New Bathroom

[Scarlet]

Hello everyone,

I'm very very new to the DIY game!

I'm in the process of purchasing my first two bed ground floor flat.

The flat is a great size but its going to need a new bathroom which means knocking down the exsisting stud wall and making it bigger-At the moment its about 5'X6'

So the whole lot need to come out and im after anything and everything you guys can give me.

Where to start, what to buy, where to find cheap materials -you get the idea.

Thanks in advance

S

 

[breezer]

where to find cheap materials -

Don't use "cheap materials" it will look "not nice" and cost you more in the long run

 

[Scarlet]

where to find cheap materials -

Don't use "cheap materials" it will look "not nice" and cost you more in the long run

its my first place - im not going to be using the most expensive stuff on the market! I'm after good quality and good value materials

 

[breezer]

thats as may be, but you did say

im after anything and everything you guys can give me.

I merely pointed out that you should not use cheap materials,

I am only suggesting you buy the best you can afford, not the cheapest you see. If you do not want advice then do not ask for it

 

[skellem]

Wow, thats a big job for a first time DIY'er! I did my own bathroom, ripped everything out, extended into the second bedroom (sounds like what you are doing) and then refitted everything. It took me weeks of work, probably 2 or 3 weeks of solid graft!

If you can't do plumbing or electrics, you will have to get a plumber to firstly disconnect all your water works, do all the fitting out and then get him to refit all the new plumbing. Then you will have to get a sparky to sort out all the wiring and possibly a tiler if you can't do tiling yourself. You will also have to get a plasterer to finish the new walls if they are going to be painted.

For materials, I used screwfix.com for all fittings, screws etc. They are quite cheap and deliver next day. Also, try B&Q or similar for bathroom suites, they tend to have good budget suites for sale.

Good luck!

 

[AdamW]

I did a similar job myself. The bathroom was separated into one room with toilet and bath, the second contained sink and vanity unit. I knocked the two together (stud wall) and did a bare-blocks refit. I also moved an airing cupboard in the process.

Took me about 2 weeks of hard work to get it from its original state to having it plumbed (including the separate shower pump), new ceiling in, the four-piece suite in etc. etc.

However, the real time-eater was finishing it. But that is because I hate tiling, and decided that 20 square metres of tiling was what I really wanted to do.

I urge you to get the hang of smaller projects first, I had dabbled in plumbing and electrics before, and built a few studwalls so had some idea of what I was getting into.

I bought my suite for about £300 from Wickes, taps were included. I had a couple of relatively minor problems with it, but the quality of the materials is pretty good. I had a look at the B&Q suites too, but in this price-range the suites on display in my local B&Q felt a bit flimsy.

Plumbers merchants usually have catalogues of suites that you can flick through and they will order in. From what I have heard these are almost always good quality, because tradesmen will moan like hell if given substandard materials. My local Plumbcenter were happy for me to sit at one end of the counter and browse their catalogues for a good half-hour, but it was a very quiet time of day!

 

[AdamW]

Oh, one very important but overlooked area of bathrooms is the silicone. Do not buy cheap or shed-brand silicone! In the merchants, for about £3-4 a tube you can get Dow Corning brand. It was recommended to me on this forum, it is the only brand I have used since! It really does make a difference.

 

[stevenrafferty]

just in the process of refitting our bathroom, complete strip out and refit, although not taking any walls down.

Not sure where in the country you are but I bought a complete bathroom suite plus large shower tray for £350 from the supply arm of a bathroom shop. This was direct from there warehouse, so they sell everything at least 25% cheaper than from the showroom. All good quality fittings, just plain white. So if you can find this type of supplier, probably your best chance of getting items at a relatively low cost.

Best place I found to buy taps, was over the internet, not through any sheds or high street showrooms. plumbworld.co.uk seems to be a good source, usually have the price of shed prices.

I would suggest that if you are not a fully competent plumber (like me) but want to get involved and can confidently shut off the water supply to strip out the existing but get a good plumber to put the new suite in (plus plaster/electrician/etc).

You can alsways make a good, inexpensive suite look really expensive by your taps and tiles

 

[AdamW]

You can alsways make a good, inexpensive suite look really expensive by your taps and tiles

I agree. Also the converse is true. A badly-fitted £3000 suite will say to people "badly fitted" rather than "£3000".

Sticking to white suites with silver-coloured accessories is relatively timeless, and therefore will still look good in a year or two. Art Deco styles are pretty good for that too, because they are usually fairly basic black and white, with geometric patterns rather than anything fancy.

It is said you should steer clear of gold-coloured taps, because even if they are real gold then they can look cheap.

I have found that tiling does require a certain amount of skill and care, and you get better at it as you progress. Definitely buy an electric tile cutter as this is the only way to cut tiles very precisely, first time. In fact with expensive tiles you will probably save the cost of the cutter in reduced breakage (I have broken 3 tiles out of 900, and they all broke after I had actually cut them, forgetting they were fragile.)

 

[masona]

You can alsways make a good, inexpensive suite look really expensive by your taps and tiles

Agreed with you all here, my wife decided to give our utility room a face lift. Change all the suspended ceiling tiles (gee, more light in there, now need sunglasses!) and painted the kitchen unit doors and renew all door handle plus emulsion the wall for £62 I can't believe what a difference it has made. Oh dear, I sound like the tv "House Doctor" programme