Laundry renovation with timber bench and tiling

[DIYMum]

The Easter long weekend gave me that little bit of extra time I needed to add the finishing touches to my laundry reno. Planning started a couple of years ago and it's been a bit of a slow process, but it's finally done and I'm thrilled with how it looks and it feels so much lighter, brighter and bigger!

 

       

The old laundry was a disaster zone! I got some great advice from members here when I first started planning, then used the Kaboodle online tool to visualise what I wanted. This was great as I could move elements around to see how they looked before I decided on the final plan. 

What I started with:

      

First job was to clear out all the junk and get rid of the shower, toilet and floor tiles. Pulling out the shower frame wasn't too difficult ... the floor tiles on the other hand were a right pain! In the end, I took to them with a hammer drill with a tile scraper bit and that made pretty short work of it. It didn't do a great job at lifting the tile adhesive, so I decided to lift the tile underlay as the easiest option. It then gave me an even surface to lay down the vinyl plank flooring, as well as meaning the floor was the same height as the floor outside the laundry. 

        Used a hammer drill to lift the floor tiles        

   

   

Once all of that was done (as well as painting ceiling, walls, window and door trim), it was time to get the cabinetry in. I went with Ikea cupboards because I like the system they have for hanging them, I loved the colour of the doors and of course the price was good. The base cabinet for the sink went in first, then the broom cupboard. Once that was in, we cut the laminate benchtop to size, cut out the hole for the sink and installed. I had decided that to save on costs, I would keep the plumbing in situ for the washing machine (we cut a hole in the benchtop to accommodate the taps) and keep the power point above the bench for easy access when ironing. A pot plant strategically placed hides the taps when you look in from the door.

My son (who's an electrician and was a great source for providing tools I didn't have hahaha!) installed a new powerpoint under the bench for the washing machine and dryer. His mate who's a plumber did the bits of plumbing that were beyond my expertise and capped off the plumbing where the shower was.

It was then time to tile the backsplash - I went with white matt penny round tiles. I love the look of them, but they were a pain to grout and silicone Being on sheets they were pretty quick and easy to install though. It's not a perfect job but I'm happy with them. 

  

The only thing left to do then was install the wall cupboards and the shelf, and replace the ceiling light (thanks again to electrician son!) and a few finishing touches. All up the total cost was around $2000 (it helped that I didn't need to pay for any trades!) and now I'm proudly showing my laundry off to everyone who comes to visit, rather than previously closing the door and hiding it!

[KatieC]

Hi @DIYMum,

I would also show off that laundry if I were you! You have done a wonderful job creating a lovely space to do your laundry. Great that you have an electrician handy as well. I am loving the colour of your cabinetry, what is it called? Do you have any advice for someone who is looking to do a laundry reno of their own? 

Katie

[DIYMum]

Hi @KatieC 

Thanks I love the colour too! The cabinetry colour is Grey-Green, they are Ikea Metod cabinets with Bodarp doors. 

Best piece of advice I have is to have a plan, and do it in stages

[mich1972]

@DIYMum OMG Amazing !!!!!! Ohhhh you have been very busy. Absolutely love it !!!!

[Baretta11]

@DIYMum 

You'vre done an amazing job. That old laundry looked well past it's useby date.

Looks fabulous now and I love the tiles.

What a transformation and very little cost really, just the purchase price of the things you've used so you would have paid at least another $4000 to get others to do the work!!

Well done, you should be very proud of your work.

Cheers,

Barbara

[Annie2]

Hi @DIYMum 

Congrats, I think it looks fabulous!

I'm about to tackle my laundry and would be grateful for some advice please - you tiled before hanging the uppers, would you recommend this approach? What product/s did you use to seal your counter top?

Many thanks

Annie

[DIYMum]

Thanks @Annie2!

I would recommend tiling before hanging the wall cupboards - it gives you more space to manoeuvre. In my case it also meant that the cupboards were sitting over the top of the tiles and hiding slight imperfections  

The countertop is a laminate bench, so no sealing was needed.

Good luck with your laundry reno!

Cheers

Heather

[Annie2]

Thank you Heather, grateful for your response and wishes of good luck!