Getting off to a good start with your house renovation project
- Research building costs so you can plan a solid budget –it's the key to a successful renovation project.
- Decide what demolition you can do yourself versus where you’ll need to hire help.
- Design with daylight in mind and consider roof windows to bring style and natural light to your space.
Get to know the process
Budget and timeline
Ensuring you have enough money for your house renovation is probably the most essential part of the planning process. Your first consideration should be how you will fund your renovation.
Making a budget requires a lot of research. Do you need contractors? What do you want to be done in terms of insulation, flooring, and painting? Can you reuse old cabinets and countertops, or will you invest in new inventory? How about tools and equipment? These are just some of the questions you'll need to consider in developing a renovation budget.
Do some research to determine average costs for items and labour to get an idea of the project budget. Proper planning will help you stay within the maximum amount you're willing to spend on your house renovation.
The next step is to consider how much time each task will take. The timeline for your house renovation depends on the project's overall size and complexity, who you hire, and how much work you choose to do yourself.
Plan the demolition
Don't underestimate demolition! It is a big undertaking that requires a lot of planning, from: deciding who will undertake the demolition to waste disposal.
Consider which parts of your house renovation you could tackle yourself and what you'll need a contractor to do. While small-scale demolitions like a work-top or set of cabinets can be done by amateurs, larger demolition projects can be more difficult. YouTube is your friend for this -.! watch a few videos to figure out how much work you feel comfortable doing and how much you need help with.
You should also consider how to dispose of waste. Renting a large skip will keep the project moving as you can continually remove debris from your home. Planning for waste will save you a lot of time in the long run.
What to plan for when rebuilding
After demolition, it's time to start rebuilding your house. First comes installing doors and windows and the critical work behind walls, below floors, and above ceilings: plumbing, electrical, heating, air, and insulation. Then comes finishing walls, flooring and paint, and installing cabinets and other fixtures. Finally, it's time to add the details and decorations.
Explore these home improvement ideas to make the most of your home renovation.
Design your house with daylight
Windows are an ideal way to add a bright, stylish, and modern touch to your home. A house renovation provides a perfect opportunity to upgrade your windows.
Façade or skylight?
When it comes to windows, it often boils down to a choice between façade or roof windows. While both types of windows have their strengths, roof windows provide some benefits that façade windows simply cannot offer.
Roof windows allow light to penetrate deeper into your home, making a noticeable difference to your spaces. A roof window provides up to twice as much light as a façade window of the same size, while flat roof windows can bring up to three times more.
That said, combining façade and roof windows will maximise your view and daylight distribution, so you can certainly install both.
Plan your spaces with natural light
Light can be an extremely handy tool when planning your spaces. Natural light can help you illuminate walls and textures, overcome gloominess in deep plan rooms, highlight design features, and divide spaces with zones. Make sure to spend some time planning the location of your new windows when renovating so you don't miss out on all the great ways daylight can benefit your spaces.
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