Browse Forums Bathrooms and Laundry 1 Aug 23, 2008 4:44 pm Has anyone here renovated an old bathroom? It seems a lot of people on here are building homes.
We have a bathroom in our 58 year old home that is in desperate need of renovation. What I want to know is what resources you turn to to find a bathroom you like to show the builder for a quote? I have gone through hundreds of Home Beautiful, Better Homes and Gardens and a couple of Kitchen and Bathroom magazines. I have also scoured the internet but it seems our taste is not like very many other people's taste. Can anyone share their favourite research material please Lynnie Mum of 4, apprentice renovator Re: Renovating an old bathroom - research 2Aug 23, 2008 7:30 pm We renovated the bathroom in our 50 year old house a few years ago, very conventional design (shower and bath on one side, towel rail on other side, vanity under window) and limited space to play with, I didn't really do that much research, got a few quotes and then just selected tiles that I liked, didn't really have a 'blue-print' from a mag or anything to go by.
Tiles change so quickly that any you see in a magazine or internet photo may not be available any more anyway, all you could do with this is get a general idea of what you like, you would still have to pick the specific tiles and accesories from what is currently available. If you are gutting the old bathroom and re-doing in same room, you won't need a builder, just a plumber and tiler. Re: Renovating an old bathroom - research 3Aug 23, 2008 10:38 pm We are gutting 3 rooms essentially, the laundry the toilet/shower room and the bathroom, it is all little pigeon holes currently. We want to put a second toilet in as we have only got one and there are six of us - we have 4 daughters. The space is fairly limited though even with all that and we have to move the hot water service outside as it is currently in the laundry.
Anyway, thanks for your feedback. We have a pretty definite idea what we want but it is the layout that is confusing us. That and the builder we consulted doesn't seem to want to do what we want - which is to have timber on the walls instead of tiles, it seems to have bamboozled him!!! i have found lots of examples today in magazines to show him so hopefully that will help. Lynnie Mum of 4, apprentice renovator Me too!! 5Aug 25, 2008 9:27 pm Hi Lynnie,
You sound like a kindred spirit! We are renovating the bathroom of our 1905 villa and it sounds to me like you and I are experiencing similar problems. Yes, there don't seem to be many others on this site renovating old bathrooms and we have had to do lots and lots of research. Most of our research has taken place on the internet and through searching through lots and lots of magazines. Unfortunately some of the better period style bathroom suppliers are interstate and we can't get there. Our bathroom is about 80 years old and will be completely gutted, concrete floor ripped up, all new plumbing, the water service has to be moved, wall to be removed to combine two small rooms into one new federation style bathroom of about 3.4x2.6m. We have very definite ideas about style and have collected most of the bits such as federation style vanity, exposed taps, toilet. brass towell rails, luggage racks. leadlight etc. over the last few years. We can't help but feel that the bathroom design/installation people aren't that keen on us as they can't sell us their bathroom bits and pieces and make a bit extra profit. All we really need them for is project management and labour! Like you, we too want to use timber panelling around the room and have numerous pictures from magazines showing the look we want to achieve. Apparently the style we are after is reminiscent of the old homes in Queensland. We have even tracked down some water resistant MDF wainscotting board, skirting and chair rail and when shown the brochures (including pricing) the bathroom consultants have looked quizzically at it! We really want ideas on the layout and the 'technical stuff' about plumbing etc. If I had the time,(I do shift work, I'm a mum and I'm doing the final year of my Psych honours degree), I'd just project manage the whole thing myself, but I don't. So anyway, just letting you know that you're not the only one out there running the renovation gauntlet! Its tricky when you're doing something a bit different. I wish you all the best, Cheryl Re: Renovating an old bathroom - research 6Aug 25, 2008 10:06 pm Hey Cheryl, Thanks for writing in reply to this. It does sound like we are kindred spirits. I have ripped out pictures from lots of magazines now with timber panelling on the walls to show the builders. I might have to go to a few to find one who is willing to do what we want and not what they want!! I have the MDF wainscotting boards myself and have put them on the bottom 1200ml of our bedroom, they are looking wonderful!! I have still to get the skirting boards back on and can't wait to have it all done.
Where did you find the water resistant MDF from? I would love to source that for our bathroom project. That would be one less step for the builder to have to source it. I am after something that is more of a meld of old and new, no mosaic which seems to be the way everyone is going lately!! Also, there is beige everywhere and I detest beige, blergh. I prefer white all the way. Anyway, thanks for your feedback. Lynnie Mum of 4, apprentice renovator Re: Renovating an old bathroom - research 7Sep 01, 2008 10:04 pm Hi again Lynnie,
Lovely to hear we have a similar philosophy. We too are trying to meld old with new. We've sourced the MR-MDF from Bunnings - its called Easy craft cladding and it comes pre primed. You can get a number of different profiles, dado rail and skirting board. Hope this helps. On a less happy note, we got back a quote today that we were waiting on feverishly, as we really want to get on with our renovation. Anyway, after spending 2 hrs with the bathroom consultant explaining the wall cladding, the federation style etc. Regardless of the time spent explaining what we wanted with pictures etc (and the fact that we actually paid for the quote!) the quote did not include the wall cladding(they have quoted for wall tiles to be laid vertically half way up all the walls all around the room!!!) and , given that we will provide just about all the materials,have quoted a ridiculous amount of money for materials which they have not itemised. So, I went in search of some more bathroom quotes today. Lets hope I have better luck. Cheryl Re: Renovating an old bathroom - research 8Sep 02, 2008 10:34 am OMG Cheryl How annoying is that? Don't answer that!!
I hope we don't have the same problem, but I suspect we will after the first consultation with the builder. I am going to get more than one quote but gee, how hard can it be? I have actually found quite a few homes in magazines with the wallboards in them, my dad has an old home with the original timber panelling in it and it still looks good, so it is definitely possible, now to find a builder/bathroom renovator with the guts to build it!! Good luck with your search. Lynnie Mum of 4, apprentice renovator Re: Renovating an old bathroom - research 9Sep 03, 2008 11:00 pm This is a great topic which i shall watch with interest, i have a house built in the 30's and i am still in the painting and sanding floors part of the renovation, i'm doing it all myself and loving it, but it is hard work, my bathroom is the 5yr plan and i too would like federation, i dream of a claw bath, my laundry is behind the bathroom and the toilet is next to that, i want to combine laundry and bathroom to make a bigger room.
I will keep the original toilet seperate and put in a second one. I have attached a picture to show you just how lovely the bathroom is at the moment Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ a bit of good luck 10Sep 09, 2008 3:59 pm Hi Vintage,
Yes you certainly do have a wonderful luxurious bathroom!! I should post some photos of ours on here as well. We could all have a good laugh (or cry!). The saga goes on with our potential bathroom reno. Good news is that we found some tiles for ... listen to this... 97% off!!! Yes, we couldn't believe it either. the tile retailer obviously just wanted to get them out of the warehouse as they were old stock, but they were EXACTLY what we were looking for. Over $50 a meter usually, and we got them for $2 a box. They are top quality italian porcelain. Yippee. At least one thing is going my way! Had another bathroom consultant around yesterday morning to quote us - says we'll have the quote by the end of the week, but I'll believe it when I see it in the mail. We're still waiting on one who came to see us over 3 weeks ago, regardless of my phone calls and emails to ask where it's got to! Cheryl Re: Renovating an old bathroom - research 11Sep 10, 2008 11:58 am Hey there,
I found a gorgeous bathroom, but it is in New Zealand!! LOL http://www.hukalodge.co.nz/lodge/cottage.html It isn't exactly what we want as we won't have the vaulted ceilings or the magnificent scenery out the window but anyway.... Wallboards are really coming back in fashion, we just have to find a builder willing to put them in the bathroom Lynnie Mum of 4, apprentice renovator Re: Renovating an old bathroom - research 12Sep 13, 2008 9:18 pm yes atherleigh do post a picture and your right we have to giggle about them, mine is starting to gorw on me, but it is still on the 5yr plan...Lynnie i love that bathroom i think i would have to wear bathers though if i bathed with the winodw open Re: Renovating an old bathroom - research 13Sep 19, 2009 11:04 pm Hi there, I'm new to this, but came across your problem because I was searching for heritage style bathrooms. I too live in Adelaide in a 120 year old house and am totally frustrated trying to get started on our bathroom renovation. We have had several quotes, in fact we're up to our 8th quote. All the quotes have such variables in every aspect from cost down to methods of construction. We're at a point now where the cost seems irrelevant, it's more now the differing opinions on method of construction that bothers us. We have had difficulty obtaining heritage style toilet, basin and particularly, tiles. We don't want to go to the extent of tesselated tiles, due to costs. But there seem to be a very limited range of ceramic, heritage style tiles around. If you have any suggestions or recommendations, I'd love to hear about them. I'm hoping that you've had some luck! What you are looking at is fibrous plaster, true gypsum, it is cast on horizontal beds with fibers included to give strength. I has no Asbestos in it. Houses before 1985… 2 4257 Is it possible to render an old corrugated iron shed.I have heard that it can be done if it is covered with chicken wire first.Not sure of the ratio of the render mix and… 0 3361 Thanks Chippy,I do have one that I levered out. I'll try to find a brand name on the windows then do some searching. Here is a photo where you can see how worn they are. 2 6297 |