Bathroom installation in Bromley through our free referral service means a vetted local installer surveys your room and quotes in writing, for supply and fit or fit only. A straightforward refit takes about five to ten working days. Tiling, a layout change or a wet room extends that to two to four weeks.
What a Full Bromley Bathroom Installation Includes
A full bathroom installation replaces everything in the room. It covers strip-out, new plumbing and electrics, wall and floor preparation, waterproofing, tiling, fitting the new suite and testing before handover. Replacing a basin or a shower on its own is a partial job and is priced differently, and so is a bathroom renovation that keeps some of the existing room.
A complete installation service usually covers:
- Removing the old bath, basin, toilet and wall coverings, plus flooring and boxing where needed
- New supply and waste plumbing, and moving any fixture that changes position
- Electrical work for lighting, an extractor fan, a shaver socket or underfloor heating
- Plastering or boarding, and tanking around the shower or bath
- Wall and floor tiling, grout and silicone
- Fitting the sanitaryware, taps, shower, heated towel rail and accessories
- Testing, snagging, making good and clearing away
Most installers offer a design and installation service, and the same installation services apply to a small bathroom, a loft en-suite or a shower room. Across the borough, plan the strip-out day too: the skip company applies for the council’s skip licence, and homes in a controlled parking zone need a bay suspension or visitor vouchers for the installer’s van.
Supply and Fit, or Fit Only?
With supply and fit, the installer sources the suite, tiles and brassware and fits them, so one business answers for both products and workmanship. With fit only, you buy the products and pay for labour. Fit only can save money. It also makes faulty, damaged or missing items your problem rather than the installer’s.
| Supply and fit | Fit only | |
|---|---|---|
| Who buys the suite, tiles and brassware | The installer | You |
| Who’s responsible if an item is faulty or missing | The installer | You, through the retailer |
| Who checks sizes and compatibility | The installer | You, ideally after the survey |
| Best for | One point of responsibility, fewer delays | Homeowners who’ve already chosen a suite |
If you’ve already bought a suite from a Bromley showroom or online, ask the installer to check the parts list at the survey. A missing waste or the wrong valve can stall a job for days.
The Bathroom Installation Process, Step by Step, in Bromley Homes
A bathroom installation runs in a fixed order: survey and quote, strip-out, first fix, boarding, waterproofing, tiling, second fix, then testing and handover. Each stage depends on the last. That’s why a late delivery or a slow-drying floor holds up the whole job, and why waterproofing must be checked before tiles cover it.
| Stage | What happens | Typical time |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Survey and quote | Measure up; check the soil stack, water supply, drainage and access; agree the layout; written quote | One visit |
| 2. Strip-out | Old suite and wall coverings out; water and power isolated; skip and parking in place | About 2 days |
| 3. First fix | New pipework and cables run in walls and floors; floor repairs | About 3 to 5 days |
| 4. Boarding and waterproofing | Walls made flat; cement board and a tanking membrane in wet areas | Depends on drying and curing |
| 5. Tiling | Walls and floor tiled, grouted and left to set | About 4 to 6 days |
| 6. Second fix | Suite, taps, shower, towel rail, lights and fan connected | About 2 to 3 days |
| 7. Testing and handover | Pipework pressure-tested, drainage and fan checked, silicone applied, snagging | Final day |
An installation of products already on site usually takes five to ten working days. Add more tiling, a layout change, underfloor heating or a wet room, and two to four weeks is more realistic. From first survey to finished room, including ordering the suite, allow four to eight weeks.
How long without a toilet or shower? The toilet usually comes out on day one and goes back near the end. Expect five to ten days without it on a standard refit, and longer if the layout changes or a delivery slips. If yours is the only bathroom, arrange an alternative before the start date, and ask whether the toilet can be reconnected overnight.
Ready for a survey? Call 020 7946 0123 or send an enquiry.
What Bromley Bathroom Installers Find at Strip-Out
Bromley’s housing explains most of the surprises. Roughly three in ten homes here are interwar and one in six pre-date 1919, so installers regularly meet original pipework, uneven walls and floors cut into by earlier plumbers. A good installer stops, shows you the problem, and agrees the extra cost and time in writing before carrying on.
| Home | Typical area | Common finds | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interwar semi | West Wickham, Petts Wood, Hayes | Separate WC, original pipe runs, fixed soil stack | Combining the WC and bathroom depends on the stack |
| Victorian terrace or villa | Penge, Beckenham | Uneven walls, lead or galvanised supply pipes, notched joists | Board walls flat; replace old pipes while the floor is up |
| Converted flat | Beckenham, Penge, Bromley town | Shared waste stack, communal access, lease limits | Confirm stack ownership and managing-agent rules first |
| Larger detached home | Chislehurst, Bickley | Long pipe runs, older heating system, several bathrooms | Check pressure and hot water before adding a bigger shower |
Limescale is the other local constant. The borough’s water is hard, which means scale on taps, glass and thermostatic valves within months. Ask about easy-clean screens, valves with reachable cartridges, and whether a softener is worth fitting while the plumbing is open.
Regulations for a New Bathroom in the London Borough of Bromley
A like-for-like replacement rarely needs planning permission or Building Regulations approval. A brand-new bathroom, new drainage or new ventilation does. Electrical work in any room with a bath or shower is notifiable under Part P, and only a Gas Safe registered engineer may work on a gas appliance.
- Part P: a room with a bath or shower is a “special location”, so any electrical work there, from a light to an extractor fan, is notifiable. Use an electrician registered with a competent person scheme, who issues a certificate. GOV.UK: building regulations approval
- Part F: a new bathroom needs mechanical extract ventilation, vented outside rather than into the loft. A refurbishment must keep or replace the existing fan. Approved Document F
- Gas Safe Register: any work that moves or connects a boiler or other gas appliance needs a registered engineer, so check the ID card on the register. Gas Safe Register
- Water regulations: new fittings on the mains must be watertight and fit for use under the Water Supply (Water Fittings) Regulations 1999. legislation.gov.uk
- Building control: where approval is needed, use Bromley Council’s building control (full plans or a building notice) or a competent person scheme for the electrics.
- Conservation areas: Bromley has 47, including Chislehurst, Park Langley and Petts Wood. Inside work is rarely affected; a new vent, flue or soil pipe on a front or side wall may need consent.
Electrical zones: zone 0 is inside the bath or tray (IPX7, extra-low voltage), zone 1 is above it to 2.25 m (IPX4), zone 2 is 0.6 m beyond and around the basin (IPX4). Ordinary sockets aren’t allowed within 3 m of a bath or shower. Plan lighting, the fan and a towel rail with the bathroom design, not after the tiles are on.
How to Compare Bathroom Installation Bromley Quotes
Compare quotes only when they cover the same scope. Each should list strip-out and waste, plumbing and electrics, boarding and tanking, tiling, products or fit only, second fix, making good, VAT and payment stages. A much lower quote usually leaves something out, and that item tends to return as an extra halfway through.
- Supply and fit or fit only, with the products named
- Who does the electrics, and whether you get a Part P certificate
- What waterproofing goes behind the shower or bath
- How hidden damage is priced and agreed
- Start date, expected finish and payment schedule
- The workmanship guarantee, in writing
- Whether the skip and parking are included
Typical price ranges and what pushes a quote up are in our bathroom costs guide.
Bromley Homeowners’ Bathroom Installation Questions
Can a bathroom be installed in a day?
Not properly. Strip-out, first fix, boarding, waterproofing, tiling and second fix each need time, and adhesive, grout and silicone must set. “One-day” offers are surface refreshes, such as panels over old tiles or a like-for-like swap.
Can a fitter install a suite I bought myself?
Yes, as a fit-only job. Have the parts list checked at the survey, because missing, damaged or incompatible items stay your responsibility.
Do bathroom installers do the plumbing and tiling?
Most manage both, but some subcontract the tiling or electrics. Check who does each part and that the quote includes it.
When is it time for a new bathroom rather than a repair?
When problems keep returning: seals that fail again, cracked or hollow tiles, damp or mould that won’t shift, low pressure or gurgling drains. Original pipework in an older home is another reason to do the whole room. If mobility is the driver, see disabled bathrooms.
Last reviewed: 1 October 2026.