RSK Renovation — Premium Renovation & Fit-Out, Dubai

Overview

The Job That Matters Is Under the Tiles.

Almost everything that decides whether a bathroom renovation was done well is invisible once it is finished.

Tanking, falls to the drain, pipe routes and how those pipes are fixed all sit under the tiles. Get them wrong and the tiles turn out to be the cheapest part of putting it right.

RSK handles bathroom renovation across Dubai villas and apartments, from single-room refurbishment to full wet-area rebuilds.

Bathroom Services at a Glance

Strip-out: down to slab and blockwork

Drainage: modification and pipe routing

Plumbing first fix: supply runs and concealed cistern framing

Electrical first fix: correct zoning for wet areas

Tanking: waterproofing membrane and water test

Screed: laid to correct falls

Tiling: floor and walls

Sanitaryware and brassware: supply and installation

Vanity joinery: moisture-resistant carcass, made to measure

Glass, extraction and lighting: shower screens, fans, fittings

Sealing and commissioning: final checks and snagging

Get a Written BOQ

What It Involves

What Bathroom Renovation Involves

A bathroom is a small room with a lot of trades in it. Demolition, drainage, plumbing, electrical, waterproofing, screeding, tiling, joinery, glass and fittings all happen in a space of a few square metres.

That density is why the sequence cannot be rushed and why a bathroom takes longer than its size suggests. Each stage has to be finished, and in some cases tested, before the next can begin.

Project Types

Types of Bathroom Renovation

Cosmetic refresh

Sanitaryware, brassware and vanity replaced, tiling retained. Quick and economical, but only viable if the existing tiling and waterproofing are sound.

Full refurbishment, same layout

Strip back to blockwork, retank, retile and refit with fixtures staying where they are. This is the most common bathroom project and the most predictable to price.

Full rebuild with layout change

Fixtures moved, which means new drainage runs and often a raised floor section to achieve fall. The cost step here is drainage, not finishes.

New bathroom

Adding a bathroom where there was not one. This needs a drainage route to an existing stack, floor depth for fall, and in an apartment, building approval. Feasibility is confirmed at survey, not assumed.

The Real Work

Waterproofing, Drainage and Specification

Waterproofing is the job

A bathroom is a waterproofing project with tiles on top, not a tiling project that happens to be wet. Done properly, a tanking membrane runs across the whole floor and up the walls in wet zones, lapped and sealed at every junction. Then the area is flooded and held for a water test before any screed goes down. It takes a day. It is also the only point at which a mistake is cheap to fix.

In apartments this matters more, because a leak damages the ceiling of the unit below — a dispute with a neighbour, the owners association and two insurers.

Drainage and floor levels

Moving a WC or a shower is a drainage problem before it is a layout problem. Waste pipes need continuous fall to reach the stack. How far a fixture can move depends on where that stack sits, how much depth is available in the floor build-up, and whether the slab can be chased — in apartments, chasing the structural slab is normally not permitted at all.

Where fall cannot be achieved, the options are a raised floor section, a repositioned fixture, or a macerator arrangement — identified at survey stage, not after demolition. Falls in the finished floor also need to be right: a shower that does not drain leaves standing water, staining and grout failure within months.

What to specify

Cistern: concealed gives a cleaner wall but needs a framed void and an access panel; exposed is simpler and easier to service. Decided before tiling, not after.

Shower: a tiled floor with linear drain looks seamless but depends entirely on correct falls and tanking; a tray is more forgiving — often the sensible answer in apartments with limited floor depth.

Pressure: rain showers and body jets need pressure to work. Check supply before ordering; add a pump where needed.

Brassware & extraction: thermostatic mixers hold temperature; vanities in moisture-resistant board or marine ply; and working extraction — humidity with nowhere to go settles into grout, paint and joinery.

Electrical safety in wet areas: wet areas are zoned, and the zone decides what fitting is permitted where. Fittings around the shower need appropriate IP ratings, sockets are not permitted inside wet zones, and bathroom circuits should be RCD protected. Heated mirrors, shaver points and underfloor heating all need their own provision at first fix. Not an area to economise in.

Approvals

Do You Need Approval for a Bathroom Renovation in Dubai?

If drainage is being altered, almost certainly. If it is a fixture swap, usually not.

Replacing sanitaryware and brassware in place is the lightest scope. Once the layout changes, or the wet area is stripped back and retanked, the position shifts.

In an apartment, altering drainage normally needs building management approval and, depending on the tower, a modification permit through DDA, Trakhees, Dubai Municipality or the free zone authority. Buildings take this seriously because the risk sits with the unit below.

In a villa, a bathroom refurbishment within existing walls is usually straightforward. Adding a bathroom or altering structure moves it into the building permit route.

Cost

How Much Does a Bathroom Renovation Cost in Dubai?

Bathrooms carry a high cost per square metre because several trades work in a small space. What moves the number:

Layout change

Keeping fixtures in place is far cheaper than moving drainage

Tanking scope

Full tanking against partial wet-zone treatment

Tile choice and size

Large format and natural stone cost more to buy and more to lay

Tile layout

Patterns, mitred corners and feature walls add labour

Sanitaryware and brassware

The widest range of any line in the room

Concealed cistern

Framing, void construction and access panel

Shower type

Tiled floor shower against a tray

Vanity joinery

Made to measure against off the shelf

Glass

Thickness, hinges and whether it is made to measure

Pressure and heating

Pump or water heater upgrades where needed

The number that matters

Not a per-square-foot estimate from a website — a written BOQ after a site visit, showing quantities, materials, exclusions and payment milestones.

Usually excluded from cheap quotes

Approvals and drawings, protection of retained finishes, MEP upgrades, waste removal, snagging after handover, and anything described as "subject to site condition".

Read the full guide: what a bathroom renovation costs in Dubai →

Timeline

How Long Does a Bathroom Renovation Take?

Curing and testing set the pace, not the trades.

Screed needs time before tiling. Tanking needs its water test before screed. Grout and sealant need time before the room is used. These are fixed periods that cannot be compressed by adding labour, which is why a bathroom takes longer than its size suggests.

Material lead times are the other variable. Specific tiles, sanitaryware and made-to-measure glass can all take time to arrive, so selections should be locked before strip-out begins.

Avoid These

Mistakes That Cost Money

Skipping the water test. It is the one check that catches a failure while it is still cheap.

Tiling over inadequate falls. Standing water in a shower is a screed problem, and fixing it means lifting the floor.

Using standard board for the vanity. It swells at the base. Moisture-resistant board or marine plywood is a small extra at the start.

Ordering fittings after tiling starts. Waste and supply positions are set at first fix and are built to the specific fixture.

Forgetting the access panel. A concealed cistern needs one. Tiling over it means breaking tiles to service the valve.

Ignoring extraction. Humidity with nowhere to go damages grout, paint and joinery across the whole room.

Checklist

What to Check Before You Start

Whether the fixtures are staying in place or moving

Where the soil stack sits and how much floor depth is available

That tanking and a water test are named as separate BOQ lines

Existing water pressure, tested before fittings are ordered

Full sanitaryware and brassware selection, confirmed before first fix

Concealed or exposed cistern, decided before wall build-up

Tiled shower floor or tray, and whether falls can be achieved

Extraction route and fan capacity

Access panel location for concealed valves

Tile and glass lead times against the programme

Ask for these as separate lines. A single bathroom price with no breakdown hides whether tanking, a water test and a pressure check are actually included.

FAQ

Bathroom Renovation FAQs

How much does it cost to renovate a bathroom in Dubai?

It depends on whether the layout changes, the extent of tanking, tile choice and size, sanitaryware and brassware selections, the shower type and whether the vanity is made to measure. A bathroom costs more per square metre than any other room because several trades work in a small area. A written BOQ after a site visit is the only accurate figure.

What is a realistic budget for a bathroom renovation?

Start by deciding whether the fixtures stay where they are. Keeping the layout and replacing finishes and fittings sits at one level. Moving drainage, retanking and rebuilding the wet area sits well above it. Once that is settled, tile and sanitaryware choices move the number most.

Can I move the toilet or shower?

Sometimes. It depends on the position of the soil stack, the floor depth available for fall, and whether the slab can be chased. In apartments, chasing the structural slab is usually not permitted, which limits how far fixtures can move.

Do you waterproof the whole bathroom or just the shower?

The floor is tanked in full and the walls are tanked in wet zones, with a water test held before screed. Partial treatment is where most failures begin.

Can I renovate one bathroom while living in the property?

Usually yes, provided there is another working bathroom. Water will be off for periods during first fix, and there will be dust and noise, but the work is contained.

Do I need approval to renovate a bathroom in Dubai?

If drainage is being altered, an apartment normally needs building management approval and possibly a modification permit. A fixture swap in place usually does not. In a villa it depends on whether structure is affected.

How long before I can use the bathroom after it is finished?

Grout and sealant need curing time before the room goes into normal use. The exact period depends on the products used, and will be confirmed at handover.

Book a Bathroom Site Visit

Tell us the property and whether the layout is staying. We will check the drainage, the floor depth and the existing waterproofing, then issue a written BOQ with tanking, testing and fittings listed as separate lines.

+971 8001 217 info@rskrenovation.ae

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Bathroom Renovation in Dubai