Bathroom renovation - can I DIY?

I would love to DIY my bathroom. I got a little crazy with the demolition and apparently followed very bad advice to remove the render. So, it needs render. It needs waterproofing. It needs tiling. It needs concreting where the bath was. It needs the floor levelled for a walk in shower. It needs a new vanity.

Any advice on whether I could DIY the floor levelling and floor tiling? I would be willing to DIY the rendering and tiling.

I would need to start from scratch with the tools. I have a trowell, but that's basically it. I've recently moved out on my own and have no tools, even the drill was left behind.

I'm hoping my enthusiasm and willingness to learn, and attention to detail will make it DIY-able. Thoughts?

Bathroom cupboard demolished to insert a cavity shelf - probably tiledAnother view of the bath floor that needs concreteThis shower needs waterproofing, new render and tilingBath was removed so this space needs concretingWall needs to be tiled, but this render is not even and needs to be grounded somewhat. It is more raised than the plaster and thicker at the bottom.New floor plan

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MitchellMc

Hi @rmillard,

I'd start by having a few tradespeople come in to quote for the shower waterproofing and plumbing that you need removed and relocated. You can potentially at that time enquire as to their requirements for the floor and the levels that exist.

The self-levelling of the floor and the render you can do yourself, but consideration will need to be made about the final levels and what type of floor the shower will have.

Returning to our previous conversation, I think a feature wall from brick could look quite nice if incorporated well into the aesthetic of the bathroom. I'm not sure how that would work out with the shower recess as obviously waterproofing will need to go over it.

Let me mention the extremely helpful @Brad to see if he might like to give his thoughts on the best place to start.

Mitchell

rmillard

https://www.bunnings.com.au/kaboodle-2400-x-600-x-36mm-hevea-timber-benchtop_p0082263

Would this panel be ok to use as a vanity benchtop? Is it suitable for a wet area?

To go on top of this Cibo 1200mm cabinet. Cabinet would go on the left of the 2100mm wall, with the gap on the right to have an underbench washing machine.

https://www.bunnings.com.au/cibo-design-1200mm-white-tonic-full-height-vanity-cabinet-only_p0138288

blb48

This looks familiar! I've just finished building one bathroom and am finishing the renovations on another. I found getting my plumber in to do the under-house work really laid a good basis for me to install the shower and sink myself. That is, he put the pipes in the walls and floor and connected everything up to our rainwater tank, as we are not on mains. His willingness to offer some guidance later was invaluable when I was preparing the walls for tiling around the taps. So, I'm suggesting that you engage a good plumber to check all the pipes before they go behind the walls, as well as an electrician to check or install any wiring.

Compared to the technicalities of getting the water and electricity into the bathroom (legally and safely), the rest is a doddle. You may not need to render the bricks, for example, if you line the room with cement board, ready for waterproofing and then tiling or installing other coverings. (I tiled in the shower, but also used old floor boards outside the shower to line the walls.) I built a timber framework and attached the cement sheeting to that, but I've seen some handyman videos where the cement framework has been attached directly to sound brick. But I prefer the certainty of nails and screws to glue. Tiles are very heavy, and I didn't want my cement sheets coming away from the wall.

There are a few different waterproof backing sheets for tiles and all of the makers provide excellent guides for installing backing sheets and then waterproofing them studs on brick wallsfurther for tiling. Bunnings has really simple videos and Youtube is full of advice. I've attached a picture of a brick wall where the builder has used studs for attaching the cement boards. I don't have any images of mine as the walls are already tiled. But this will show you what I mean. You paint over the backing boards with a shower proofing membrane. another example of studs to support cement backing boards

MitchellMc

Hi @rmillard,

The Kaboodle 2400 x 600 x 36mm Hevea Timber Benchtop is suitable to be used as a vanity benchtop. However, as with kitchen benchtops, they must be coated with a sealant suitable to the environment they are in. The sealant must be applied on all surfaces including underneath and inside all the cut-outs for taps and the sink. Once the sealant has been applied the benchtop will be water-resistant but not water-proof so any spills need to be cleaned up as soon as possible.

A suitable sealant for a bathroom vanity top would be Cabots Cabothane clear.

Please let me know if you need further assistance or had questions.

Mitchell

Former_Member

In the old bathrooms the tiling was done with cement directly to the brick.

If you want to tile to ceiling probably a good idea to remove to brick but if tiling to same height

could have left the cement blobs on and patched.

If the old shower recess had a brick hob the outside floor and recess level may not be the same, as the areas would

have been worked separately.

You will probably have to dig up the recess anyway to check the old pipes and fit

a new floorwaste.

Screeding a floor and rendering in preparation for tiling are not that easy a task for a novice.

I would speak to a tiler to advise you on floor levels and floor waste heights and preparation for

the types of tiles you want to use.

Then get in a plumber and electrician.

PS I used to do bathroom renovations.

Ymarkakis

Ahhhh!! This looks just like our reno!!!

removed the Old tiles and found bricks behind!
everything is cemented in!! We’ve removed all the old cement sand, capped most the taps (leaving the shower till last)

ive never filed before but I’ve bought the wall primer, tile glue, grout, grout sealer and tools all from bunnings.

where our bath was I’m building a frame and cement sheeting it, thought about cementing it over, but as the house is stumped going with the frame.

going to start roughing things in hopefully this week, then move onto tiling!
you’ve done the hard work, I’m sure you’ll do great!!

MitchellMc

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @Ymarkakis.

It's great to have you join us and many thanks for jumping straight in the conversation. I'm sure @rmillard appreciates the moral support.

It would be great to follow along with your project as well and we would encourage you to let us know if you need any assistance or have something to share. I trust you'll find loads of inspiration within the community for your bathroom as we have many talented members contributing their ideas here all the time.

I look forward to seeing what you'll complete next and please keep us updated.

Mitchell

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