Renovating Your Home: Revamp or Strip It Back?

Short answer: if the structure, wiring and plumbing are sound, you can transform most rooms by refacing joinery, rebuilding one feature wall, changing lighting and restyling. Kitchens and bathrooms are the exception: when layouts or plumbing do not work, rebuild them properly.

Start with a survey, not a mood board

Before deciding what to keep, check:

• Wiring: age, load capacity and the position of points.
• Plumbing and waterproofing: leaks, damp patches and the condition of bathroom floors.
• Joinery carcasses: are wardrobes and kitchen cabinets structurally sound, or swollen and sagging?
• Society rules: many apartment associations limit noisy work hours and debris removal.

What you can refresh without demolition

• Shutter refacing: keep sound wardrobe carcasses and replace the doors with new laminate, veneer, lacquer or glass.
• Feature walls: panelling, fluting, stone or wallpaper over an existing wall.
• Lighting: add coves and profile lights, or replace a grid of downlights with layered lighting.
• Paint and finishes: a new colour palette changes the mood of every room.
• Furniture and soft furnishings: curtains, rugs and a few strong pieces.

When to strip back

• Kitchens where the sink, hob and refrigerator are badly placed, or where ducting and drainage do not work.
• Bathrooms with leaks, failing waterproofing or dated fittings: re-do the waterproofing, then tiles and fittings.
• Any room where the wiring is unsafe or overloaded.

Plan the order of work

Do the noisy and wet work first: demolition, plumbing, electrical and waterproofing. Then ceilings and joinery, then painting, then lighting fixtures and furniture. Living in the home during work is possible for a refresh, but rarely for a kitchen or bathroom rebuild.

Thinking of renovating?

Share photos and the floor plan of your current home and we will tell you which rooms can be refreshed and which need more work.