SummitBridge012 hours
Re-seal the shower silicone
Strip the old bead, clean back to dry tile and lay one clean line of mould-resistant sanitary sealant.
Rooms · The wettest room in the house
Bathrooms that stay dry, bright and easy to live with
The bathroom asks more of a house than any other room — heat, steam and constant water in a small, hard-finished box. Get the moisture, fixtures, storage and light right and the rest looks after itself.
01
Moisture & ventilation management
In our climate, water is the real renovation
From Brisbane humidity to a cold Melbourne winter, the difference between a bathroom that lasts twenty years and one that grows black mould in two is how well it sheds and shifts moisture.
Certified work
Waterproofing is not a DIY step
Behind every good bathroom is a waterproofing membrane you never see. In most Australian states this is certified work that must be carried out by a licensed waterproofer in line with AS 3740 (Waterproofing of domestic wet areas). It is the single most common cause of failed bathrooms — so leave it to a certified professional and keep the certificate.
- Membrane to floors, hobs and shower walls to standard
- Correct falls to the floor waste so water drains away
- Keep the compliance certificate for resale and warranty
The everyday moisture jobs you can do
Most damp problems are about air, not membranes. Move the steam out fast and surfaces stay dry long enough to never feed mould.
- Duct the exhaust fan outside — never into the roof cavity, where moist air rots timber and feeds mould. A run-on timer keeps it clearing steam after you leave.
- Open a window or door after a shower to cross-ventilate — especially in humid northern climates where air-con alone won't dry a room.
- Re-seal tired silicone with a mould-resistant sanitary sealant once the old bead lifts or darkens — a two-hour fix that stops water tracking behind tiles.
- Wipe the glass and squeegee the screen — a 30-second habit that beats any cleaning product at keeping mould off the silicone.
Hard-wiring a new exhaust fan, heat lamp or extraction unit is electrical work for a licensed electrician.
02
Fixtures & tapware
Choose fittings that earn their keep
Tapware and fittings are where a bathroom is touched every day. Spend where your hands and eyes land — and read the WELS label before the showroom lighting wins you over.
Read the WELS star rating
Every tap, shower and toilet sold in Australia carries a WELS water-efficiency label. More stars means less water and a smaller bill — a 4-star shower head feels no weaker.
Match the spout to the basin
Measure the basin height and depth before you fall for a tall spout — too high and it splashes, too short and it won't clear the bowl. Bring the numbers, not just a photo.
Pick finishes that forgive
Brushed nickel and matte black hide water spots that gloss chrome shows off. Whatever the finish, keep to one metal across taps, towel rails and handles for a calm look.
Plan around the plumbing
Swapping a tap for the same configuration is a tidy job; moving the basin, toilet or shore wall outlet is licensed plumbing. Keep outlets where they are to save real money.
The licensed-trade line. You can change a like-for-like tap or shower head yourself, but installing new outlets, relocating fixtures, and any work on the hot and cold supply or waste is plumbing that must be done by a licensed plumber. Electrical fittings — heated towel rails, heat lamps, fans and lighting — are for a licensed electrician.
03
Small upgrades · Big return
A weekend can change how a bathroom feels
BeforeAfter
Cosmetic refresh
No tiles lifted, no plumbing moved
Fresh silicone, new tapware and a vanity handle swap, a regrout, a mirror and a better light. Drag the slider to see how far a contained, finishes-only update goes — the kind of work careful DIY handles with only an electrician on call for the lights.
02Half day
Swap tapware & handles
Like-for-like tap and a new vanity handle make a dated bathroom feel a decade younger.
03Half day
Regrout & refresh tiles
Rake out crumbling grout, re-grout and seal — tired tiling looks new without a single tile coming off.
04Weekend
Paint with a bathroom-grade finish
A washable, mould-resistant interior paint on the upper walls and ceiling lifts the whole room.
04
Organisation & storage
Find room in a room with no floor to spare
Bathrooms are small and every surface ends up wet. The trick is to lift storage off the bench and use the height and the dead space the room already has.
Mirror cabinet over the basin
The most under-used storage in any bathroom. A recessed or surface mirror cabinet hides the daily clutter and doubles as the vanity mirror.
A niche in the shower wall
If tiling is on the cards, set a recessed niche into the shower wall for bottles — far tidier than a corner caddy and built into the waterproofed surface.
Use the height above the door
The top 400 mm of wall is almost always empty. A shallow shelf or cabinet up there stores towels and spares without stealing floor space.
Drawers beat doors in a vanity
Drawers let you see and reach everything; a cupboard with a single shelf wastes the space below it. Soft-close runners survive the damp far better than cheap ones.
A ladder or rail for towels
A heated rail or a simple timber ladder keeps towels off the floor and drying — useful in damp coastal and southern homes where towels never quite dry.
One hook does a lot
A single robe hook on the back of the door is the cheapest upgrade in the room — and stops the pile of damp towels that breeds mould.
05
Lighting
Light to shave by, light to relax in
One downlight in the centre of the ceiling throws shadows straight onto your face — the worst place to shave or do make-up. Layer the light instead: ambient overhead, a task light at the mirror, and warmth to soften the room. All fixed wiring is a job for a licensed electrician, who will also match each fitting to its IP rating for the zone it sits in around water.
LED & lighting guidesMirror task lightingEssential
Warm colour temperature (2700–3000K)Recommended
IP-rated fittings near the showerRequired
Natural light & a windowIf you can
Dimmable for evening bathsNice to have
06 · The rule of the wet room
“A bathroom doesn't fail at the tiles. It fails at the water you can't see — so spend first on draining, sealing and moving the air.”
— SummitBridge editors
07
Before you ask
Bathroom questions, answered
In most Australian states waterproofing of wet areas is certified work that must be carried out by a licensed waterproofer and comply with AS 3740 (Waterproofing of domestic wet areas). It is one of the most common causes of failed bathrooms, so it is not a DIY step we recommend — and a compliance certificate matters at resale.
Match the fan's airflow to the room volume and, critically, duct it to the outside — never into the roof cavity, where moist air rots timber and feeds mould. A fan with a run-on timer keeps clearing steam after you leave the room. Hard-wiring it is electrical work for a licensed electrician.
Yes. Wiring, new circuits and any fixed lighting, heat lamps or heated towel rails must be installed by a licensed electrician. Fittings also have to suit the IP zone they sit in around the bath and shower, which an electrician will check for you.
Stay finishes-only: re-seal the silicone, swap like-for-like tapware and handles, regrout, add storage and improve the lighting and ventilation. None of that moves plumbing or lifts tiles, yet it delivers the biggest visual lift for the money.
Mould needs moisture, so attack the moisture. Run an externally-ducted fan, open a window to cross-ventilate, squeegee the screen and wipe surfaces dry. Use a mould-resistant sanitary silicone and a washable bathroom paint. In humid northern climates, ventilation matters even more than cleaning.