A lot of these homes are finished long before anybody lives in them full time, used at weekends or left empty between visits. A bathroom in intermittent use behaves differently from one in daily use, and it is worth fitting with that in mind rather than assuming a normal household.
What intermittent use does to a bathroom
A bathroom used at weekends dries out completely between visits, and that is harder on some things than constant use.
Floor and drain traps evaporate, letting smells back up, and seals that are alternately soaked and baked dry age faster than ones kept in steady conditions.
So we fit better seals as standard here rather than as an upgrade, and it is worth running every outlet for a minute on arrival. Neither costs anything much and both prevent the two complaints these houses reliably produce.
Fitting something that tolerates being left
In a house standing empty for stretches, simplicity is worth more than specification.
A fixed screen with no moving parts cannot seize, drop or be left mis-latched, and nothing about it degrades from disuse.
Where a door is wanted, hinges with adjustment matter more than usual, because a door that has sat unused for a month wants to be adjustable rather than replaced. We would fit the plainer, more robust version and say why, rather than the one that looks best in an empty house.
Planning for how the house will be used later
These houses usually become full-time homes eventually, and what suits weekends is not always what suits a family.
So it is worth deciding now whether the bathroom is being fitted for the current use or the eventual one.
Our usual advice is to fit for the eventual use, because doing it twice costs more than doing it once properly, and the difference in price between the two specifications is smaller than people expect. But it should be a decision rather than an assumption.
How the job works
- Tell us about the jobSend a few photos, rough sizes and what you need. Use WhatsApp or the form. For a repair, a short video of the door moving helps a lot.
- We call you back in about 2 minutesWe confirm what you need and a time to visit. Where we can, we give you a rough price on the call.
- We come and measureWe measure the opening and check the walls, floor and ceiling around it. Anything made to size is made to these measurements, so they must be right.
- You get a written priceIt lists each item, with GST as its own line. If anything about the job changes, we tell you before we go ahead.
- We fit itYou approve the price and pay the advance. Our own team fits the work, checks that every door and window opens and closes properly, and clears up. Most jobs are done in 3 to 4 days.
