When a home has only one bathroom, a renovation is not just about tile and fixtures. It is about timing. Every day the room is out of service is a day the household has to work around it. On a recent bathroom renovation in Etobicoke, that was the main challenge, and it shaped how we planned the whole job.
Here is how the project came together, and how we finished it in under two weeks.
The project at a glance
- Location: Etobicoke
- Type: Full bathroom renovation, finished
- Timeline: Under two weeks
- Structural changes: None
- What went in: New vanity, tile, toilet, faucet and bathtub, plus insulation and waterproofing behind the walls
- How it started: See day one of the demolition
The challenge: one bathroom, no backup
Our clients have only one bathroom in their home. That changes the conversation from the start. In a house with a second bathroom, a renovation is an inconvenience. In a house with just one, the questions become practical very quickly: where will everyone shower, and for how long?
Instead of asking the family to live around an active job site, we waited until they went on vacation. We started while they were away and finished the project before they came back. They left with the old bathroom and came home to a finished new one.
Not every family can plan a trip around a renovation, but the idea behind it applies to almost any project. Settle the timing before demolition starts, not after.
Nothing structural changed
Nothing structural was changed in this bathroom. The work stayed focused on repairing, protecting and refinishing the room, which helps when the schedule is the main concern. For a household with one bathroom, every extra stage of work is more time without it.
The work behind the walls
A finished bathroom is only as good as what sits behind the tile. Once the room was opened up, we fixed the damage we found, added insulation and installed waterproofing before any finishes went on.
On day two, the crew built up the framing and support for the new bathtub. A bathtub holds a lot of weight once it is full of water, so a solid base underneath it is part of doing the job properly.
None of this shows in the final photos, and that is the point.
Saving the medicine cabinet
The homeowner wanted to keep their medicine cabinet. That meant taking extra care during demolition, so it came off the wall in one piece instead of being torn out with everything else. In the day one demolition post, you can see it being unscrewed and lifted out.
In the finished room, the same cabinet hangs above the new vanity. Keeping a piece the homeowner cares about is a small detail, but it makes the new bathroom feel like theirs.
The finishes
With the work behind the walls done, the new pieces went in:
- A new vanity with a white countertop and sink
- New tile on the floor and around the tub
- A new toilet
- A new faucet
- A new bathtub
Planning around your only bathroom
If yours is the only bathroom in the house, a few things are worth thinking about early:
- Talk about timing first. Do you have a trip coming up, or a stretch of time when the house will be empty or quieter? Bring it up at the start.
- Decide what stays. If there is a cabinet, mirror or fixture you want to keep, say so before demolition so the crew can plan to remove it carefully.
- Ask what the scope involves. Knowing early whether any structural work is needed helps everyone plan the schedule.
If you are still planning your budget, our guide to small bathroom renovation cost in Toronto covers the main cost factors.
Only one bathroom and worried about timing?
If you only have one bathroom and you are worried about the timing, give us a call and we will figure it out with you. Levand Construction handles full bathroom renovations in Etobicoke, Toronto, Mississauga and the wider GTA. Contact us to talk about your project.
FAQ
How long did this Etobicoke bathroom renovation take? This renovation took under two weeks to finish.
How do you renovate a home's only bathroom? On this job, we waited until the clients went on vacation and finished the project before they came back. If you only have one bathroom, call us and we will work out the timing with you.
Was anything structural changed? No. Nothing structural was changed in this bathroom.
What was done behind the walls? We fixed the damage, added insulation and installed waterproofing. The crew also built up the framing and support for the new bathtub.
Can you save an existing medicine cabinet during a renovation? On this project, yes. The homeowner wanted to keep their medicine cabinet, so we took extra care during demolition to save it.
