Category: Bathroom Remodeling

10 Inexpensive Upgrades To Make Your Home Remodeling Project Feel Luxurious

Renovating your home can be costly and comes with many decisions. Hiring a qualified home remodeling contractor is essential to a successful project. Incorporating these ten tips into your next remodeling project can make your space feel luxurious and reduce the impact on your building budget.

Adding Ceiling Detail

During a home remodeling project, adding visual interest to the ceiling can set your home apart from others. Commonly, remodeling clients request coffered, tray and coved ceilings. These details can affordably make a statement in living room, dining room and kitchen remodels. While we often think about adding details to walls, ceilings can be even more dramatic. Adding detail to a ceiling can sometimes be less expensive because there is only one ceiling versus four walls.

Coffered Ceilings

Also known as caisson ceilings, coffered ceilings date back to the Ancient Romans. Many designers and architects will tell you they make your room feel larger by drawing your eye upwards. Coffered ceilings take the form of square, octagonal, or rectangular sunken boxes in the ceiling. The least expensive way to add a coffered ceiling detail is to do so with rough framing and drywall. More commonly, we create coffered ceilings in home remodeling projects by building a grid of wooden box beams with applied moldings.

Tray Ceilings

Tray ceilings are similar to coffered ceilings, but are a single shape and typically the least expensive of the ceiling details. This ceiling detail usually follows the contour of the room, as well as having the center of the ceiling raised up several inches from the perimeter. Additionally, this detail gives the appearance of an upside down tray, hence the name.

Coved Ceilings

An example of a coved ceiling in a Milwaukee area home

Coved ceiling were commonplace prior to 1930, when many of Milwaukee’s historic homes were built. This ornamental detail was usually used in the public areas of a home like the living room or dining room, but is also seen in bathrooms in more stately homes. With CNC technology, we can now purchase kits to assist in getting the perfect ceiling without the expense of cutting it by hand. This detail is best left to professionals with access to specialty flexible drywall.

Upgraded Switches

Upgrading the switches in your home can have a huge impact. Most of your guests interact with your home with their eyes, but when they interact with their hands, it’s often to use a switch. Upgrading the switches can turn an eyesore into a noteworthy detail.

Air Switch

In the kitchen, our remodeling clients frequently opt for an air switch. An air switch is a countertop-mounted pressure switch that activates your garbage disposal. By moving the switch to the countertop, there are fewer visual distractions in a tile or stone backsplash.

Push Button Switches

Push button dimmer switches in an Eastside Milwaukee home.

Reproduction push button switches are a great addition to old homes and to your historic home restoration project. These switches have the look of an original switch, coupled with the functionality and safety of a modern dimmer. This relatively inexpensive upgrade would be a great addition to your next remodeling project. If your budget does not allow for retrofitting for all of your switches, consider doing the rooms that guests most often see.

Dimmer Switches

Dimmer switches, and now Wi-Fi enabled smart switches allow our remodeling clients to create a mood with lighting. Having the flexibly to control your lighting beyond on/off can affect your mood, help with security, as well as make your space feel more luxurious.

If you want to hide your electrical controls to focus on your wallpaper, try a switch from Forbes & Lomax. While expensive, using this switch in a dining or powder room can have a big impact while not requiring the entire house to be re-switched.

Pocket Doors

The older and more sophisticated cousin of the barn door, pocket doors sometimes get a bad name because they can be finicky if not installed by a professional remodeling contractor. Pocket doors are a self-storing door system where the door hides inside of the wall when not in use. Additionally, using a quality track system that features smooth rollers and a quiet close system ensures function for generations to come.

Pocket doors are great for small spaces like a powder room or a closet where a swinging door could interfere with the space or traffic patterns. The only place where this door system can create problems is where plumbing, HVAC, or electrical systems interfere inside the wall. When installing a pocket door, we suggest using only solid core doors.

Upgrade Moldings

Adding moldings to a house makes a huge difference. Defining spaces, adding elegance, and making a space look historically correct all contribute to the functionality as well as the beauty of a home.

Crown Molding

Crown moldings are a great addition to your home. We install crown molding between the wall and the ceiling. Most clients want to add crown molding to their kitchen cabinets, common areas, and master bedroom. Off-the-shelf moldings can be made to look like custom moldings by stacking moldings to create an additional profile. This common method uses a baseboard in combination with a crown molding profile to create a larger and more complex design.

Chair Rail

Chair rail is a molding that can make a simple space feel more elegant, but is often installed incorrectly. A professional home remodeling contractor can help you get the proportion right. Historically, builders positioned chair walls lower on the wall to make the room look and feel taller. Many people assume that the rule for a chair rail is that it should be 36 inches off the ground, however this is not always the case. A good rule of thumb is that the chair rail should be about 1/5 of the room height, usually somewhere between 28-32 inches.

Wainscoting

Wainscoting is a molding applied to the walls that extend partway up a wall’s face. This molding dates back to the 1300’s and can be a great way to guard your walls from scuffs and scratches while adding a classic look to the room. Wainscoting can also create a feeling of height within the room. Traditionally, most manufactures make wainscoting from solid wood, but these days they also make it from milled plywood, plastic and medium-density fiberboard (MDF).

Wider baseboard and casing are great replacements for builder grade moldings that came with the house. Adding larger moldings can give a home a feeling of quality and history. Make sure to consult your builder before deciding on oversized moldings. Moving light switches and outlets may oftentimes be needed to accommodate the new millwork package.

Painting Vents, Grills And Light Trims

The need for HVAC systems, recessed can lights and bath fans creates eyesores. One of the easiest ways to hide these is to have them painted to match the wall or ceiling they are attaching to. Painting these vents, covers and trims is typically a cost-effective way to seamlessly integrate them with the rest of the wall or ceiling. Our qualified painters prepare these plastic and metal surfaces, then apply paint that will help them vanish.

Sound Deadening Insulation

Soundproofing is a very complex topic in construction science and best left to expert builders. However, there are some basic steps which can be cost-effective and make a huge difference. Insulating walls between bedrooms and other rooms helps kids sleep when adults want to entertain later at night. Adding insulation between bathrooms and common areas can confine the sound of running water to the bathroom.

Art Lighting

An example of art lighting in a home in an Eastside Milwaukee home

Art lighting is usually reserved for galleries and very expensive homes, but if the wall is open, it is not expensive to add. By adding an outlet connected to a switch, you can highlight your favorite painting or your kid’s latest creation. Some specialty art lights even incorporate a hook to hang your painting from.

Adding Shutters

Adding shutters to the windows in your home remodeling project is a great, cost-effective way to add curb appeal to your home. While shutters were originally made for functionality, these days they are more often an aesthetic choice. When adding shutters, it’s important that the shutters you select should combine to fit the entire width of the window, so when closed, they fit the window shape. Shutters can add depth and character to your windows as well as give your home a classy, elegant feel. Some of the main types of shutters include:

Louvered
Flat Panels
Raised Panels
Board & Batten

Insulated Garage Door

According to HGTV, many homes have a garage that occupies up to thirty percent of the façade of the home. With such a large surface area, it is important to have the highest quality door you can afford. Upgrading from a single-layer door to an insulated door can increase the R-Value of your door by 4-15+. Even if there is no heating in your attached garage, the residual heat from your home will linger much longer with the addition of a new, properly installed garage door. Not only will this heat help melt the snow off of your car in the cold Milwaukee winters, but also makes going to work on a cold, dark winter morning a little more tolerable.

Adding Wallpaper

Wallpaper in a Milwaukee area bathroom

Beautiful wallpaper can be prohibitively expensive, but if you are remodeling a small space like a powder room, you can use an expensive paper for big impact without a huge price tag. Picking the right wallpaper can be a challenge best left to the professionals. However, if you want to pick your own, we recommend keeping the following rules of thumb in mind:

Price and quality are usually directly correlated in the wallpaper world
Handmade wallpaper should only be hung by the most experienced installers
Stripes and vertical patterns can help a room feel taller
Ceilings can be wallpapered too
Small-scale patters make a room feel larger
Walls must be free of imperfections for a seamless installation.

Upgrade Your Home with LaBonte Construction

Remodeling your home can be expensive, but with an experienced contractor and careful selections, you can get more for your money. Contacting LaBonte Construction allows you to take advantage of our decades of home building experience to incorporate these, as well as other cost-effective upgrades into your next remodeling project.

6 Considerations When Selecting A Bath Fan

Not only are bath fans code in most parts of the country, but they are essential in the function of your home’s ventilation system. Showers and baths create steam. If the steam is not expelled it can cause damages to paint and wallpaper, and in extreme situations, encourage mold. Hiring a qualified home remodeling contractor like LaBonte Construction can ensure that the correct fan is used for your next bathroom remodeling project.

While a bath fan’s most important function is removing moisture from the air, they also remove smells from the bathroom. We look at six considerations when selecting a bath fan for your bathroom remodeling project.

Bathroom Size

Fans are sized by the rate by which they expel air from your home. This measurement is specified in cubic feet per minute (CFM). The lower the CFM rating, the less air the fan moves. It is almost always better to oversize a bath fan than to undersize it.

To specify which fan is appropriate for your space, architects and home remodelers use several rules of thumb or calculations. The most simple rule of thumb is one CFM per square foot of room area.

A typical bathroom in Milwaukee is five by eight feet, or forty square feet. This bathroom would require at least a forty CFM fan. More complex suggestions are made by the Home Ventilation Institute (HVI), who certify bath fans, among other ventilation products. The HVI suggests exchanging the bathroom air a minimum of eight times per hour, and they provide a calculation for this based on cubic feet. If we use the same five by eight bathroom with a common nine foot tall ceiling, you come up with a measurement of 320 cu. ft.

EXAMPLE:
360 cubic feet x 8 air changes per hour = 2,880 Cubic Feet per hour
To Convert to CFM
2,880 per hour / 60 minutes = 48 CFM minimum
For large bathrooms, we suggest calculating based on fixtures:
Toilet: 50 CFM
Shower or Bathtub: 50 CFM
Jetted Tub: 100 CFM

EXAMPLE:
A bathroom that has a shower, bathtub and toilet:
50 CFM + 50 CFM + 50 CFM = 150 CFM minimum

Fan Installation

Bathroom Remodelers that Install Bath Fans Milwaukee — A Panasonic exhaust fan painted to match the ceiling

Most bath fans are mounted on the ceiling, but some are mounted on the wall. Fans should be ducted to the outside. Most commonly, home remodelers use a vent through the roof. Some handymen, DIYers, or unqualified builders could vent your bath fan directly into your attic, which is wrong and can cause moisture problems.

If your bath can not be vented though the sidewall of your home and it passes through an unconditioned space (e.g. attic), the exhaust piping must be insulated.

While some fans are automatic, most require a switch. In commercial settings, and in homes where someone may forget to turn on the fan while using the bathroom, an occupancy sensor or wiring the fan to turn on with the light might make sense.

Bath fans in the ceiling can be an eyesore. We encourage our clients who do not have a white ceiling to consider having their bath fan grill painted by our staff during the remodeling process, in order to match the fan to the ceiling.

Noise Level

One of the main reasons our clients cite not using their bathroom fan is because of noise. Manufactures have worked hard to address this issue by improving the fan bearings, increasing the fan sizes to lower the RPMs while still moving the same amount of air, and by adding additional soundproofing features to the fan housing.

The noise of a bath fan is measured in sones. The lower the sone value, the less volume the fan produces. Sones are not a measurement like decibels, but rather, how sound is sensed. Unlike decibels which are logarithmic, sones are linear.

Sones	Decibels	Sound Equivalent
1	28	Whisper
2	37.99	Quiet Library
3	43.84	Desktop Computer
4	47.99	Quiet Suburb
5	51.21	Conversation
6	53.83	Refrigerator

Most of the bath fans our clients select are considered quiet or ultra-quiet, having a sone rating of two or less.

Efficiency

Big families can have a bath fan run for hours on end. Fortunately, bath fans have become significantly more energy-efficient in the last ten years. Many of the Energy Star fans we install are seventy percent more efficient than traditional non-rated equivalents. Choosing to use a timer or occupancy sensor for your fan can further increase the efficiency by ensuring the fan is only in use when necessary.

Formfactor

Fans are traditionally ceiling mounted between studs with a white plastic cover. Some have lights, and some do not. Most high-efficiency fans are taller, requiring a minimum of 2×6 ceiling joists to accommodate their housing. Historically, the quieter or stronger the fan, the larger the blades and plastic shroud covering it.

There have been many improvements and innovations in the past few years. Companies like Broan^® have come out with their model 744, which combines a recessed can light and a bath fan into one. This hybrid fan/light draws air from around the bulb by having a hole in the back of the can light trim.

Bathroom Exhaust Fan Installation Services Milwaukee — An intake for an inline bathroom exhaust fan

Some clients want to avoid a large plastic cover on their ceiling and opt for an inline bath fan, which has a smaller ceiling intake and mounts the fan remotely. The benefit of an inline bath fan is that the fan can be mounted anywhere between the intake and the outlet. This allows for installations where power may be easier to access, where the fan can be easily serviced, in situations where a large fan will not fit in the joist cavity, and in installations where multiple exhaust points can be combined with only one outlet through the roof or side of the home.

Features

Traditionally, fan options were limited to including a light or a heating function on more premium models. Lately, companies like Broan^® also offer a Bluethooth^© fan that allows you to play music through a speaker in the fan’s housing while you sing in the shower. One of our favorite brands at LaBonte Construction, Panasonic, offers add-on modules that can be installed into the bath fan, giving you more control over your bathroom ventilation. Examples of their accessories include condensation sensors, timers, motion sensors and speed controllers.

Upgrade Your Bathroom with LaBonte Construction

A fan is part of every bathroom remodeling project we complete at LaBonte Construction. Entrusting your home to our staff, who have years of residential construction experience means your bath fan will be properly sized and have the features your family needs to enjoy your bathroom for years to come. Please contact us to discuss your bathroom remodeling project.

Tags bathroom remodeling, energy efficiency

10 Ways To Make Your Bathroom Remodel Feel Luxurious

At LaBonte Construction, we focus on delivering the highest quality remodeling projects to our clients. Even if you do not have an unlimited budget, incorporating some of these ideas into your bathroom remodel can be a cost effective way to make your bathroom stand out.

Adding Upgraded Angle Stops and P-Traps

Angle stops are the valves that act as the shutoff for each of the fixtures in your bathroom. Traditionally, there is one located on the supply to your toilet. There is also one on both the hot, and cold sides of your sink’s faucet. If you have a standalone bidet, there would also be an angle stop on the supply line to that fixture. Usually, production builders would install the least expensive stop code allowed. These stops would require several turns to close. These valves often omit quality brass internals in favor of plastics for cost saving measures.

At LaBonte Construction, our standard is a solid brass quarter turn valve. This angle stop requires you turn it 45 degrees from on to off, and also gives the handle a better chance of not failing over time. It is vital that these valves work years later to avoid flooding when you have a leaking faucet, or to avoid draining the water lines of the entire home during routine maintenance.

P-Traps

As another cost saving measure, builders use a PVC P-Trap to connect the sink drain to the waste lines in the wall. Although we think these are fine for the inside of a vanity where they will not be seen, they are ugly and can cheapen your space when exposed. A pedestal or console sink does not do a great job of hiding the pipes under the sink. We recommend considering other options to make your bathroom remodel look more refined.

Our standard inclusions are great for vanities, but designers and clients often appreciate using upgraded, decorative angle stops and P-Traps in their projects. These plumbing upgrades are most common on toilets and sinks, where valves are visible and can be appreciated. Not only are several styles of handle offered, but also all of the popular finishes. This allows our remodeling clients to match the angle stop to the finish of their plumbing fixtures.

Make sure to let us know you want upgraded stops at the beginning of your project because the builder needs to install the plumbing in a way that allows for these upgraded valves. To complete the look, our plumbers will utilize hard-piped supply lines and premium escutcheons around the pipes.

Custom Medicine Cabinets

LaBonte Construction’s cabinet shop can fabricate a medicine cabinet to match your space. Stacked moldings with butt hinges and a hand-brushed oil finish can give your bathroom an old-world feel. Other clients may desire a modern look and have us fabricate something like a sleek walnut frame. Choosing between a flat or beveled mirror can also make a big impact. While usually not a large portion of the budget, the mirror takes up a lot of the total surface area in your bathroom remodeling project. Quality execution is essential when tying the space together, as well as providing the perfect place to store your toiletries.

Painting Light Fixtures and Fans

When trying to achieve the most luxurious feel for your bathroom remodel, we suggest getting rid of white eyesores on the ceiling (unless your ceiling is white). Usually, it is easy and inexpensive to paint the plastic trims around can lights and bath fan covers. Our qualified painters prepare these plastic and metal surfaces, then apply paint that will help the electrical fixtures vanish into the ceiling in a stylish way.

Upgrading Light Switches

Upgrading light switches is one of the least expensive ways to add luxury to your bathroom remodel. It can have a big impact on the way you enjoy you newly remodeled space. In a bathroom that is meant to look historic, we recommend reproduction push-button light switches. They look like the originals, but increase safety and include the ability to add a dimmer function.

If your bathroom is more modern or high-tech, you can select a smart switch that allows for smart phone and home automation integration, programmable moods, and can even control the shades.

Others prefer an industrial or masculine look, and opt for a machined-metal light switch like the offerings from Buster & Punch. Adding decorative or sleek switch plate covers that match the finishes in the bathroom can complete the look, and turn an eyesore into a focal point.

If you are remodeling your bathroom and want the switches to disappear, it might be worth investing in a solution like the offerings from TRUFIG or Forbes & Lomax.

Using an Oriental Rug

Most people use a bath mat that coordinates with their towels in their newly remodeled bathroom. There is nothing wrong with that. If you are looking for the perfect bath mat, we love the offerings from Waterworks. You might, however, be missing an opportunity to express yourself and add visual interest to your new space. Oriental rugs in bathrooms have been popular for years and can add color to the monochrome bathrooms so many remodeling clients request.

It is a popular belief that Oriental and Persian Rugs are very expensive, and in many cases that’s true. However, size is a major factor in the price of many of these rugs. Your new master bathroom gives you the opportunity to buy a luxury item in a smaller size. Oriental rugs may not be a good option for your living room where your kids or pets might destroy them, but may be a worthwhile investment for your bathroom.

If the local rug galleries do not have a rug you love, we have had success buying them at auction in Chicago, at resale stores and at local estate sales. Buying your bathroom rug this way can involve a little more knowledge, and will likely require coordinating the cleaning of your new rug. Additionally, your new rug should have a pad so you do not slip. Please make sure to check with the tile manufacturer if your floor has a temperamental natural stone in order to avoid staining from dye bleed or materials in the pad.

Adding Custom Shades

While we are not usually involved in the selection of window treatments as a remodeling contractor, we do assist with coordinating the installation of specialty shades and blinds. In addition to adding beauty through another texture and material, bathrooms benefit tremendously from harnessing and controlling natural light. The right lighting can positively affect your mood, help you while you shave or put on your makeup, and present your newly remodeled bathroom in the best light.

For privacy, many of our clients select plantation shutters or top-down bottom-up blinds. Clients with an interest in home automation can tie their blinds to their lighting scenes. With the touch of a button or by schedule, they can open and close their blinds to suit their needs.

Heated Towel Racks

Much like a heated floor, a heated towel rack is a luxury some can’t live without during our cold Milwaukee winters. There are three types of towel racks we install: electric, central/hydronic, and dual-fuel. Electric towel racks use a heating element that is on a timer or a switch to heat the towels. A central or hydronic towel rack is hooked up to your home’s boiler and can act as an additional heat source in your bathroom, often requiring no additional energy. A dual-fuel towel rack is connected to your boiler and is supplemented by an electric element when the boiler system is not on.

Upgrade Your Baseboards

Most homes in the U.S. have a 3.25” painted wood baseboard. In some applications, this type of baseboard fits with the style of your home, but in others, a taller or more ornate option would better fit the bill. Together with the client or designer, we can work to select a more significant baseboard, mill a custom baseboard in our shop, expertly install a tile baseboard to match your bathroom tile, or combine several stock molding profiles from a lumber supplier to create a one of a kind stacked baseboard.

Add Decorative Cabinet Hardware

Decorative hardware can be subtle or make a statement. When well executed, hardware can tie a bathroom together and have a huge visual impact. Often described as “jewelry for your cabinets”, decorative hardware comes in all shapes and sizes. When compared to a kitchen, bathrooms usually require fewer pulls and knobs which allow many of our clients to splurge without impacting their budget while having us install something really special. With the variety of shapes, sizes and price points, most of our remodeling clients find hardware is a great place to inject their personality into their bathroom remodel.

Heated Tile Floors

One of the most popular upgrades clients request are heated tile floors. There is nothing worse in a cold Midwestern winter than getting up early and stepping onto a chilly floor. Luckily, you do not need a boiler to have heated floors. There are several manufacturers of electric in-floor heating. We work closely with the architect, suppliers and HVAC contractors to make sure we specify the correct system to provide safe, reliable underfloor heating for the life of your bathroom.

Our current favorite system not only warms the floor, but also provides uncoupling, load support and vapor management for the most solid tile installation possible. These in-floor heating systems can be put on a schedule like a traditional thermostat, and some can also be connected to home automation systems.

Finishing Touches

LaBonte Construction has focused on high quality remodeling since our founding in 2006. Our motto is “Home is in the details”, and in no place is this more evident than in the details we incorporate into our client’s bathrooms. When designing and budgeting for your next bathroom project or addition, it is important to onboard the builder at the early planning stages. This allows you to make sure you have an accurate budget, but also take advantage of our years of experience. We have done hundreds of bathroom projects and can help you create the heirloom quality space of your dreams.

Contact the home remodeling team at LaBonte Construction today to get started.