Thread: Builder/Plumber Advice

I am a Plumber in Toowoomba if that helps. Do it all your self but get the water proofing done by a pro.

Originally Posted by colrospeake

I am a Plumber in Toowoomba if that helps. Do it all your self but get the water proofing done by a pro.

Yeh, Thats the plan, thanks.
I get conflicting advice which annoys me though. For example, I am tempted to use 'aquapanel' a laminex product around the shwer recess. One fellow said no need to use villa board, just the panel, another said yep, gotta put it over villaboard . Frustrating!

Ralph

Ralph,

I am renovating a Queenslander and doing a lot of it myself (yes I am a BSA tradie, just not a chippy). I had the house lifted and blocked in underneath to double the size of the original. The new bathroom downstair is 3m by 3m and incorporated the shower, handbasin and loo. It was designed to handle aging invalid parents (in law) and as such uses a hobless shower. The whole floor (including shower) falls to one drain. I have also used "Aquapanel" and it definitely needs the vilaboard behind it and it very easy to clean.
As our plumber friend said, get the waterproofing done by a licenced professional. They will issue a compliance certificate so there are now comebacks. I also had a tiler do my floor because fall and drainage was critical.

Depending on the level of reno, consider all the mobility options as well. Mine has 920 wide door, correct loo and grab rails, 1/4 turn taps, etc.

Paul

Hi Mate,
I appreciate your frustrations and I have sacked ten's of trades since arriving in the "smart state" WTF thought that one up.. due to being lacklustre and usless.
Try this guy Terry Harvey "Jimboomba Plumbing" I use him for all my bath room reno's great pricing, exceptional service..
I hope this helps.

Ralph

I have reno'd 3 houses over the last 15 years and always used villa board in bathrooms, laundry's etc - any wet area.

Granted at 6.5mm thick villaboard is damn heavy stuff, but it will last.

Get your waterproffing done by a pro - but watch him do it as the smell is great.

I have used the aquapanel for a shower recess on a previous occasion, but have had trouble with mould in the silicone along the bottom edge where the aquapanel sits over the lip of the shower tray. It may have been the "cheaper" brand of silicone that I used. I have since cleaned it out and used a more expensive silicone.

Cheers
Andrew

Hey bud

I am a builder in SA.

Waterproofing is very underrated.
Soon it will be a 4 yr apprenticeship associated with it.

I recommend, gut whole bathroom, blueboard or similar whole room.
Get approved floortraps and new taps installed by plumber.
Water proof by lic or qualified person. If using a screed, waterproof under and over the screed.

Give each enough time to dry.
With hobs or panels, I am not a big fan and are seldom used in this state. Qld may be different.

When tiling, use appropriate adhesive and leave a 3mm grout gap and 3-5mm gap at all junction(wall and floor, corners etc). These are the guide lines from the minister for the building industry.
They are later silicone sealed and let the building move enough not to crack the tiles anywhere and break any seals.

When the waterproofing on screed is done, just get a watering can and pour over floor.
Make sure there are no puddles. This is eesential. Grout is not actually waterproof and will let water penetrate and water makes its way under tiles to all sorts of areas.
Bathroom renos are not easy and care is to be taken.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Good luck.
Also ensure there is plenty of ventilation.

Some of this is more design advice but just to back up and add to what others have said...

Yes, vilaboard or other fibro product is the safest wall lining.
Yes, get the plumbing installed professionally if possible because of the risk and long term damage if there are even minor leaks/seepage.

Is it on a concrete or timber floor? I always prefer no hob to the shower recess and keep the whole bathroom foor flush with the main floor but you may not be able to do this if the existing structural floor is not already set down. With a "hobless" shower, you still need to install a small aluminium (or stainless steel) channel at the entry to the shower recess so the water doesn't track back out across the floor under pressure. The actual setdown to the shower recess is only a few mm.

Yes, get the whole thing waterproofed, and at least 2m up the wall in the shower recess and about 500mm beyond.

MAKE SURE THE WALL TILES ARE PROPERLY SEALED ALONG THE TOP EDGE. One of my pet hates is tilers who don't seal the top edge. Steam condenses on the walls then trickles down behind the tiles and after time you have a nasty mess in there.

I would go for wall tiles over anything else. It just looks better I think and again, go at least 2m up the wall (not 1800mm as most do). Better still tile to the ceiling unless it's a Queenslander then you need to stop at 2m and put in a dado/picture rail or something to make it all look right.

Be careful with placement of electrical switchgear & power points near taps. Thee are regulations for how close these can be to a water source. I like to place a waterproof downlight over the shower recess if it is enclosed (this depends on the layout).

I would recommend a shower mixer tap over separate taps. Much less prone to leakage and easier to get the temperature right.

Finally, paint the ceiling with Dulux "Mouldshield" or similar.

Make sure you don't skimp on your taps you buy the Chinese stuff and you will be replacing it in 12 months.
There are a couple of tap manufacturers in Brisbane.