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Bathroom renovations cost an average of £7,000, so it’s no surprise many of us put them off due to their prohibitive cost. But one dad was determined not to let sky-high prices stand in his way. Adam Smith, 47, a dad of two from London, wanted to undertake his own bathroom transformation for under £2,000. Using ex-display materials, watching YouTube tutorials and taking on the stressful work himself meant he managed to pull off the project for just £1,500, representing a saving of over £8,000.

Adam told money-saving Facebook group DIY On a Budget UK: "We’ve lived in our late 1800 Victorian house since 2004 and this year decided to remodel as the house was becoming too small.

“After having our loft extended, giving us three large double bedrooms, we had a small amount of cash left over and decided to give the family bathroom a refresh.

“With only a small budget of £2,000 and the quotes we got from builders, it seemed impossible to have the bathroom we wanted.

"As we now had the luxury of having a serving bathroom in the loft I decided to have a go myself.”

Adam explained that he had previously done some DIY projects in the past but had no real building experience so it was a “daunting” task.

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A lot of the DIYer’s knowledge came from YouTube videos, where he found “some really helpful tips”.

The first task was to rip out what was left off the old bathroom and decide on what bathroom theme to go for.

Adam said: “We wanted a hotel feel to the room which is why we went for the dark tiles.

"We spent a lot of time shopping around to make savings to come within budget. We bought ex-display items like taps, basins and cabinets, which saved a fortune.

"They don’t exactly match but they’re close enough. For example, the bath taps were on sale for over £250, but I picked them up as an ex-display for £20, which was a great result.”

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To find the ex-display items, the DIYer went into the local plumbing shop and found a shelf with lots of items on. He also asked if he could buy the display cabinet for the basin.

The biggest two spends for the project were the tiles and the bath, both purchased online.

Adam explained: “We did lots of research about these companies and large items are very difficult to return.

“We managed to get all tiles, HardieBacker board, adhesive, grout, silicone, floor screed, screws and underfloor heating for just over £400.

"I also sourced items from ebay like the bath, panel and screen for over half price of the shop ones.”

The DIY-savvy dad noted that the whole build took some time as it was done both at weekends and after work, but was really pleased with the results.

He said: “Trust me when I say it isn’t perfect, there are lots of small mistakes but all in all I’m happy with it.

"If I was to do it again, I’d say you should take your time leveling the floor. Mine is slightly out which had a knock-on effect fitting the bath panel.

"Visit plumbing shops and ask to see display items, you can pick up some real bargains.

"Speak with a builder or watch videos and get an order of work list - I often did things out of order which made things difficult.

"Lay out your bathroom suite dry, we realised that the toilet was too close to the bath when it was centred between the bath and the basin, so we have it off centre for more comfort. Doing this also helps with pipe placement.”

Adam estimated that the total came to around £1,500.

He said: “I reckon we saved about £8,000 by doing it ourselves. I know other people who had their bathroom done and paid over £10,000.

"Obviously I’m chuffed to bits about the savings however, they came with a price. It was very stressful, especially when putting the floor down.

"Having said that, the feedback I have received has made it all worth it.”

Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, commented: “Most of us wouldn’t have the DIY skills to pull off such a big project, so hats off to Adam for persevering on such a stressful, messy and time-consuming project.

“He has shown it was more than worth it - the bathroom looks excellent, plus he’s saved an absolute fortune!"

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