Renovations
Bathroom renovations in Calgary
A bathroom is a small room that punishes shortcuts. Everything in it is either wet or next to something wet, and the parts that matter most — waterproofing, drainage, ventilation — are the parts you will never see again once the tile is on.
Reference image
Design direction.
These are references — the standard and the aesthetic we work toward with clients, not photographs of OPCLAR projects. Our own project photography will appear here as work completes.
The scope
What a bathroom renovation includes.
Before demolition
Existing drainage, venting, and joist direction confirmed · Subfloor condition and deflection assessed · Layout tested against what the drainage allows · Fixture and tile selections confirmed · Written scope and line-itemed quote
Behind the walls
Strip-out with containment and floor protection · Drainage and supply adjusted to the new layout · Blocking for grab bars, vanity, and fixtures · Circuits, GFCI protection, and lighting by licensed trades · Exhaust fan sized to the room and ducted to the exterior
Waterproofing and tile
Substrate suitable for a wet area, not standard drywall · Sloped shower base and bonded waterproofing membrane · Flood test before any tile goes on · Tile set with movement joints at changes of plane · Grout, sealant, and silicone at all wet junctions
Finishing and handover
Vanity, toilet, and fixtures installed and tested · Glass measured after tiling, not before · Inspections passed where permits apply · Post-construction clean · Walkthrough and deficiency list
How it runs
What the drainage allows
Where the soil pipe runs and how much fall the floor structure gives you. That decides whether fixtures can move before anything else does.
Strip-out and assessment
Everything out to the studs and subfloor, because rot and failed waterproofing only show themselves once the tile is off.
Rough-in, venting, and blocking
Supply and drainage set, the fan ducted to the exterior, and blocking in for every grab bar, vanity and glass panel.
Substrate and waterproofing
The part that decides whether the room lasts. A flat, rated substrate and a continuous waterproof membrane, tested before tile.
Tile
Set to a flat plane with the layout worked out beforehand, so cuts land where they belong rather than where they fall.
Fixtures and handover
Vanity, toilet, valves, glass and hardware, then a wet test, clean, and a walkthrough.
What moves the price
What decides a bathroom's price.
We don't price bathrooms by size. Whether the toilet moves and how the shower is built matter far more than the floor area, and a site visit settles both.
Whether the toilet moves
Keeping fixtures where they are is dramatically cheaper. Moving the toilet means moving the soil pipe, and the fall has to work in the floor you already have.
Shower construction
An acrylic base and surround is a fraction of a fully tiled, waterproofed shower. Curbless costs more again, because the floor has to be recessed to drain.
Tile choice and size
Large format needs a flatter substrate; mosaic and pattern take far longer to set. Labour is usually the bigger half of the difference.
What the strip-out finds
Rot, failed waterproofing, a soft subfloor, or drainage that was never vented. Priced and approved as a change order before it proceeds.
Ventilation and electrical
A correctly sized fan ducted outside, GFCI protection, and any heated floor — which is far cheaper now than retrofitted.
Glass and fixtures
Frameless glass, wall-hung units and thermostatic valves sit at the top of their ranges, and are the easiest items to adjust downward.
What sets the schedule
What sets a bathroom's schedule.
Which is why we won't put a number on it until we've opened the room. Two of these are waits nobody can compress, and skipping either is how a bathroom fails early.
What the strip-out uncovers
Membrane cure before the flood test
Glass fabrication after templating
Tile size, pattern, and layout
Whether it is the only bathroom
Permits
When a bathroom needs a permit.
Plumbing and electrical work carry their own permits, and moving fixtures or a wall adds a building permit. We confirm which apply at the scope stage and book the inspections ourselves.
- Plumbing permit where drainage or supply is relocated
- Electrical permit for new circuits, fans, or heated floors
- Building permit where structure or layout changes
- Rough-in inspection before waterproofing and tile
- Final inspection where permits apply
Tell us what the bathroom needs to do.
Or just call. Nothing here has to start with a form.