Most people think a bathroom reno starts with demolition. It doesn’t. It starts weeks earlier, on the phone, when you book your trades. Get that timing right and the job runs smooth. Get it wrong and you can end up paying for the same wall twice.
We’ve wired enough Canberra bathrooms to know where renos go sideways. So here’s a practical checklist, written from a sparky’s point of view, to help you line up the electrical and plumbing work before the first tile goes down.
Why booking trades early matters
Good trades book out. In Canberra, licensed electricians and plumbers are often scheduled weeks ahead, and that gap isn’t shrinking any time soon. Leave it late and your whole timeline slips.
There’s also a sequence to protect. Plumbing and electrical “rough-in” happens while the walls are still open. That’s when we run the cables and pipes you’ll never see again. Once the wall sheeting, waterproofing and tiles go on, those positions are set for good. Moving a power point or a drain after that means breaking tiles and re-waterproofing. So early booking isn’t about being tidy for its own sake. It protects your budget.
Your bathroom electrical checklist
Start with the exhaust fan. Canberra winters are cold, and bathrooms breed condensation and mould fast. A proper fan has to vent outside, never into your roof cavity, because trapped moisture rots timber and wrecks insulation. Plan its spot and ducting at rough-in, not as an afterthought.
Lighting comes next. Bathrooms have wet-area “zones,” and each zone needs fittings rated to handle moisture. Downlights over a shower must be sealed and rated for the spot. Switches, meanwhile, sit outside the splash zones. We sort all of this before the ceiling closes up.
Then think about heated towel rails and underfloor heating. Both are popular here for good reason, and both run best when hard-wired by a licensed electrician. They need their own cabling and safety-switch protection, so we plan those circuits early. A warm tile floor in July is easy when it’s designed in from the start.
One more thing matters. Every new bathroom circuit needs RCD protection, and your switchboard has to handle the extra load. Older Canberra boards sometimes can’t. Better to find that out now than halfway through the job.
By law, all of this is licensed work. There’s no DIY electrical in the ACT, full stop. Once we’re done, you get a Certificate of Electrical Safety for your records, and your insurer will want to see it.
The plumbing side
Electrical and plumbing have to talk to each other, so book both before demo day. The plumber locks in fixture placement first. Where your toilet, vanity, shower and basin sit decides where the pipes run, and those measurements matter down to the millimetre.
Drainage is the next big one. Floor wastes need the right fall so water drains away instead of pooling. Get the grade wrong and you’ll be staring at puddles for years. Relocating a drain in a concrete-slab home, common across Belconnen and Tuggeranong, is far cheaper to plan than to fix later.
Water pressure is worth a check too. Plenty of Canberra homes run high mains pressure, which can hammer pipes and shorten the life of your tapware. A pressure-limiting valve sorts it. Your plumber will also fit a tempering valve so your hot taps stay at a safe temperature.
For the plumbing and gas side, we often point clients to J&J Plumbing Services, a trusted local Canberra team. When trades coordinate from day one, the whole job lines up.
Mistakes that cost you later
The biggest one is skipping coordination. When trades don’t talk, you get a power point behind the mirror cabinet, a fan with nowhere to vent, or a drain in the wrong spot. Each fix means breaking finished tiles.
Sequencing trips people up as well. Waterproofing has to cure before tiling, and in a cold Canberra winter that takes longer. Rush it and the membrane fails. Underfloor heating after tiling? That’s a floor you’ll be pulling up again.
Then there’s compliance. Unlicensed or undocumented work can void your insurance and stall a future sale. Those certificates aren’t red tape. They’re proof the job was done right.
Plan it early, enjoy it longer
A good bathroom starts with good timing. Book your trades early, get the electrical and plumbing planned together, and you’ll dodge the expensive surprises.
If you’re planning a reno anywhere across Canberra, the team at Watts Needed is happy to walk you through the electrical side before you start. Give us a call and we’ll talk it through.
