London · Bathroom Renovations
Bathroom Renovations in London, Ontario
Victorian and Edwardian houses in London got their bathrooms decades late, squeezed over a rear wing or into a small bedroom. Generations of plumbers notched the joists, and knob-and-tube wiring is common in homes built before about 1940. In Woodfield, Old East Village and Wortley Village, we repair framing before any bathroom tile goes down.
Bathrooms in London
What’s different in London
| Permit office | City of London Building Division (official site, opens in a new tab) |
|---|---|
| Plumbing permit | Adding a fixture, moving a drain or building a new bathroom. Applied for on the Development and Business Portal. |
| Old wiring | Knob-and-tube common before about 1940 in Woodfield, Old East Village and Wortley Village. |
| Sewer depth | A basement bathroom below the sewer needs an ejector pump, and that basement can’t hold an ARU under Z.-1. |
| Heritage districts | East Woodfield, London’s first (1994). Street-facing windows, skylights or vent stacks may need a Heritage Alteration Permit. |
| Post-war stock | One-bathroom bungalows in Oakridge, Westmount, Argyle and Pond Mills. |
Worth knowing first
Adding a second bathroom to a one-bathroom post-war house
Post-war bungalows in Oakridge, Westmount and Argyle were built with one bathroom. That isn’t enough for a family, or for the main floor of a house with a unit below. So a London bathroom job here adds a second one in the basement in many cases. In most of these 1950s to 1970s homes the main drain runs under the slab. A bathroom near the stack then drains by gravity once the floor is trenched. Where the sewer leaves through the wall above the floor, an ejector pit adds about $3,000 to $5,000. The same condition stops that basement from becoming a rental unit under Z.-1.
The scope, pricing tiers and 5-step process are the same everywhere we work. See Bathroom Renovations ›
Frequently asked questions
Bathrooms in London: three local questions
Yes, as long as nothing changes outside. Interior work in London’s East Woodfield district needs a plumbing permit and, where walls move, a building permit. A new window, a skylight on a street-facing slope or a visible vent stack may need a Heritage Alteration Permit. In East Woodfield we route the vent through the rear roof and the fan through a side or rear wall where we can.
Most fall between $24,000 and $36,000 before HST for a full gut of the typical 1.5 m by 2.4 m (5 ft by 8 ft) room. That covers demolition, new lines inside the room, a waterproofed tiled shower or new tub, vanity, toilet, fan, lighting and tile. Costs rise when the cast-iron stack needs replacing. We camera the stack at the site visit.
We replace it before the walls close. It isn’t grounded and shouldn’t run near water. It is common in London homes built before about 1940, especially in Woodfield, Old East Village and Wortley Village. New circuits for the GFCI outlets, fan, lighting and any heated floor go in under an ESA permit, for about $1,500 to $4,000. Many insurers want the ESA certificate as proof.
Bathrooms In London? Let’s Talk.
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