Lower North Shore
Bathroom renovations in Castlecrag
One company running the whole job, with licenced trades on the parts the law says need them, in a suburb where the houses need treating with a bit of care.
- Licenced plumbers, licence 227192C
- Waterproofing done properly, and certified
- Since 2007 on the North Shore
What a Castlecrag bathroom usually involves
- Houses built into the slope. Castlecrag sits on sandstone and bushland, and a lot of the homes step down the block. That changes where the waste can run and what the falls can be, and it is worked out before anything is priced.
- Character worth keeping. Between the Griffin-era homes and the mid-century houses, plenty of these bathrooms sit inside something worth not wrecking. The new work goes in without the rest of the house losing what makes it.
- Original pipework behind the tiles. In a house of this age the bathroom is usually the room with the oldest plumbing and the least waterproofing. Both get found at strip-out, which is the right time to find them.
- Small bathrooms where every centimetre counts. Older floor plans give you the room you have got. The gain usually comes from moving one fixture rather than moving a wall, and that is a plumbing decision.
- Access. Narrow driveways, steep blocks and bush at the boundary. We plan how the material gets in and the rubbish gets out on the site visit, not on the morning.
Castlecrag is between Willoughby and Northbridge, a few minutes from streets we are in most weeks.
What the job includes
In more detail
The three that decide whether it goes well
The waterproofing
It is the part nobody sees and the part that causes every expensive problem later. In New South Wales it has to be done by someone licenced to do it, and there were enough failures for the rules to be tightened.
We hold that licence, work to AS 3740, and you get the certificate. Corners, the wall-to-floor junction and the height up the wall are where it normally lets go, so that is where the care goes.
Bathroom waterproofingWhat is behind the old tiles
You cannot see it until it is off. In a Castlecrag house of any age that can mean rotten timber, a floor that has moved, poor render, or pipework that is well past its life.
When we find something we stop, show you and price it. It does not get quietly absorbed and it does not get sprung on you at the end, which is how a renovation budget usually comes apart.
How we run a renovationSmall bathrooms
Most of the gain in a small bathroom comes from where the fixtures sit, not from knocking out a wall. Moving a toilet a few hundred millimetres can change the whole room, and whether that is cheap or expensive is about where the waste runs.
We will tell you which moves are worth making before you fall in love with a plan that costs three times what it should.
All renovationsCommon questions about bathroom renovations in Castlecrag
Do you work in Castlecrag?
Yes. Castlecrag sits between Willoughby and Northbridge, both of which we are in most weeks, and we have been on the North Shore since 2007. It is a normal day's work for us, not a trip.
What is the process from quote to finished bathroom?
We come and look at it, and go through layout, tiles, whether fixtures are moving, and the budget. We put a first quote together, and once the direction is settled you get a firm price in writing before anything comes out.
Will I be able to use the bathroom while the work is on?
Generally not. If it is your only bathroom there are ways around it, from a temporary shower to a portable bathroom hired for the period. Worth planning before the job starts rather than during it.
Can you work on an older or character home?
Yes, and a good share of what we do is exactly that. The new work goes in without the rest of the house losing what makes it worth having. Where something needs council approval we will tell you early rather than halfway through.
Who sources the materials?
Either of us. Plenty of people enjoy choosing the tiles and tapware themselves. If you have not got the time, we will do the running around, which is a service we charge for.
What happens if you find something behind the tiles?
We stop, show you, and price it. Rot, movement, bad render and old pipework are all possible in a house of this age. None of it is common, and none of it gets quietly absorbed or sprung on you at the end.
Is the waterproofing certified?
Yes. It is done by licenced hands to AS 3740 and you get the certificate. It is the part nobody sees and the part that causes the expensive problems, so it is not a corner we cut.
Are you licenced?
Yes. NSW licence 227192C covers the plumbing and waterproofing, and we hold the bathroom, kitchen and laundry renovation licence. You can check us, and any other contractor, on the NSW Fair Trading site.
The STS Guarantee
Five things we promise on every job
- Licenced and insured. Plumbing, gas fitting and drainage, to the Australian Standards. NSW licence 227192C.
- You get the price before we start. Agreed upfront and in writing. No hourly rate ticking over while you wonder what it is going to come to.
- We turn up when we said we would. And if we are running behind, you get a phone call rather than silence.
- We clean up after ourselves. Drop sheets down, mess taken away, and the ground or brickwork put back the way we found it.
- Our workmanship is warranted. If something is not right after we have left, ring us and we will come back and put it right at our cost.
Word gets around
Neighbours telling neighbours. Give us a call and spread the word.
Thinking about a bathroom in Castlecrag?
Ask us to come and look at it properly. We go through the layout, the fixtures, the budget and what we expect to find behind the tiles. You get the price in writing before anything is pulled out.
Office hours: Monday to Friday, 7am to 5pm.