Getting prepared for your laundry renovation
Here’s our advice on renovating your laundry
Price range: The cost of a laundry reno ranges significantly from a few thousand to tens of thousands depending on how budget or boujee your choices are. However, I’d argue that it is easier to keep the cost down for a laundry than it is for a bathroom or kitchen renovation as you’ll see from my tips below.
The biggest difference between a bathroom and laundry renovation is that cabinetry will likely play a bigger role in the laundry. Often the biggest cost in time and money will come from cabinets (flatpack or custom) and benchtop, with plumbing, electrical and tiling making up the rest of the costs to varying degrees depending on how much or little you do to the space. But never fear, there are ways to stay within a budget.
Handy tips:
Nothing beats beautifully handmade cabinets, but that’s not always within budget, so consider prefabricated or custom flatpack cabinet options if you’re working on a budget.
Benchtops can be such a hero in a laundry. If you’re not inclined to pay for natural or man-made stone benchtops, then consider prefabricated wooden benchtops as these can can save you thousands of dollars and be sourced much cheaper from Ikea or Bunnings. Either way, just make sure you know the exact dimensions and position of the sink (work with your Plumber on this) and whether it will be under or over mounted before having the benchtop cut to fit.
A tiled or stone splashback gives a luxury finish to this practical space, but it is also possible to simply paint the walls if you’d rather spend your budget elsewhere.
Licenced Plumber - Plumbing is a critical trade for a laundry renovation too, so get a great Plumber in early to discuss any movement of pipework and drainage, and to identify where the washing machine and dryer will be located.
Cabinet Maker and/or Stonemason – The options are endless, from DIY to custom handmade cabinetry. Your imagination (and your budget) is the only limit to what you can do, so choose your own adventure.
Electrician – The sparky will need to know positioning of your appliances and any additional powerpoints and lights you’d like installed early in the process.
Tiler – If you’ve chosen this finish for the floor and/or splashback. As always, make sure you’re clear if you’re choosing a particularly ornate tile pattern such as herringbone and grout colour, otherwise the decisions might be made for you. Another important thing to discuss which may affect your tile choice is how the tiler plans to arrange the floor tiles to allow for enough ‘fall’ so that water flows to the drain rather than pool on your floor. Try to avoid unsightly cuts in the tiles if possible to improve the overall finished product.
Asbestos Removal Specialist/Carpenter/Plasterer/Glazier (if required). As with our earlier blog focussing on bathroom renovations (which you can find here), these are all important trades that you may need involved depending on your space.
Renovating your home doesn’t need to be confusing. Finding experts who are honest, communicate well and will step you through the process and help you understand all of the important design and functionality decisions will make your life (and the process) so much easier.
We can help with that – if you are thinking about renovating a wet-area in your home. Get in touch with us to set up a design consultation and quote, and keep your eyes peeled for a new product we are launching soon that will help anyone undertaking a bathroom renovation to design a beautiful and functional bathroom and walk you through the step by step process of renovating your bathroom.
Sally O’Donnell (AKA Mrs Action Plumber)