A guide to affordable bathroom renovations in Auckland
There are plenty of reasons renovating your bathroom is so popular. Not only does it bring a sparkling fresh look, but it’s also a great way to maximise the space and add efficient solutions for water and power use. Plus, renovating your Auckland bathroom with Build Right is a great way to add value to your property.
With a huge range of high-end fittings and finishes available, bathroom renovations can be expensive. That’s why it’s important to set a budget and plan your project carefully. Even if your budget isn’t large, there are lots of clever ways to achieve the look you want.
When a customer undertook a house extension they also did some renovations. Above are some photos from the ensuite and master bathroom for a house in Avondale. Read about planning an ensuite for your home.
Why renovate your bathroom?
Your bathroom is part of your home that gets used daily by everyone in the family, which is hard on the fixtures and fittings, especially when you factor in high moisture levels. It’s also likely to be one of the smallest spaces in spaces in your house. If it’s not well designed, it could have poor storage options and be frustrating to use.
A bathroom renovation gives you the perfect opportunity to optimise your space and storage, update the functionality of showers, baths, vanities, and toilets, and improve the aesthetic appeal. Using a gleaming, clean new bathroom feels luxurious and lifts your mood whenever you enter the room! It also improves the value of your property, as buyers will often assume that an out-of-date bathroom will cost them a fortune to renovate.
Before you start: Planning
The first thing you’ll want to do when you start your bathroom renovation is come up with a floor plan. Now is your chance to address how the space flows and fix a poor layout. You want to be able to move easily within the space and access all the essentials.
To come up with the ideal layout, consider who will be using the room and how they will use it. Do you need a bathtub, or would the room be better served by a nice big shower? Are there accessibility concerns? Remember to think about how your needs might change in the coming years.
Bathroom functionality versus aesthetics
Bathrooms are, at their heart, functional spaces, but it can be easy to be swept away by the aesthetics of high-end fixtures and fittings, which are usually expensive. It’s important to find a balance between making the room functional and a pleasure to use, and making it a calm oasis of style and luxury. Careful budgeting can give you both. Once you have identified your non-negotiables and factored in your labour and compliance costs, you will know how far you can upgrade your fittings and finishes.
Book a discovery meeting today to find out more about how we can help you achieve your dream bathroom.
Maximising space in your bathroom
Small spaces can be challenging to design, but there are lots of clever solutions that will either give you more space in your bathroom or create the illusion of more space. For example, you could create a wet area instead of an enclosed shower, or install a shower with sliding doors that don’t need to open out into the room. Free up extra floor space by choosing a toilet with an in-wall cistern.
You can make the room look larger by installing wall-mounted vanities and cabinetry, or using large-format tiles. Good lighting and a large mirror will also trick the eye into perceiving more space. Check out our article for more bathroom space-saving tips.
Choosing the right fixtures for your bathroom
The fixtures you choose for your bathroom can make the difference between a good renovation and a great one. Often, it’s the little things that enhance your enjoyment of the room that make it special.
For example, if you hate cleaning the toilet, then choosing a rimless toilet is going to make that chore much easier. If you always have a scrum at the bathroom sink in the morning, you might want to install a double basin. Features like soft-close toilet seats and drawers will prevent excess noise and damage from things being slammed shut.
Bear in mind that moving your plumbing around usually requires building consent and generates extra expense, so if you can manage to keep taps and drains in the same position, it’ll be much more cost effective.
Don’t forget to consider heating and ventilation. Extraction fans will vent excess humidity and prevent mould forming on your walls and ceiling. Heated towel rails will mean you always have warm, fluffy towels after your shower – you can add timers to make them more power-efficient. A wall-mounted heater with a thermostat makes jumping out of the bath on a chilly day much more pleasant!
Finding your style
Designing your new bathroom can be lots of fun. To help nail down your personal style, try creating a mood board with a collection of photos, colours, and materials that appeal to you. If you prefer the digital approach, setting up a Pinterest page is a great idea. You can search online for images of bathrooms, fixtures, and fittings that you like, and pin them to your page.
Book a discovery meeting today to find out more about how we can help you achieve your dream bathroom.
Project management for bathroom renovations
Bathrooms and toilets are small spaces, but when it comes to renovating them, they’re often the most complex.
Upgrading your bathroom requires a lot of different tradespeople. It’s not unusual to have a builder, plumber, electrician, plasterer, tiler, shower glass fitter, and painter all involved at some point in the process. All these tradies need to be available at just the right time, and in the right order. Sometimes they’ll need to come back multiple times. For example, you might need a plumber to run the pipes before the walls are lined, then return to fit the sink, bath, and toilet after everything else is in place.
That’s why having someone project manage your Auckland bathroom renovation is a worthwhile investment. A bathroom project manager will know exactly which tradespeople you need at each step of the renovation, and how long they will take to do their bit. Your project manager will be able to source the right tradies for the job and schedule them so that your bathroom renovation runs smoothly and efficiently. Sticking to a timetable is particularly important when you have council inspectors involved, as they are often the least flexible aspect of your renovation.
A good project manager will also help you set your budget, as they’ll know how long each tradesperson will need to be on site and what tasks they’ll be carrying out. They can save you a lot of time and money that could be wasted if you do it yourself and lack experience.
At Build Right Contractors, we have been renovating bathrooms for many years and can project manage the entire process for you. We’ll take the stress out of your Auckland bathroom renovation, keeping everyone on track and keeping you up to date with their progress. We’ll help you save money with insights and suggestions and be available to answer all your questions. And if building consent is required, we can help you manage that process too.
Frequently asked questions
The cost of your Auckland bathroom renovation will depend on what you plan to do and the level of finish you desire.
For a simple tidy-up with all new bathroom fittings, the cost is likely to start at around $10,000.
A full renovation where you gut the room and completely replace everything to a basic level will cost approximately $20,000 - $27,000.
A mid-end renovation with full tiling and under-floor heating will cost approximately $30,000 - $45,000.
Luxury renovations can range from $50,000 upwards.
When you book a discovery meeting to discuss your ideas with Build Right Contractors, we’ll give you a ballpark figure for your Auckland bathroom renovation.
Bathroom Renovation Tips
Renovating a bathroom is a good way of adding value to your property. But not if you overspend on your budget during the work. Luckily, it is possible to create a stunning bathroom without breaking the bank with some careful planning. Here are our tips for planning your renovation.
Work out where you aren’t willing to compromise. When you list your bathroom renovation ideas, think about your must-haves, and factor them into your budget first. If underfloor heating or a rainforest shower head is on your wish list, then think about where else you could save money.
Try to avoid re-plumbing and wiring. Unless the layout of your bathroom is terrible, consider keeping it the same. Doing this will reduce the cost of the work, materials, and council consents. It will also reduce the completion time of your bathroom renovation. Read our tips for living in your house while you renovate.
While planning to renovate your bathroom, think about whether you could reuse any of your current fixtures or fittings. Perhaps your vanity unit could be upcycled. Maybe your bath or shower could be revitalised with new taps rather than replaced.
Create a limited feature. Sometimes a little goes a long way. For example, if you love tiles but can’t afford to tile the entire bathroom, consider creating a feature wall with some standout tiling.
Shop around when you are looking for bathroom fittings. Visit a few different shops to compare prices. You might also like to talk to Build Right Contractors to see if we can source items for you at a lower price.
It’s time to start planning!
Start planning your perfect bathroom today. Before assuming that an Auckland bathroom renovation is over your budget, talk to the professionals at Build Right Contractors. Our team will tell you how much your plans are likely to cost and make some practical suggestions to help bring your ideas to life. With careful budgeting and planning, you can make the dream a reality.
A customer undertook a house extension in Grey Lynn. The house extension provided a new bathroom, an ensuite and an extra bedroom.
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