Bathroom Renovation???

RICARDO1982

I am looking into renovating our bathroom and was wondering has anyone here had their bathroom done recently with good results at a good price

My Options are
1 / Pay a company to do this
2/ Do this myself getting in a plasterer tiler and plumber as required with me doing the stripping of all the old tiles, bathroom suite etc and buying all the materials, having it ready to install all the new bits

It does not have to be the cheapest as i know really cheap will probably be wasting my time.. Just wondering how others have got on??? As i am unsure which way to go with this
Thanks in advance.

Joey the lips

I was in the trade. I have the experience and contacts to do it myself if nesessary. TBH it all depends on you. If you know what you want and understand whats needed and what can be done you will do it yourself with the trades..

However it all depends on how complex the job is going to be.

However if you like I will give you all the free advice you want.

RICARDO1982

Cheers Joey i am just thinking whats the best option. It is not a huge bathroom i am looking to move the bath back and put the sink on the other side of the bathroom so the toilet bath and sink are not at the same end (cramped).
I am looking to tile the floor and walls and get the ceiling plastered, a new bathroom suite.
I have a few contacts that are doing literally nothing at the moment and would be glad with a bit of work.
I am thinking ball park figures 1800 to 2000 to do myself and about 4000 to get a company to do it ?
Am i thinking along the right lines????

Anyone else have any bathroom work done?
Thanks

Joey the lips

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

Cheers Joey i am just thinking whats the best option. It is not a huge bathroom i am looking to move the bath back and put the sink on the other side of the bathroom so the toilet bath and sink are not at the same end (cramped).
I am looking to tile the floor and walls and get the ceiling plastered, a new bathroom suite.
I have a few contacts that are doing literally nothing at the moment and would be glad with a bit of work.
I am thinking ball park figures 1800 to 2000 to do myself and about 4000 to get a company to do it ?
Am i thinking along the right lines????

Anyone else have any bathroom work done?
Thanks

Your figures sound on the ball. Again it all depends on what you get.

If you are going to do it yourself try get your trades to agree to stage payments of sorts.

For example tell the plumber You will give him the last 250 when he is finished final fixing and tell the tiler you will pay him the final sum after the plumber. The reason I say this is sometimes a plumber drops a wrench or something and breakes a tile and then the tiler will charge you more to come back and fix it.

Also be careful of your trades. For example make sure the tiler uses flex adhesive throughout and make sure the valves you or the plumber supply are not high pressure in an environment requiring low pressure

RICARDO1982

Thanks for the tips Joey i will keep this in mind .
Where has good bathroom showrooms for inspiration?
Where is a good place to buy the materials and bathroom suite? thats good value with good products?
I have been to Tile Style in balymount but my house is only a 3 bed semi not a mansion and the stuff there was a bit swanky!!

starbelgrade

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

Cheers Joey i am just thinking whats the best option. It is not a huge bathroom i am looking to move the bath back and put the sink on the other side of the bathroom so the toilet bath and sink are not at the same end (cramped).
I am looking to tile the floor and walls and get the ceiling plastered, a new bathroom suite.
I have a few contacts that are doing literally nothing at the moment and would be glad with a bit of work.
I am thinking ball park figures 1800 to 2000 to do myself and about 4000 to get a company to do it ?
Am i thinking along the right lines????

Anyone else have any bathroom work done?
Thanks

Your costings sound very expensive - if they are just for labour. I had 3 bathrooms fully tiled (floors & walls), with all the sanitaryware, showers & bath plumbed for just under €2300.

Joey the lips

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

Thanks for the tips Joey i will keep this in mind .
Where has good bathroom showrooms for inspiration?
Where is a good place to buy the materials and bathroom suite? thats good value with good products?
I have been to Tile Style in balymount but my house is only a 3 bed semi not a mansion and the stuff there was a bit swanky!!

Go to them all, take your time. Even in the swanky ones you can get ideas that you will find cheap versions of. For example I know a couple of places around ballymount that will give you ideas then you will get cheap versions in b&q. There is nothing stopping you buying a nice cheap suite in b&q and changineing the ball valve to low pressure. Then you can get low pressure taps elsewhere.

starbelgrade wrote: »

Your costings sound very expensive - if they are just for labour. I had 3 bathrooms fully tiled (floors & walls), with all the sanitaryware, showers & bath plumbed for just under €2300.

His costings are bang on.

RICARDO1982

I was pricing up using tiles and materials of a decent quality as i want to get 10 to 15 years at least out of it and dont really liike cutting corners you pay later!

RICARDO1982

My costings were the whole job i think

Overheal

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

I was pricing up using tiles and materials of a decent quality as i want to get 10 to 15 years at least out of it and dont really liike cutting corners you pay later!

Well you really want to buy from a reputable shop and if they do their own labor, all the better. They then become your outlet if you need to make a claim on the Manufacturer's warranty on the goods.

Keep in mind most Manufacturers have internet sales policies - in that they wont come out and inspect for you if you bought it online. eg. Were a store in South Carolina and represent many flooring brands; but if you shop for it here and then buy it from a website in Ohio, then the internet shop in Ohio is responsible for any inspection (and they wont do ****) and youll be left without an recourse.

francie81

RICARDO1982 wrote: »

Cheers Joey i am just thinking whats the best option. It is not a huge bathroom i am looking to move the bath back and put the sink on the other side of the bathroom so the toilet bath and sink are not at the same end (cramped).
I am looking to tile the floor and walls and get the ceiling plastered, a new bathroom suite.
I have a few contacts that are doing literally nothing at the moment and would be glad with a bit of work.
I am thinking ball park figures 1800 to 2000 to do myself and about 4000 to get a company to do it ?
Am i thinking along the right lines????

Anyone else have any bathroom work done?
Thanks

Hi Ricardo,

Am in the middle of doing my own. I went with Bathroom Interiors based outside navan (ardbraccan to be precise) and I have to say it was the best I got I was in the exact position you were in of going about it and getting the job done right. I switched the toilet from as you walk straight in the door to the left of it with the shower taking its place which looks nicer of course, I bought all my materials off this crowd and just hired the plumber as I have my cousin down for tiling and have the electrician from work. The next phase for me is the wiring for the shower & extractor I just need the wall to be traced from where the unit will be right up to the top of wall with the fuse box adjacent (kitchen) and I think I'll actually give this a go myself, I also want something done with my ceiling as it looks ****ty before I have it tiled and finished by the plumber himself.

So to the point it cost me €1000 for materials (ensuite) with the labour (plumbing only) coming in at €1145, am not sure what others on the board think of this price being debatable or not but as I say it was a bargain to me to what other cowboys quoted me for example €6000 :eek:

I done what I was only confident in doing myself that was clearing it all out old bath, stripping old tiles etc so it was basically bear when they started on it.

All I will say is try and do alot of it yourself as its the labour you really pay for and be very careful shopping around, give this crowd a shout www.bathroominteriors.ie

Hope this helps and best of luck!

Francie

RICARDO1982

Thanks Francie i will keep it in mind. The bathroom has been put on hold at the mo as other money consuming things have come up unexpectedly. I will be doing it later in the year early next year some stage hopefully thanks lads.

DubGal10

Tubs and Tiles do full bathroom fit outs - tiles sanitaryware etc. ive always had a good experience with them. Shop around though and see who offers you the best deal but also the best service. there are plenty of bargains out there just gotta hunt them out...! good luck

dunsandin

Buy the best quality tiles, porcelain, taps and fittings you can stretch to. In the long term, they will still look good when the cheap muck has cracked, worn, tarnished and leaked. Pay the tiler well and pick a good one - ask around for recommendations. A bad tiler will make good tiles look poor, a good tiler can make bad tiles look great, and good tiles look amazing. Same goes for the plumber - a cack will leave you with hidden leaks and long term problems that can easily ruin a bathroom for the sake of saving a few euro. Save money by doing the groundworks yourself - the stripping out, preparing the walls, laying the ply on the floor, etc. A bathroom can easily be bodged up altogether if the plumbings poor, or the fit and finish is not spot on, so if you are not that handy, pay a selected group of independent pro's, who come well reccomended, the cost will long be forgotten while the quality will endure. Or else do it all yourself:D

sillysocks

I know you said your plans are on hold but if you are doing it later in the year maybe this will help.....

We had our bathroom done earlier in the year. Had the bath moved around (plughole & shower moved from one end to the other), sink moved from one wall to another, new bathroom suite, spotlights, floor to ceiling tiles on wall and tiled floor. Bathroom is relatively small.
We had someone recommended from a friend, we paid him and he had his own plumber and electrician come in when needed. It took about a week from start to finish.
Our total price including everything - labour, suite, tiles, taps etc etc - was 2,800 eur.

I posted some before and after pics in this thread and some further info. Hope that helps.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055782770&page=2

talktalk

francie81 wrote: »

Hi Ricardo,

Am in the middle of doing my own. I went with Bathroom Interiors based outside navan (ardbraccan to be precise) and I have to say it was the best I got

Francie

I would stay away from this crowd at all costs! Bathroom Interiors looks the part, the showroom is fantastic and they do have a lot to offer. However, the girls in there are extremely unprofessional and I had an extremely unpleasant experience in there. For starters, the staff don't dress appropriately and barely listen to what you are looking for. I went in there knowing what I wanted and basically had to fight with the sales girl, as she kept ramming her opinion down my throat. Not only that but she left me on a couple of occasions to go have a cigarette (how professional). I dunno if it was because it was a Sunday and the girl just didn't want to be there or if that was how she treated all customers, I just felt sorry for the other staff member as he seemed to know what he was talking about. In the end I left empty handed and went to the nearest place I could find as I was in a hurry to get the job finished.

Anyway... If you want hassle free experience, don't bother going near this place! There are much better and cheaper places within the vicinity.

dunsandin

talktalk wrote: »

I would stay away from this crowd at all costs! Bathroom Interiors looks the part, the showroom is fantastic and they do have a lot to offer. However, the girls in there are extremely unprofessional and I had an extremely unpleasant experience in there. For starters, the staff don't dress appropriately and barely listen to what you are looking for. I went in there knowing what I wanted and basically had to fight with the sales girl, as she kept ramming her opinion down my throat. Not only that but she left me on a couple of occasions to go have a cigarette (how professional). I dunno if it was because it was a Sunday and the girl just didn't want to be there or if that was how she treated all customers, I just felt sorry for the other staff member as he seemed to know what he was talking about. In the end I left empty handed and went to the nearest place I could find as I was in a hurry to get the job finished.

Anyway... If you want hassle free experience, don't bother going near this place! There are much better and cheaper places within the vicinity.

Do you own one?:D
Girls? Other staff member? 1,2, or more?:)
How long were you in there, are we talking hours?

This strikes me as a bit of a smear, I've no idea who this company is, but you can hardly tar them on the behaviour of one sunday girl. Maybe you are an annoying customer.:D Maybe she is forced to push a particular line of product by her manager. Maybe they are a shower of langers. But the sherlock foames in me smells a rateen.:D

talktalk

dont get me wrong dunsandin, the place has a lot to offer, some great suites on show and the showroom is fantastic. I just did not have a great experience with the sales girl. Now, when I go into a retailer to spend a few bob I like to be treated in a professional manner, and I am positive I would not be alone on this opinion, however, I felt I was not treated as I should have been so decided to go elsewhere. I would hardly be an annoying customer trying to buy tiles and a pedestal in a bathroom shop!

Yes I would tar them because of this because that was my second time in there both times with the same girl and treated the exact same way, and the girl I was dealing with was the manager! I don't see why I would spend my own money there to be treated like that. It's not a company for me. I'm entitled to pass my opinion on, isn't it the point of this site?

dunsandin

Fair enuff, thats all reasonable and right, but do you not find that when it comes to suppliers in the building trade, the service everywhere is crap? I have stood like a tool in plenty of Brooks thomases while the staff wallow over their PC's and generally ignore you till it suits them - once I finally got served(buying 1 tube of silicon!)in the one in Balbriggan and went up to pay, a client rang me and as it was important, I answered, while handing over the cash and the docket to the lady. She ignored me and called the lad behind me forward and began to serve him instead.Client said goodbye, and I hung up, and not being the shy and retiring type(understatement of the year) I enquired as to wether he would like a small slap for jumping me in the queue. He replied that the cashier had called him forward, so I asked her what the story was. She replied that she would not serve me while I was talking on the phone!!! They do it to me(talk on phone while serving) daily!! I informed her of my considered opinion on that policy, whereupon she called the manager over and said-snotty as you like- I'm not serving him, you serve him. The manager backed her up, and I laughed a lot- I asked wether he knew how much money I USED to spend in there, and hoped the weather stayed fine for him. I also advised him of an unusual use for a tube of silicone, involving surgical removal and the use of choice lubricants. Never went back, never will. Snotty service abounds, but its probably better to point it out there and then, and withdraw your custom. BTW I had never bothered saying anything to them before, so it was not a question of being a rowdy customer.