Room Conversions – Great Southern
Room conversions are a different job from a standard renovation. You’re changing what a room is used for, not just updating it. That might mean adding services that were never there, removing ones that were, or doing both at the same time. The structural and trades work involved can include plumbing, electrical, carpentry, plastering and waterproofing, often all on the same job.
We have completed room conversions across the Great Southern, including a dining room converted into a fully self-contained kitchen and a bedroom converted into an ensuite. If you have a room that isn’t working for your household and you want to know what’s involved in changing it, get in touch.
What does a room conversion involve?
Every job is different, but most room conversions involve some combination of the following:
Plumbing
Adding a kitchen, bathroom, ensuite or laundry to a room that didn’t have one means running new water supply and waste lines. On older Southern homes, this can also mean working around original pipework that hasn’t been touched in decades. Getting this right at the start saves significant problems later.
Electrical
New rooms need new circuits. A kitchen conversion requires dedicated circuits for an oven or induction hob, an extractor fan and appliances. A bathroom or ensuite needs appropriate lighting, exhaust and power points positioned correctly for the room. All electrical work is carried out by a licensed electrician.
Structural work
Most conversions involve some structural change to the room. That might mean blocking off an existing doorway, creating a new entry point, building new stud walls, or removing a wall entirely. Great Southern has a significant amount of older brick housing stock. Solid brick internal walls require a different approach from timber frame construction and need to be handled carefully.
Waterproofing and tiling
Any new wet area, whether a kitchen, bathroom, ensuite or laundry, needs proper waterproofing before a single tile goes down. This is one of the most commonly skipped or poorly executed steps in renovation work, and it is the reason many Great Southern homeowners end up needing a full redo years later. Solid Projects does this properly.
Plastering, painting and finishing
Once the structural and services work is complete, the room needs to be finished to the same standard as the rest of the house. New walls plastered and painted, new doors and architraves, flooring tied in. The job is not done until the room looks like it was always meant to be there.
Room Conversion Projects
Walk-In Wardrobe to Ensuite Conversion
A walk-in robe sits directly off the bedroom, already the right size, and in most cases already against an external wall. It is one of the most practical starting points for an ensuite conversion.
On a recent Albany project we stripped a full walk-in wardrobe back to the studs, cut the concrete slab to install new drainage, ran all services from scratch, and delivered a completely tiled ensuite with shower, toilet, vanity, and a new window.
Dining Room to Kitchen Conversion
A dining room adjoining the main kitchen was converted into a fully self-contained kitchen for a secondary living space. The room had no existing services. Water, waste, hot water and electrical were all run from scratch. Two existing doorways connecting the room to the main house were closed off with new stud walls and plasterboard, creating a self-contained living area with its own entry.
A hallway window was removed and replaced with a new double-glazed sliding door to provide that entry point.
Study to Bathroom Conversion
Several customers have enquired specifically about converting a bedroom or spare room into an ensuite. This is a compact but fully involved conversion, with plumbing, waterproofing, tiling and fixture work throughout.
If this is something you are considering, contact us to discuss what is involved and get a free quotation.
Why Solid Projects WA?
Solid Projects WA is led by Jason Cook, a tradesperson and construction professional with 35 years of industry experience. That background includes building supervision at Dale Alcock Homes, business management at one of Perth’s leading glazing companies, and ownership of a renovation business in the UK for 11 years.
Room conversions draw on the full range of that experience. Getting water and waste into a room that never had it, working around solid brick walls, managing multiple trades on a single job. This is not work for someone who only tiles bathrooms. It requires a builder who understands the whole scope.