Survivor: Bathroom Remodel

YOU’RE A SURVIVOR

Tackling a bathroom remodeling project may leave you feeling like an unwitting contestant on Survivor. You’ve been dropped in the Australian Outback with one luxury item and a team of strangers! Showers and home-cooked meals are scarce and voting out a few tribe members may sound appealing.

When taking on an extensive remodeling project you aren’t competing for $1 million in prize money, you’re vying for a beautiful new bath with your sanity still intact. And quick hint? You’re going to win.

Here are a few tips to help you stay in the game, stay sane, and win the prize ~ a beautiful bathroom.

STAY IN THE GAME

MAKE A SOLID GAME PLAN

• Pick the right players to be on your team. The right team of designers, contractors and crew make all the difference. These professionals help you problem solve and manage your project from start to finish. You will be in close contact with these men and women for weeks (and possibly, months) so it will help if you like them.
• Make all of your design decisions before construction begins. It’s very stressful to make decisions on the fly. You may regret having to make them in haste.
• Have a sense of your project timeline and intentionally add flexibility to the plan. Nevertheless, prepare yourself for delays. Sometimes they are inevitable.
• Create a realistic budget and stick to it. You will enjoy your bathroom more if you don’t overspend!
• Purchase all necessary materials in advance.
• Have all drawings and specs ready to go on day one.
• Keep your advisory board to a few, select experts. Too many opinions can create chaos.

STAY SANE

WHAT DO I DO WITHOUT A BATHROOM FOR WEEKS?

• Hopefully, it’s not your only bathroom. If it is, you will need to work with your contractor on a plan that keeps you with a toilet during the day. You can also set up a temporary shower space in your basement. Alternatively, you can lean on neighbors, family, or a gym shower.
• Ideally, you will move out of that bathroom completely. Also, move out of your master bedroom if it is attached to the bathroom under remodeling. It’s unpleasant to see contractors marching through your bedroom every morning at 7:30 if you aren’t up and ready. If I haven’t convinced you yet, consider this scenario: What happens if you get sick? You need a space that works for you temporarily, if at all possible.
• Pack up everything in advance! Things get dirty. Dust will fly. The more you clear out and cover up, the better off you are.
• Prepare for dust. When you shake up one room you will shake the dust loose everywhere! Make sure your crew masks off the area they are working if possible.
• Prepare a staging space for your crew to bring in materials and tools; it can be a garage or carport area, depending on the weather.
• Remember, it’s just temporary. The remodel will end and it will be worth the inconvenience!

IN THE PRIZE

HOW CAN I ENDURE THE GAME AND FINISH WELL?

• Start a collection of take-out menus and stock up on crock-pot or freezer meals. Take your friends and neighbors up on invites to dinner!
• Work regularly with your team to manage your expectations. It will help to have a sense of what’s coming next. Weekly updates from the construction lead are helpful so communicate your desire for that.
• Minimize changes to your original plan as much as possible. Changes during construction will cost you lots of extra time and money, not to mention your sanity!
• Keep an ongoing list of questions for your contractor and designers. We love hearing your questions and maintaining open lines of communication. We don’t know what you don’t know unless you ask us!
• Be prepared for flurries of activity followed by what seems like little change. Tear out is a big change. Plumbing and electric installation are hard to see!
• Countertops can take a while. They are not measured until after the cabinets are set. Prepare yourself for a pause in the remodeling during this phase.
• Make your preferred form of communication (phone calls, email, and/or texts; copied to your spouse?) known to your team and be available for questions from them. No amount of planning will avoid the need for them to ask additional questions during the process. A bathroom remodel is an art, not a science. We need to stay in communication with you because we always want to do what’s best for you and your family.