t it is vital tothink about before you begin your home renovation.10 Things to Think About BEFORE Beginning WorkPrepare a budget Be aware of council regulations Find a tradesperson Know your start and completion dates Selecting Products Prepare plans Purchasing products What should I purchase myself? What services are available to my property? What sort of hotwater unit do I need?Prepare a budgetBefore you start shopping for your new bathroom or kitchen youmust know your spending limits. Whether you are getting a loanor paying cash, you need to work out how much your project isgoing to cost. Some businesses also offer finance solutions forapproved customers. Be aware of council regulationsFind out all the information you can before you arrangetradesperson. If your home is heritage listed you will need tomeet strict council regulations. Many renovations must beapproved...

... by the council before work can commence. Contact yourlocal council for more details. Finding a tradespersonSpeak with family and friends who have done renovations or builta home. It is important to find a tradesperson that you cancommunicate with. Make sure you understand everything they aretelling you. Book a tradesperson well ahead of time, as they canbe booked for months in advance. Ensure that your tradespersonis licensed. Your product warranties are only valid if installedby a licensed tradesperson. In Australia, Trades@call provideprofessional, reliable tradespeople for most jobs, and allworkmanship is guaranteed. Know your start and completion datesCommunicate with your tradesperson and come to an agreement ofrealistic start and completion dates for your project. If youhave a specific date that the job must be finished by, forexample you have relatives coming to stay, let your tradespersonknow. Keep in mind that unexpected problems can hold up yourproject, no matter how well you have planned it. Selecting ProductsIt may take a few shopping trips for you to decide on theproducts that give you the look you desire and are alsopractical for your needs. Browse through a print or onlinecatalogue. Once you have decided on a style (modern, heritage oreasy living) this will narrow down your product choices. Beaware of any size restrictions of the room. Print out or writedown product specifications and measure up your bathroom. Youmay use the online bathroom planner at the Bourne Bathroom andKitchen Centre website to layout the products you have chosen. Talk to your tradesperson about your choices. If thetradesperson tells you that a product you have chosen isunsuitable, find out why. It may just be that extra work isrequired that they don't want to do. Remember, it is your homeand you need to be satisfied once the job is complete. Prepare plansIt is important that you draw up plans of your bathroom orkitchen. Discuss the plans with your tradesperson. Let him knowwhat sort of products you would like, so he will know what workneeds to be done. For example if you have chosen an inwallcistern, the tradesperson will need to know so he can set up theplumbing correctly before the tiling is done. It is best to havespecifications of all of the products you have chosen so thetradesperson knows exactly what work is required. Purchasing productsWhen selecting products, find out how long it will take fordelivery. Some goods such as tapware and toilets will be instock, while others such as spas and vanity units are custommade and can take up to 1 month to order in. Often these custommade products are non-refundable so confirm your product choiceswith your tradesperson before ordering. Find out from yourtradesperson which products they will required first. Generally,the first products needed are the shower base, bath or spa andmixers if they are being installed on the wall. As an owner builder, what should I purchase myself?If you are owner building, make sure you purchase all of themain products for your bathroom, kitchen and laundry. This willensure that you make all of the decisions and achieve the resultyou want. There will be things you will not think about whenplacing an order, such as different handle types on a vanityunit, the pump position of your spa, that you will need todecide on. It is important to make these decisions yourself asthey will affect the overall result of your project. Smallerfittings for plumbing can be purchased by your tradesperson. What services are available to my property?It is important to know whether you need gas or electricappliances (hot water unit, cooking appliances). If you livefurther out from the city, you may need LPG appliances. If youcurrently have electric appliances and you want to change togas, speak with your tradesperson to determine if this is goingto be cost effective and worthwhile in the long run. If you arebuilding a new home, decide on the appliances you want beforebuilding begins, as the plumbing will need to be roughed inbased on your product selection. What sort of Hot Water Unit do I need?There is a wide range of hot water units available and it can bequite daunting to try and choose one. If you are replacing anexisting unit your choices can be limited, so speak with yourtradesperson. The instantaneous hot water units are popular atthe moment, but they use a larger gas line than the standardstorage units. This can mean major plumbing changes which can bequite costly, though in the long run the instantaneous systemsare cost efficient. See the Bourne Hot Water Selection Guide formore detail.Many of these points seem somewhat obvious, but the problemarises when you start taking things for granted. When you don'tmake sure that all your bases are covered, you may find that youhave invested a lot of time, effort and money in a homerenovation that you may end up unhappy with....