Five Dock Bathroom Renovations

Across the council line

Five Dock often gets grouped with the Inner West, and it shares a lot with its neighbours. But for renovation purposes it is worth being precise: Five Dock is in the City of Canada Bay, not Inner West Council. Permits for a skip on the road, heritage enquiries and any development application go to Canada Bay.

Younger, wider houses

The housing here is generally a generation younger than Newtown or Balmain. The suburb filled in through the inter-war years with brick bungalows on reasonable lots, and then again after the Second World War with brick houses and, along Great North Road and the streets around it, walk-up flats and later apartment buildings.

For a bathroom, that usually means:

• The bathroom is inside the house, off a hallway, rather than in a rear lean-to
• The house is freestanding, so there is no party wall to worry about
• Side access down a driveway, which makes deliveries and skips easier
• A timber floor in inter-war houses, a concrete slab in many later ones

The 1970s renovation

A very large number of Five Dock houses, many owned for decades by Italian and other migrant families, had their bathrooms rebuilt in the 1970s or 1980s. Those rooms were often built to last: thick mortar beds, heavy tiles, sometimes terrazzo floors, and solid-looking fittings.

They are also now forty to fifty years old. Typical problems at this age:

• No membrane, or an early one that has failed, with water tracking into the floor or the wall behind the shower
• Mortar-bed tiles that sound hollow when tapped
• Galvanised steel water pipes with reduced flow and rust in the water
• A heavy screed that has to come out, which is slow and dusty work
• Vinyl or sheet materials under the tiles that may contain asbestos

Because the tiles were laid thick, demolition takes longer and generates more rubbish than in a newer bathroom. That is shown in the quote.

Pre-1990 bathrooms are tested for asbestos before demolition, and any removal is done by a licensed asbestos removalist.

Bigger rooms, better layouts

The upside of an inter-war or post-war house is space. Many Five Dock bathrooms have room for:

• A separate walk-in shower and bath, instead of a shower over the bath
• A double vanity for a family bathroom
• A separate toilet, which often already exists in these houses and is worth keeping
• Moving fixtures more freely where the floor is timber with subfloor access

On a slab, moving a waste means cutting concrete, and it pays to keep plumbing positions where they are. On a timber floor with a crawl space, repositioning is much more affordable.

Units along Great North Road

Five Dock's walk-up units and apartments follow the same rules as anywhere else: owners corporation approval, by-law working hours, protection of common areas, and a membrane that protects the unit below. Newer apartments may also be within a builder's warranty period, which is worth checking before renovating a bathroom that is leaking. The small bathrooms page covers the strata process.

Finishes

A Five Dock bathroom does not need period styling. Large-format porcelain, a wall-hung vanity, a frameless shower panel and matte black or brushed tapware suit these houses well, as does a warmer, softer palette in an inter-war bungalow. See bathroom tiling for options.

Cost and program

As a 2026 guide:

• Main bathroom in a bungalow or brick house: $26,000 – $42,000
• Unit bathroom: $20,000 – $30,000
• Main bathroom plus separate toilet or ensuite: $40,000 – $60,000

Four to five weeks is typical for a main bathroom. Heavy mortar-bed demolition can add a few days. The cost page has the detail.

Nearby

Ashfield, Leichhardt, Balmain and Rozelle, Marrickville and Newtown and Enmore, plus Drummoyne, Haberfield and Abbotsford.

Renovation work is carried out in partnership with Coastal Renovation Group, a licensed NSW builder; licence and insurance details are provided on request. Call 02 5950 5195 or send the room details through.