Planning · DIY guide
How to measure your bathroom before getting quotes
Twenty minutes with a tape measure before you call anyone gets you quotes that are actually comparable, and it stops the vague conversations where nobody will commit to a number.
Legal to DIY in Victoria
Checked as at September 2026. Rules and prices change — confirm anything you are about to act on.
What you need
- Tape measure
- Phone camera
- Paper and pen
Step by step
Measure the floor
Length and width at floor level, and note anything that interrupts the rectangle — a bulkhead, a step, a chase in the wall. Multiply out the square metres; tiling is priced per square metre and this is the number everyone will ask for first.
Measure the wall height and the tiled height
Floor to ceiling, and separately how high the existing tiles go. Going floor-to-ceiling instead of shoulder-height can add several square metres of tiling — this single measurement moves the price more than most people expect.
Note every fixture position and whether you want it moved
Mark on your sketch where the toilet, basin, shower and bath are now. Then mark what you want moved. Relocating fixtures is the biggest single price jump in any bathroom quote, so being explicit about this gets you an honest number instead of a hedged one.
Photograph everything, including the boring parts
Each wall, the floor, the ceiling, the window, the door, inside the vanity, the exhaust fan, and the external wall behind the shower if you can get to it. Also photograph the meter box and the access path from the street — access affects labour cost more than people realise.
Write down the age of the house
Anything built before the late 1980s may have asbestos sheeting behind the tiles, which changes both cost and process. Knowing the decade the house was built lets a quote account for it honestly instead of adding a vague contingency.
Note what is under the floor
Concrete slab or timber subfloor, and whether there is a room below. It affects waterproofing detail, drainage options and what happens if there is existing damage.
Common mistakes
- Measuring only the floor and not the tiled wall area
- Not being clear about which fixtures you want moved
- Forgetting to photograph access to the site
- Not mentioning the age of the house
When to stop and call someone
You do not need to design the bathroom — that is the job of whoever quotes it. But arriving with measurements, photographs and a clear list of what you want moved is the difference between a quote you can trust and a range you cannot compare.
This guide is general information, not advice for your particular house. Rules change — check the current position with the Building and Plumbing Commission, Energy Safe Victoria and WorkSafe Victoria before you rely on it. Plumbing, gas and electrical work must be done by a licensed practitioner. If your home was built or last renovated before 1990, assume asbestos until it is ruled out — see what a strip-out finds.