Good bathroom design is a seriously complicated affair and engaging a professional bathroom designer will ensure a stunning, expertly finished bathroom, and that every detail has been completely considered and accounted for.

To be clear, you don’t need to hire a professionally qualified bathroom designer to plan your bathroom. But good bathroom design is a seriously complicated affair, and engaging a properly trained bathroom designer will ensure you receive a stunning, expertly finished bathroom, and that every practical issue has been completely considered and accounted for. In many circumstances, engaging a bathroom designer will pay for itself in terms of the value it adds to your home, and potentially eliminating the need for additional alterations further down the track.

Considering bathroom designs for a new project can be an exciting time, but it can also be a stressful one, too – you need an experienced bathroom renovator in your corner, who can give you expert advice and bathroom design tips, essential to create a truly stunning bathroom renovation. A really well put together bathroom design is one that balances a long list of important practical considerations against aesthetic choices.

When designing your new bathroom, fully consider:

• Cohesive visual style or theme 
• Layout and accessibility
• Safety and slip prevention
• Material and product choices
• Storage options
• Ergonomics
• Appropriate lighting 
• Plumbing and electrical requirements and limitations 
• Adaptability for special needs (perhaps in the future) 
• Privacy 
• Energy and water efficiency 
• Practicalities of the design to be executed by tradespeople and other specialists

If you’re a committed DIYer, there are any number of online sites giving a do-it-yourself bathroom design function. But, if you’re a beginner, we don’t recommend them. Any slight miscalculation could work out to be quite costly. Total Care Bathroom Renovations can put you in touch with skilled designers who can draw up a bathroom design to make the absolute best use of your space, using fittings and hardware to complement your vision, taste and budget. Contact us for further information.

We specialise in the partial of full strip out of domestic bathroom renovations, depending on your project, with minimal disruption to day to day activity.

Selective demolition (or strip out) is the demolition, dismantlement or removal of building components or finishes which do not involve bringing down an entire structure.

Total Care Bathroom Renovations specialise in strip out from domestic bathrooms, with minimal disruption to day to day activity. In order to put a new bathroom in, you have to take the old one out first. While some people might look forward to conducting the strip out themselves, it’s important to consider all the requirements.

Firstly, there’s the matter of tools you will need for the strip out, which may include some or all:

• Sledge hammer
• Hammer
• Claw hammer
• Crowbar
• Putty knife (for loose tiles)
• Bolster (for stubborn tiles)
• Drill and carbide-tip drill bits ( to help break up very stubborn tiles)
• Screwdrivers, spanners, pliers etc that match the fittings to be removed
• Sharp knife (to cut old caulk etc)
• Grout removing tool
• Bucket and or wheelbarrow to move strip out rubbish
• Rubbish skip
• Depending on the substrate and condition of the old tiles, power tools may be needed to dislodge them

These are the general tools often used but each demo job is different. Other tools could be required.

A strip out is hard, dirty work and there are two trades you cannot legally do yourself: plumbing and electricals. Licensed plumbers and electricians will need to attend and render plumbing and electrics safe before the project commences.

Total Care Bathroom Renovations can expertly perform the strip-out and coordinate all tradies, contact us for a comprehensive quote.

When you’re renovating your bathroom, it’s essential to make sure that your new basins, showers, bath tubs, taps and toilets are installed by a registered plumber and the wiring and electricals is installed by a licensed electrician. If you ‘DIY’ you could risk ruining all your hard work and having to start again.

When you’re renovating your bathroom, it’s essential to make sure that your new basins, showers, bath tubs, taps and toilets are installed by a registered plumber and the wiring and electricals is installed by a licensed electrician. If you ‘DIY’ you could risk ruining all your hard work and having to start again.

Total care Bathroom Renovations deliver exceptional quality finishes with the greatest attention to detail. All our works are backed by warranty and insurance and carried out by qualified tradespeople. The qualified tradespeople work on every renovation. All our qualified tradespeople are fully licensed with specialist experience relating specifically to bathroom renovations.

It is a government requirement that our qualified tradespeople be licensed and registered with the relevant bodies.

Plumbers: Must be registered or licensed with the Victorian Building Authority and carry an identification card.

The Victorian Building Authority replaced the Plumbing Industry Commission on 1 July 2013. For all work valued at $750 or more, the plumber must give you a compliance certificate.  This certifies that the work complies with the law.

Electricians: Must be licensed by Energy Safe Victoria; see their website for information about what an electrician must provide to you when carrying out work. Whenever a licensed electrician completes any electrical installation work, they must give you a Certificate of Electrical Safety.

These are only available from qualified electrical workers registered or licensed with Energy Safe Victoria.

Once the plumbing and electrical is sorted, you will still need a number of other qualified tradies to deliver a professional bathroom renovation, on time and on budget. Our qualified tradies are organised for when they are needed at a particular phase of a bathroom renovation, ensuring a smooth, hassle-free reno and ultimately saving cost to our clients.

Involves:

Framing new walls

Swapping windows for doors

Establishing a new platform for cabinets, baths or other fittings.

Our skilled tradies are expert in domestic carpentry and will quickly assemble the framework to support your new bathroom using the latest techniques and tools.

Our rough carpenters are generally the first of our construction teams on site once the strip out is completed, as the framework must be completed before other external and internal work on a project can commence. The job of a finish carpenter includes measuring, cutting, and installing elements of a renovation project that the owner will see on completion.

These can include trim, and custom cabinets. We rely on the knowledge and experience of a good finish carpenter because even the slightest discrepancy in the trim and other areas will be noticeable. Sometimes our carpenter will perform both rough and finish carpentry in the same project.

This can be more convenient for him because if a separate rough carpenter doesn’t install the walls or flooring perfectly, he will have a hard time making up for those mistakes while installing the trim. By doing both jobs, he ensures that all carpentry is measured and cut properly.

Plastering

Once the carpentry is complete our plasterers:

• Apply and fix plasterboard partitions
• Apply decorative and protective coverings of plaster, cement and similar materials
• Determine plasterboard layout
• Install insulation and vapour barriers
• Secure plaster panels to walls, ceilings and battens
• Prepare corner beads and secure them in position, fixing pre-cast cornices, panel mouldings, ceiling centres and other plaster fittings while plumbing and straightening corners, angles and wall and ceiling surfaces.

Waterproofing is the unsung hero of a bathroom renovation project, and if not completed properly will ensure the entire renovation deteriorates rapidly.

Waterproofing is the unsung hero of a bathroom renovation project, and if not completed properly will ensure the entire renovation deteriorates rapidly.

Of all the rooms in your house, you will need the bathroom to be the most waterproof.

Waterproofing is one of the first steps to take place when a bathroom is being built. It involves installing a waterproof barrier around the walls and floor in your bathroom to protect the structure of the house from the moisture. Waterproofing is very black and white; your bathroom is either waterproof, or it’s not.

This is why you really do need an expert like Total Care Bathroom Renovations. Waterproofing is best done in stages.

Some of it will need to go down before the floors and walls are fully laid, some of it will need to go down after everything is in place, including the paint. Perhaps most important areas are where the walls meet the floor. Any gaps where water can seep in can cause major structural damage, which is hugely expensive to repair. Liquid sealants are normally applied in a similar fashion to paint.

A primer is used first, then a first coat is applied from left to right (horizontally). The subsequent coat is then applied up and down (i.e. vertically), in order to catch any small holes missed in the first coat. Silicon sealants are around the points where bathroom features such as the bath and vanity unit meet the walls, to ensure water doesn’t get behind them.

Waterproofing products usually need about a day to dry, so as to ensure that they create a proper seal – and they shouldn’t be disturbed at all while they’re curing.

Tiling occurs once the waterproofing membrane has been installed – and after it’s been left undisturbed for a couple of days to properly cure.

The tilers at Total Care Bathroom Renovations have decades of experience laying both wall and floor tiles for domestic and commercial clients and are keenly aware of the importance of their workmanship. Coupled with the painter, and the ultimate fit-off of your new fittings and fixtures, tiling represents the visual icing on the cake of the bathroom renovation.

Our tiling services include:

• Domestic tiling for indoor and outdoor areas - bathrooms, kitchens, laundry, feature walls, garage, floor tiling, alfresco, patio, verandahs, outdoor kitchens and showers.
• Commercial tiling - restaurants, cafes, medical centres, education facilities, aged care, etc.
• Disabled bathrooms.
• Architectural tiling - pillars, columns, feature walls and custom projects.
• Landscape tiling - fountains, garden steps, retaining walls, pizza ovens, gas fire surrounds, etc.
• Tiling for new construction, renovations and extensions.

We are experienced in laying a wide range of modern tiles:

• Ceramic and porcelain tiles
• Marble and terrazzo tiles
• 3D, geometric, metallic, mosaic and decorative tiles in a variety of patterns
• Timber look tiles
• Heavy duty and commercial tiles for outdoor areas
• Limestone and sandstone pavers
• Slate tiles
• Non slip vinyl and polyurethane floors
• Outdoor epoxy coatings for garages

Things to consider:

Our tilers will make sure that the tiles you have selected are suitable for the area you wish to tile.

Consideration must be given to how a particular tile will wear; as all tiles have a wear rating, and we will guide you in your choice.

If you plan to purchase your tiles always check that your tiles are suitable for wet areas which require slip resistant tiles to reduce the likelihood of some one slipping over.

Combined with waterproofing and curing, you should allow at least seven days for the bathroom tiling to cure. Our tilers will then return to remove all waxes, grout and grout residues.

All tiles are laid in accordance with the Australian Building Code and the appropriate Australian Standards. As you have seen, tiling is only one component of a much larger building system that requires careful planning before the tiles are fixed. We ensure that our written contract details the scope of work and that our seven year warranty will have full effect.

The bathroom fit out is the exciting part of the renovation project; the time when your vision comes together with the fittings, cabinets, tap ware and accessories you have chosen. The end is in sight!

The bathroom fit out is the exciting part of the renovation project; the time when your vision comes together with the fittings, cabinets, tapware and accessories you have chosen.

The fit out is the culmination of what might have been up to six months of planning and inconvenience; the time when you can stand back and savour your new bathroom.

The fit out involves:

• Fitting new plumbing - showers, baths and sanitary items.
• Installing cabinets, mirrors, shelves, consoles, towel rails
• Fitting new brassware
• Installing new lighting and ventilation
• Painting and decorating
• Installing new shower screens and blinds

Our quality control team ensures everything is installed correctly and is functioning perfectly. Any potential problems are identified and fixed prior to hand over.

Every member of the team at Total Care Bathroom Renovations are committed to ensuring all our bathroom renovations are finished to the highest quality, with everything functioning perfectly. Your new bathroom will be presented in showroom style, everything cleaned, prepared for use and all builders’ rubbish removed.

With everything installed, our quality control team ensures everything is finished to the highest quality and is functioning perfectly. 

The team at Total Care Bathroom Renovations make sure your new bathroom sparkles like a lifestyle magazine show piece. 

For hand over your new bathroom will be presented in showroom style, everything cleaned, prepared for use and all builders rubbish removed.