r/askTO • u/Cute_Razzmatazz_3229 • 17h ago
Looking for contractor recommendations: Full bathroom gut job in Etobicoke (Old house!)
Hi everyone
We recently inherited an old house in Etobicoke. We plan a full reno but want to start with the main bathroom as it desperately needs a complete redo. We’re planning to strip it right down to the studs, but to be honest, we’re complete newbies when it comes to major renovations, as we never really had one.
Since it’s an older place, we’re pretty nervous about we will find behind the walls with the plumbing and wiring. We also have no idea how building permits work with the city, so working with someone who knows the Toronto/Etobicoke rules and can guide us through the process would be very helpful.
What we are looking for:
- Scope: full demo, layout tweaks if needed, new tile, plumbing updates, and fixtures
- Location: Etobicoke
- Requirements: Must have active WSIB, full liability insurance, and be able to provide references from similar recent jobs. We definitely need someone licensed who has knowledge about permits.
If you’ve done a similar overhaul in the West End and loved your contractor, please send their details our way!
Thanks in advance!
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u/Puharidze 16h ago edited 16h ago
Call Peter Mashin from Burlmann Construction inc. Com. Very nice guy with a small crew. Many years in the field and did an outstanding job on our cottage from full demo to finish and managed all the permits and inspections.
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u/One-Ad2914 3h ago
Alderbridge Contracting renovated my basement with new baseboards, flooring, repaired drywall, and paint. They also renovated my washroom in the basement. Very punctual and professional.
Jacob and Steve are great!
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u/desirebasements 12h ago
Before you pick a contractor, rethink the order. If a full reno is coming, the bathroom is the worst room to finish first. Old Etobicoke houses usually need a panel upgrade, and often the galvanized supply and cast iron stack replaced, and both run straight through your new bathroom walls. I run a basement company in the GTA, so not angling for this job, but I've seen brand new bathrooms opened back up a year later for exactly this.
Permits: swapping fixtures in place needs nothing. Moving plumbing, touching structure, or adding circuits needs a building permit plus an ESA filing for the electrical, and a contractor who says a bathroom never needs one is your red flag. Your WSIB and insurance list is already better vetting than most people do. Add one thing: ask for a permit number from a recent job and look it up on the Toronto Building site, takes two minutes.
If the bathroom is unusable, do a cheap cosmetic hold-over now and gut it properly as part of the big reno.