Depending on the project will depend on what electrical work needs doing. All electrical work is vitally important to be done by a licenced and insured Electrician. Cutting corners for cheaper work can result in unsafe work which will put your life and whoever else ventures in your property at risk. Insurance companies also crack down hard on paying out if work was not done correctly and by a licenced contractor. This being said depending on the project does depend on what electrical work needs doing. Use below as a check list for your project;

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Kitchen Renovation:

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- Do you need any appliances safely disconnect before kitchen is removed? This may be required for your oven and cooktop. Not all cases it is required as it may be a plug GPO power point connection. If it does not have a GPO power point connection is will be hard wired which is dangerous to disconnect yourself and needs to be done by a licenced electrician for safety reasons. This process expect to pay up to $500.

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-Do you need power points moved, or additional power points created? Most kitchen renovations require the need for this process all depending on the new location of appliances. The best approach for this is to discuss with your cabinet maker the layout of the newly designed kitchen. Based on these plans you can gauge the location of where you need power moved from or created. You cannot do this process yourself as you again require a licenced electrician to do so. They will use the cabinet makers plans and make it work for you. This process may require the electrician to climb the roof and access spaces from moving roof tiles. They may also require access to your ceiling space. Also be prepared for them to turn your power off doing so, this is a safe practice and should be done. These are all normal requests. This process can vary in pricing dramatically depending on how much work is required. for small adjustments and no major re-wiring expect around $1,500 for this process. a safe hourly wage is $150 per hour.

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- Do you want pendant or downlights fitted in your renovation? This is a similar process as above as it all depends on the space and what is available. If the process does not require drastic re-wiring expect to pay around $200 per light. If you only hired the electrician to do one light of work, please also allow a minimum charge on top of the cost as this would be for the "call out". Call outs typically are $250. Bigger scale jobs you will find no "call out" gets charged as the labour paid for itself. This can vary company to company though; this is just what we have found to be the current standard at the moment.

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- The big one which is very common here in Queensland is not having an isolation switch for your electric cooktop! We are required by code to have an isolation switch for your electric cooktop by law. Most old kitchens don't have one as it's a fairly new code put into place. Key thing to remember is this is only required if you wish to have an electric cooktop. If you have gas this is not required. And the isolation is only for the cooktop, not needed for ovens. What the isolation switch does is prevents kids or anyone accidentally knocking the cooktop on and starting a fire. The isolation switch is to be turned on first to engage the power to the cooktop to prevent this accidentally happening. The isolation switch needs to be in arm's length of the cooktop and in a safe location away from any dangers. We put the isolation switch arm's length away ​on the backsplash wall (this should be the standard practice). Now if you do not currently have an isolation switch you will require a new power line to be fed to your power box and connect directly to the isolation switch. It is important that this is its own fuse and not piggy backing another line. The cooktop needs to have its own fuse for safety and power concerns. This process can be expensive depending on the amount of work require. On average expect $1,500. This situation the electrician may recommend a new power box for safety reasons; this should not be ignored. If you need a new power box and isolation switch expect up to $3,000 in works.

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Laundry Renovations:

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- Use the same guide as above for the kitchen renovations as this pretty much goes for all renovations but the key requirement we find is needed in the laundry is movement of power points to align correctly with washing machine and dryer. The goal is to get all power inside your sink cabinet or if you have the room into an adjacent cabinet. We do this so the power is hidden but still easily accessible inside a cabinet compared to behind the appliances which in an emergency situation is not ideal. Always aim to get the power neatly contained inside a cabinet in which is accessible. This process also means no cables laying around which creates a visual eye sore looking at. Also worth making sure if the electrician is putting the power points in the sink cabinet, they are putting them as high up as possible and away from water piping. Some electricians do not care about doing so, but this is in case of a leaking water pipe. It may still be a safe controlled issue but the idea of water and power should not be taken lightly, safety is always of number one priority. This process expect to pay around $500.

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Other Renovations:

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- Use the same guides as above as it all has pretty much been covered when it comes to what we deal with on are renovation projects.

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My best advice is to also ensure you have saved any works on your computer or finished emails prior to the electrician coming over in case they need the power off. By them waiting for you to finish an email or favorite TV show somebody is being charged for his/her time.

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Plumbing is also a fairly common addition you need to keep in mind. Very much like the electrician being you need a licenced plumber doing any plumbing works in your home. This can also become a safety issue, and insurances will not cover you in situations where dodgy unlicenced work was done and caused damages. The big misconception with plumbing is "how bad can a water leak really be". The answer can be really bad. Most leaks go undetected until serious damage has already occurred. Most situations the leaks are behind walls or underground which requires a lot of demolition work to expose the damaged piping. This is why prevention is key and the best way of doing so is getting a trustworthy and licenced plumber. In the long run this is the trade where you need to make sure its done correctly the first time otherwise you will be paying twice to rip everything out and starting again. Below is a check list to keep in mind for your project;

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Kitchen Renovation:

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-First thing to check is water sources and if they need to be disconnected prior to renovations. In most cases the project manager for your project will cap the water off safely so we can proceed with removal and demolition. The only variation to this is if you have complicated plumbing and we do not feel safe doing so. This situation we would ask the plumber to come out and safely do so. This is a safe practice for a short-term solution by using the caps. In some cases, its fairly acceptable and not an emergency if you have a slight drip coming from the pipe caps. Do not worry as this is somewhat expected at times, just make sure you inform the project manager so they can keep an eye on the situation. As mentioned, this is a short-term use till cabinetry goes in and plumber fits the piping. In this case just put a bucket under the pipe to collect the drops of water till rectified. To get a plumber out for disconnection of sink expect to pay around $350 with a call out fee included.

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-Once the kitchen cabinetry is fitted plumber then comes out and fits the new piping for the sink and connects dishwasher if you have one. This is fairly straight forward unless you have additionals such as water filters, hot water units or even a sinkerator system. For just a hookup of new sink and dishwasher you should expect to pay around $500.

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-Are you planning on changing to gas cooktop? If so, I would recommend using a plumber as they are more experienced with joining piping together correctly versus electricians with a gas licence. this is my personal preference though. Plumbers do piping day in and day out. If you do go with a plumber keep in mind, they will require power to be in position so they can power the cooktop to test once fitted. This should already be in place by this stage anyways as cabinetry always go in first. The cost of this process will depend on the size of gas bottles you want hooked up to or the amount of piping required to get from A to B. You may have the option of going straight into the cities gas line which also increases the cost. On average the cost for changing to gas is around the $2,000 mark.

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-Do you need plumbing moved? This can vary all depending on how much needs moving or how far you wish to move something. In a kitchen renovation project, we don't usually need to move piping as we try to keep the existing sink spot with the new design to save you money on the process. However maybe you would like the sink moved to another position ?. On average expect to pay around $500. Keep in mind by doing so the plumber will have to cut parts of the wall sheeting out to access the pipe and create a new line. The wall will then need to be re-sheeted. The plumber does not re-sheet walls either. If you don't have a project manager, you can do this yourself or if you do not feel comfortable consult with a plasterer. The misconception is you don't need to paint the wall if covered by cabinetry, please don't listen to that! Always paint a freshly sheeted wall to prevent moisture damaging the sheeting and even mould. Painting the wall just adds that extra protection.

 

Laundry Renovation:

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-Very similar to the kitchen renovation tasks. you may require moving of piping or disconnecting of sink. You will Definity require however connecting of new laundry sink once laundry sink cabinet has been fitted which is the same cost as kitchen. Expect to pay around $500. This would include connecting your appliances (washing machine & dryer).

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- The only other item we require from a plumber in the laundry is moving of the washing machine and dryer shut off valves. In the older laundries you normally see these sticking out of the wall halfway up. We no longer do it this way as we like to have these hidden inside the sink cabinet. The only exception to this is if you are going for a stack system where you have the dryer and washing machine stacked up onto one other vertically. This situation requires tweaking the rules a bit and coming up with the most accessible option. If you have enough length, always go for inside the sink cabinet to ensure nobody sees those ugly lines and cords. If you need the shut off valves moved due to changing position of washing machine and dryer keep in mind the wall will be cut so the plumber can access the piping behind. This will then need to be re-sheeted after plumber has completed the works. In this circumstance I would not recommend you sheeting the wall yourself as it needs to be done as perfectly as possible as the walls need to be flat for whatever finish you're putting on the backsplash. If you're tiling the backsplash, you do not want an uneven wall as this will affect the tiling job. If you went painted finish and you didn't do the wall flat enough you will see the plaster patches a mile away. This needs to be done correctly. This being said for the moving of shut off valves for the washing machine and dryer expect to pay around $1,000. Keep in mind this does not include the patching of the walls. 

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Something to note you can request the plumber to give you shut off valves for all sink cabinets and appliances that require water. The beauty of this upgrade is in an emergency where you have a burst pipe or appliance hose you can quickly shut the water off without running to your water main switch. In the case you don't have shut off values you will have to have no water to your house until fixed versus just shutting the water valve to that specific area. If this is something you fancy allow additional $150 per valve requested.

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I would also like to point out if you have a shared water main in your place of dwelling (most cases in units?) please let your neighbours know works are being done. May very likely be the need to shut off the water during the works. Time wasted for the plumbing running around knocking on doors is money out of your own pocket. Also prior to plumber coming out find out where your water main is so you can save them time which saves you money.

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In almost every renovation project there will be demolition or removal stage. You can defiantly save some money by doing this yourself but keep in mind there can be some dangers in doing so. If you live in an older home, you may have asbestos present in your walls. If you have or think you may have asbestos the only way to know for sure is getting it sent off for testing or alternatively get an asbestos group out to do this for you. If the test comes back positive for asbestos, you will need to get it professionally removed and the pricing for this can largely change due to scale. Keep in mind the danger of asbestos is only when you have drilled, broken or moved the asbestos in such way the asbestos goes into the air and that is when it causes all the damage. So, with asbestos present you can still work around it without being a problem just have to be smart on the approach and avoid any penetration of the asbestos to prevent it getting airborne.

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Now you have dealt with the danger of potential asbestos the demolition or removal can take place. By this stage make sure you have no valuables or items laying around in cabinets or in the area to prevent any accidental damage and for a faster process. Keep these belongings as far away as possible as dust from the demo can also be a pain to clean after especially if it has gone through belongings. This can still happen even with taped/masked off walls and drop sheets. Certain dust such as concrete is fine enough it travels around the air very easierly and can still make it past any construction barriers.

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During the demolition/removal stage you will be able to get a lot better scope of what you are dealing with once everything has been removed and demolished. Now a lot of the time we cannot promise you in detail scope of works until we are at this stage. This is because we can now see what we are working with versus prior in which important information has been covered up by walls or even cabinets. This stage is important as it's the time to problem solve and organise the trades accordingly. You want to make sure you are doing the trades in order that makes sense. No point booking a painter or tiler before you have the walls sheeted! The first things you need to organise is the plumber and electrician so they can do whatever they need prior to any walls being finished.

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This stage will also be the stage where you run into all the additional problems. You may find a damaged pipe behind a wall you never knew about, may be some structural issues found behind the walls also, this may even be termites. You never know what you can find ripping up walls unfortunately and this is something you need to be ready to understand. There is no way for us tradies to know what is behind the wall either, these situations are not "up sales" for more money it is just the unknown side of renovations. My advice is always having some spare money aside on your budget for worst case situations in case these come to be. You don't want to be holding up the job to find money because many renovation companies are booked up to a year in advance and you may have to wait if you lose your booking period. This would not be fair to the other clients who are waiting for their renovation to be done,

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Price points can vary for this stage as it really depends on how much needs doing. If you needed a kitchen to be removed expect to pay $1,000 labour and $1,000 for a skip bin hire so the waste can be disposed of.

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I would also add it may be worth letting your neighbours know about the demolition/removal stage so they are aware there will be noise. If you share a driveway or have a tight space between neighbours, this may also require back and forth to negotiate a suitable spot for a temporary skip bin or even trade vehicles during the project. We do not so this step as it is best for you and the neighbour to have these discussions. Otherwise, you may be charged more in time for doing so all depending on the holdup required.

If you find any structural issues always call in a professional to deal with the issue, you should not try to fix this yourself and risk building collapse which can lead to death. Not a risk worth taking at all. Make sure the company you go ahead with the fix is also licenced and insured. insurance is a massive thing when it comes to work like this. When these issues arise on are jobs, we do not take on the fix either as it is crucially important to get a professional on to it. We also do not carry out the required licence to even attempt structural works.

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The types of structural issues you may find can range in risk, but this still does not mean ignore. Get it fixed as soon as possible. We won't dive deep into this as we do not offer this service and don't have enough experience to input any advice in the matter. Talk with a builder and they should be able to run through the details with you (if they don't go elsewhere).

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If the issue was because of termites expect around a $5,000 cost to exterminate and remove. You then require repairs to the structure or walls which can cost up to $10,000.

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If the issue is general structural damage such as part of roof needs fixing or on a structural wall also expect up to $10,000 +

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Structural issues are costly !

When it comes to tiling there is a few things to be ready for. Firstly, make sure you have packed away any furniture or lose items you don't want damaged or thrown away. Tile dust is like concrete in the fact it's a fine dust that sits around the air for a while and will get onto anything. 

even after the demolition stage you will still get the tile dust. The tiler will request a spot to do his/her cuts and this needs to be away from any valuables for that reason. It may be a good idea to give the neighbours a head up prior so there is no unwanted confrontation with nosey neighbours about the noise and tile dust cloud when cutting.

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It is worth checking what has been discussed and whether or not the tiles are being supplied by you or the contractor in charge. We personally ask client to supply the tiles, so we do not order the wrong ones, or you decide to change your mind at a later date. A good contractor will however tell you the amount to purchase, so you do not have to stress regarding getting the correct amount. Tilers do ask for an additional 10% for wastage which is in case of a broken tile or mistakes, this covers the dilemma of running around for more later. Now if you request to do the ordering yourself keep in mind you are liable for the amounts being enough. Most tilers will charge you if they need to come back.

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The pricing for tiling can vary depending on the type of tile and size. This is because smaller tiles take longer to do compared to larger tiles. If you request a unique pattern or pattern in which the tiles are laid also expect slightly higher fees. Any good tiler would include silicon for around corners of tiles to seal correctly and look a lot nicer when finished. Please also ensure your tiler does not grout corners of walls, this needs to be siliconed and not grouted. Grout does not like movements and will crack and fall apart with time. The silicon if flexible and will allow for movements in the walls. This is definitely worth keeping a note of.

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On average we pay $2,000 for tiler to tile kitchen or laundry backsplashes. if you wanted them to tile laundry or kitchen floor allow around $4,000 all depending on sizing of course. Keep in mind this does not include the tiles. $500 is a good budget for backsplash and $1,000 for flooring. 

This is a similar process to tiling in the aspect of making sure goods and furniture are stored away and in a safe spot from dust debris and potential damage. The annoying thing for you when it comes to flooring is the number of things that you need to find a home for in the meantime when the works are taking place. If you decide to do your entire home with new flooring this is when it can be a more stressful process for this reason. We try to convince are clients to stay with family or friends or use the time for a holiday so we can get this done while everyone is away. This is the easiest way to navigate foot traffic in the work areas for you who live in the home. Vinyl or laminate flooring this is not so much a problem, and you can walk on it soon after but if you wanted a whole house of tiles we do not want anyone standing on these for at least 2 days to ensure proper drying/curing times have been met. Fail to do so and the tiler will have to come back out and re-do the spot that failed which relates to a back charge to you from the tiler.

 

When should flooring be done? Before or after cabinets are fitted? The correct way to do this is before the cabinetry is fitted. If you do flooring after not only have you now created more work for the floor people but have now created a footprint around the new cabinetry. What this now means is if you down the line decide to change your mind or modify something once you rip it up you have no flooring underneath; this is what we mean by footprint. If the flooring is laid first and cabinetry on top you have the freedom of doing whatever you like later without worrying about what is underneath.

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When it comes to plastering there is a few things to keep in mind. The first thing to keep in mind is plastering does also contain dust debris during sanding. Much like the tiling and demolition stage you need to make sure nothing is in the way or in the area come time to do works to prevent any uneeded clean up or potential damage.

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We use plasterers on almost all projects as most cases the walls get damaged on removal. For re-sheeting of kitchen walls or laundry walls you are looking at $1,500 with materials. If this is something you wish to try and do yourself always aim to get the walls as flat and plum as possible. Even if tiles are going up against the wall you still need this plum and flat. If the wall is not plum, you will end up with bad looking corners where the tiles will end at different spots due to different angle created. If the wall is not flat, you will have a hard tile laying the tiles in line with one other as the smallest bit of dried plaster can cause more headaches than you would think.

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It may also be ideal to stay away from the site for at least 2 days if you have animals or small children to prevent either animal hair or children fingerprints embedded into the freshly wet plaster. This will be a back charge if plasterer needs to come back out.

There is an art to painting trust me. Cutting in lines between two different colours is not easy. This being said I do advice my clients to give painting a go if they want to save some money or want to feel more hands on with the project. To paint an entire kitchen or laundry expect to pay around $1,500 with paint 

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If your sensitive to smell I suggest you staying away from your home for at least 2 days as the paint dries. Frshly painted walls may still leave a smell for a while longer but the main fumes by this stage have gone.

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If you have small children or animals running around I would also advice maybe staying away for 2 days also to ensure the paint dries without animal hair or kid's fingerprints imbedded into the wet paint. Just like the other trades if the painter has to come back and touch up this may result in a backcharge.

Many projects have other behind the scenes trades which you may not be aware of or simply forgot. For us when we do kitchens and clients request a Hampton's style shaker this usually requires glass doors. These are taken and done at a glass business. In the same situation we would also need the doors to be painted which is taken to a painter for the application of the 2 pac. There is msot cases more involved then you think behind the scenes.

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Why is this important to you? It is important to you because it is a potential time delay. In a perfect world we always hope for the best, but sometimes unfortunate things happen behind the scenes which we request you to trust us on regarding the matters. Suppliers may have delays on items or maybe the glass guy accidentally cut his finger off, these are all situations that can happen and please understand when it does. You will be updated on the progress and kept in the loop at all times, the job will get back on track and not something to stress over as accidents or delays can unfortunately happen. This is important for you to keep in mind for when it comes to planning of renovation. Always allow more time then needed to cover this from happening.