Bathroom renovation in a 103 series building

What is known about 103 series buildings

103 series buildings were built from the early 1970s up to the 1990s, mostly with five storeys, and in the city centre also with seven and eight. The external walls are of silicate brick or hollow clay brick, and the partition walls are aerated concrete or expanded clay concrete panels. In Riga they are in Ķengarags, Teika, Dārzciems, Bolderāja, Purvciems and Daugavgrīva.

The bathroom and toilet are separate rooms. Their size depends on the particular apartment, so in the request write the length and width of both rooms.

Keep two rooms or combine them

If you keep both rooms, the renovation is two smaller jobs: in the bathroom waterproofing, tiles and a bath or shower, in the toilet tiles and a toilet. A separate toilet is convenient for a family, because it can be used while someone is washing.

If you combine them, you get one larger room in which it is easier to fit a shower, a washing machine or a larger sink. According to Riga municipality's explanation, for demolishing a non-load-bearing wall to combine rooms, a certified architect prepares a plan and a construction notice is filed in BIS as a simplified renovation. Attached to the notice are a plan of the room group showing the changes and a room schedule.

In Riga notices are checked by the Architecture Department of the City Development Department, and non-compliant notices are annulled. More on the page combining a bathroom and toilet.

Aerated concrete partitions in a wet room

Before waterproofing, aerated concrete or expanded clay concrete surfaces are prepared. The manufacturer of Ceresit CL 51 requires a dry, sound, stable and clean base, and crumbling surfaces are primed first. The waterproofing is applied in at least two coats, with tape in the corners and collars around pipes.

If a wall-hung toilet or sink is to be fixed to a partition, the fixings are chosen according to the wall material. In the request write what appliances you plan to put on the walls.

Old utilities

The housing website nopo.lv mentions windows and utilities as problems of the 103 series. A bathroom renovation is a suitable moment to replace the pipes from the riser to the appliances, because after tiling they are no longer visible. The pipes up to the riser are part of the apartment, but the riser itself is common property, and replacing it needs the association's consent, with the work organised by the building manager.

If the apartment still has the old wiring, think about that too. The electrical installation is inspected every 10 years and the results are recorded in an inspection report. For more on old wiring, see old electrical wiring in an apartment.

Order of work for two rooms

1. The decision on the wall If you combine them, first the plan and the notice, only then demolition.
2. Demolition in both rooms Tiles, appliances and, if combining, the partition are removed.
3. Pipes and electrics The pipes up to the riser and the electrical points are replaced.
4. Preparation and waterproofing Priming, levelling and applying waterproofing.
5. Tiling and appliances Both rooms, or the one combined room, are tiled, then the plumbing is installed.

How much a bathroom renovation in the 103 series costs

Prices are for labour. Materials are calculated separately in the estimate. The whole bathroom renovation costs from €3,000. For the toilet, separate jobs are added, for example demolition of old tiles from €9/m², tiling from €24/m² and installing a toilet during a renovation from €50 per toilet. Demolition of a partition costs from €6/m².

The price is affected by the size of the rooms, the condition of the walls, whether the pipes, risers and wiring are replaced, and the chosen finish. The architect's plan and the construction notice are not in the renovation price; the price from €3,000 applies to the bathroom. All prices are on the prices page.

What the price includes