flooring, and sanitaryware

Disconnecting plumbing and electrical fixtures

Building work (days 3-5)

Replacing windows, doors, rebuilding walls, enforcing floor joists

First fix plumbing & electrics (day 6-8)

Laying pipes

Installing new cables, back boxes, any other hidden wiring

Plastering walls & preparing the floor (days 9-10)

Install insulation

Plaster walls

Prepare floors

Waterproofing

Tiling (days 11-15)

Tile walls

Tile floors

Install Bathroom Suite / second fix plumbing (days 14-15)

Fit shower, bath, basin, and toilet

Complete plumbing

Activate any warranties!

Second fix electrics (day 15)

Fitting light fixtures, sockets, testing

Decorating / finishing (days 16-18)

Paint and decorate the space

Fit door threshold

Snagging and fixing (days 19-20)

Throughout the renovation work, make sure you deal with issues quickly! It might seem obvious, but it's far better to tackle any issues you see there and then rather than wait until the whole suite is fitted and before pointing out that the tiles have been laid in the wrong pattern… 😅

If something does come up that you haven't planned for (it happens!) make sure it's talked about in detail so that everyone understands the work and cost involved. If your trade doesn't offer up information about how a change or issue resolution will affect the cost, be sure to ask directly. There's nothing worse than an unexpected cost at the end of the project when the work's all done and it's too late to change your mind!

Make sure your trades clean up the area

So you can check everything is working and meets your expectations

Start using the bathroom

Test it out while your trades are still around to fix any issues

Note the issues that need to be resolved

And share as soon as you can with your trade, in writing so you have a record to check off as things get fixed

Check that you know where pipes etc are

And any access points e.g. how to get to the cistern for future maintenance

Template planner built on Trello - a free project management tool.

Get the free template

Save your renovation with a plan made on Reno.

Use Reno to design and plan your renovation. Get the results you want, first time, no rework and no going over budget ...or your money back with our 12 month guarantee!

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