A bathroom refit is straightforward when it stays where it is, and a different job when it moves. Moving one brings in drainage falls, joist strengthening, ventilation routes and, in a listed house, consent. We survey what is there, appoint a structural engineer where structure is affected, and coordinate the building control side.
Bathrooms in Esher's attic storeys
A loft bathroom sits in an attic storey, and Elmbridge's character records describe those in more than one part of Esher. The council's record of the Esher Place sub-area describes houses of two to two and a half storeys, with attic storeys lit by dormers or rooflights. In Claremont Park and Clare Hill, sub-area ESH03, Elmbridge records larger houses of two storeys, with attic storeys lit by dormers or rooflights where they are used.
An attic bathroom is a structural question and a services question at once. Joists sized for storage can need strengthening before a bath sits on them, and the soil pipe has to reach the existing stack at the right fall. The structural engineer we appoint sizes any new members, and building control inspects them before the floor is boarded.
Bathrooms in listed buildings
Listing covers the inside of the building, so a bathroom refit in one can need consent. There are 25 listed buildings in the Esher Conservation Area, including three monuments in the High Street. Every one is Grade II except St George's Church, which is Grade I.
Moving a partition, chasing a wall for pipework or removing original joinery in a listed house needs listed building consent from Elmbridge before work starts. Doing it without consent is an offence, not a paperwork slip. Where a house is listed, we build to what has been consented, and we price the surface fixing and routing that the consent permits.
Vents, soil pipes and what shows outside
The parts of a bathroom that need consent are the parts that show outside. The Esher Conservation Area Character Appraisal states that properties in the conservation area which are single family dwellings hold permitted development rights. Those rights are what allow a soil vent pipe or an extract terminal to be installed without a planning application, and they do not apply to a listed building.
Scale decides the run. Elmbridge describes the village scale of West End in Esher as modest, with buildings around the Green rarely exceeding two and a half storeys. In a low building the stack is short and the route is simple. In a taller house the vent travels further, and where it emerges is a design decision as well as a technical one, agreed with you before first fix.
- Underfloor heating and heated towel rails
- Notifiable bathroom electrics certified under Part P
- Drainage falls set to the gully in wet rooms
- Concealed cisterns, frames and wall-hung sanitaryware
- Niches, benches and recessed storage formed in the wet area
The GS Renovation Difference in Esher
Bathrooms fail at the waterproofing and the falls, not at the tiles. We set out the drainage falls and the tanking before anything is tiled, pressure test the pipework, and keep the same team on the room from strip out to sealant. Where the floor structure or a wall is affected, we appoint a structural engineer and build to the calculations, and we coordinate any building control inspection the work triggers. One point of contact throughout, a fixed sequence, and no gap where a subcontractor disappears. Fully insured, free no obligation quotations, rated 4.9 from 31 reviews on MyBuilder.
- Floors checked and stiffened before large-format tiles go down
- Building control applications and inspections coordinated for you
- Extraction sized and ducted outside, never into the loft
- Our own trades on site rather than a chain of subcontractors
- Free follow-up visit after completion if anything needs attention
- Waste runs and pipe falls confirmed before the floor closes up