DIY Tips to Remodel your Bathroom

Today’s guest blogger is Sarah Scrafford who writes for International Listings.

Bathrooms have come a long way from the utility rooms they were a few years ago. Most people are now looking to create a private space where they can unwind after a long day’s work soaking in a bubble bath with scented candles, music or a book for company. If you’re looking to redo your bathroom and spice up the way it looks, hiring a contractor and plumber could end up becoming a very costly affair, one that would only add to your stress as you wonder about meeting the payments, rather than help you relax.

Do-it-Yourself (DIY) improvements are in vogue these days, because people are beginning to realize the value of working on their own homes in terms of money, quality and personal satisfaction. While a few jobs are best left to professionals, the level of complexity of a majority of the tasks involved in almost all DIY projects has come down, with easy-to-install equipment and know-how being freely available through websites, books and word-of-mouth. These factors combine to make DIY home improvements a viable and attractive alternative to hiring expensive and dicey decorators and contractors.

Remodeling your bathroom involves more than just installing new fixtures or revamping your old ones. If you’re going in for a complete change, you must plan the layout for the entire space before you lay your hands on one part of the bathroom. Improvements done in fits and starts and at your whims and fancies could end up costing you dear in terms of both money and appeal. If you’re not sure about what you’re doing, talk to people at the stores where you buy your supplies. Although the advent of plastic pipes and connectors has made plumbing an easier job than it was a few years ago, if you mess up in connecting the fixtures to the plumbing, you’ll have an unholy mess that stinks to high glory on your hands if you’ll pardon the play on words.

Books and websites also offer step-by-step instructions for most bathroom remodeling processes, or if you have the time and the inclination, you could attend DIY home improvement workshops and classes that are held near you. If you’re just replacing fixtures at their original locations, you’re not going to find things too difficult, not if you have an aptitude for working with your hands. But if you want to change the entire layout and install fixtures in new locations, you’re better off calling in the experts.

If your present bathroom is plagued by mold and mildew that arise from excess dampness, save yourself some cleaning time and effort by investing in a new exhaust fan. Improved ventilation helps keep the room dry and free of unpleasant odors. Make sure the size of the fan is proportionate to the size of your bathroom.

Make sure you set up a budget before you start and stay within it or your costs will run out of control.

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This article is contributed by Sarah Scrafford, who regularly writes on the topic of international real estate for sale. She invites your questions, comments and freelancing job inquiries at her email address.