The time it takes to renovate an apartment depends on a significant number of factors, from the banal area of the premises to the narrow specialization of a particular craftsman. Even if you have six months to renovate, this does not mean that it should last that long. In our article, we will tell you how long a renovation should actually last, what work to pay special attention to, and how to recognize slackers.
But before we begin, a note: they won’t tell you the repair timeframe based on the footage. This information is not enough for precise calculations. Ideally, call a surveyor, and look at the timeframes in the finished estimate. Fortunately, most companies will draw up an estimate for free.
Room characteristics
The most obvious thing is that the larger the apartment or room, the more time (and most likely money) it will take to renovate it. In addition to the area, the height of the ceilings will also affect the duration of the renovation. The layout also plays a significant role – it affects the total area of the walls. The higher this area, the longer the renovation will take.
Another significant factor is whether the housing is secondary or new construction. New buildings often require more work compared to repairs of apartments where people have already lived. In particular, new buildings may require more plumbing work, electrical work, and the construction of interior partitions. Also, keep in mind that rough repairs in a new building can be much more labor-intensive and expensive (unless, of course, the apartment was handed over in a “bare” state).
By the way, the characteristics also include the condition of the apartment as a whole. Sometimes, at the stage of drawing up an estimate, it already becomes clear that the premises are in good condition, sometimes there is even no need to re-level the walls and floors. The diametrically opposite situation occurs when you have to spend more time than usual on dismantling existing coverings.
Necessary works
All repairs are different. From cosmetic to European-quality repairs, the scope of work and its type can vary significantly. The time frame for the work and its cost depend on this.
The main reason for the significant gap in the time between cosmetic and major repairs is the duration of rough work. But repairs do not begin with them, and not even with dismantling…
Design project
Perhaps one of the most unpredictable parts of the renovation, if we talk about duration. The development of a design project can take from a week (simple visualization) to several months . The full design project includes:
- all the drawings necessary for repairs;
- 3D visualization of premises;
- furnishing the renovation with furniture and a plan for its arrangement;
- full repair support.
The duration of the design project development is also affected by the client’s wishes. Often, customers do not give clear instructions to designers, which is why new and new revisions constantly appear.
Deadlines for rough work
If the need for a design project is decided solely by the customer of the renovation, then the estimator and/or foreman should say whether to do rough work. In the best case, rough work will not be needed at all, but this is rare. As a rule, you will need:
- Floor leveling;
- Alignment of walls;
- Plastering the ceiling;
- Construction of partitions.
The last point is optional, but if you received a “box” from the developer, you will still have to build new walls. Rough work is carried out strictly in this sequence.
Dismantling existing surfaces and communications usually takes up to 2-3 days . We would like to point out the importance of this stage separately – trust dismantling only to professionals. We know enough stories when people were dismissive when choosing craftsmen for this type of work, after which they were forced to pay for repairs to their neighbors as well.
The main issue concerning the duration of repairs is the method of floor leveling. A more expensive self-leveling floor allows you to start finishing 2-7 days after the rough work is done (the delay depends on the type of flooring, for example, parquet or laminate). Cement-sand screed is approximately 2-5 times cheaper, but you will only be able to start plastering the walls after a month (as a rule, the hardening time of such a screed is 28 days ).
The situation is similar with walls, only in this case “cheaper” goes hand in hand with “faster”. Drywall is easier to install yourself, but when you plaster the walls yourself, the savings on funds will be even more significant. Another important advantage is that plaster dries for about a week , while drywall is ready for further finishing almost immediately after installing the sheets.
Ceilings can also be finished using dry and wet methods. Plaster is noticeably cheaper and dries (as on walls) in about a week . A suspended/stretched ceiling will cost 2-3 times more, but you won’t have to wait a week for it to dry.
There is no point in talking much about the time it takes to erect partitions — the same plasterboard is used. Creating walls from it will take very little time — in theory, it can be done in a day. As an alternative to plasterboard, we recommend using chipboard, which is also easy to install, but when compared, it is noticeably stronger.
Deadlines for finishing works
Let’s make it clear right away – we work from top to bottom, first we deal with the ceilings, then the walls and only at the end the floor. This order does not depend on the type of ceiling, type of floor surface or wall finishing solution. In this order, we will consider the timing of finishing work during the renovation of the apartment.
Ceiling
The cheapest, most accessible and most common options for finishing the ceiling are whitewashing and painting. Chalk, lime or regular water-based paint are used for it. In both cases, it is ideal to apply 3 layers of paint or whitewash. Each layer must be applied at least 4 hours after the previous one. Considering the time of work, in one day you can only apply two layers, respectively, the work itself will take 2 days, plus one day is allocated for complete drying of the materials. Thus, we allocate 3 days for painting/whitewashing the ceiling .
A slatted ceiling is also a fairly popular type of finishing. It is more expensive, but much more durable than wet finishing. You can also install it yourself. Installing a slatted ceiling is more difficult than painting, but much faster – all the work can be done in less than a day .
A stretch ceiling is the third and last of the common ceiling finishing solutions. You shouldn’t try to install it yourself, at least because the devices required for high-quality installation (a heat gun, for example) are quite expensive, you won’t use them regularly, and you won’t be able to skillfully handle them without training. A team of craftsmen will install a stretch ceiling in a few hours. Rounding up, we also take a day . The specific number of hours depends on the strength of the walls, the number of lamps, the height of the ceilings and, most obviously, the area of the room.
Walls
The situation with walls is much more interesting. There are many types of finishing that can be used during renovation. Let’s look at all the common ones in Russia.
Wallpaper
The most obvious solution for rooms is glue and several rolls. Depending on the type of wallpaper, they will dry for different amounts of time. Conventionally speaking, we set aside a day for the work itself. Paper wallpaper can theoretically dry in 12 hours, vinyl or non-woven will need up to three days. This time also depends on the quality of the glue and environmental conditions (temperature, humidity). As a result, we have a period of 1.5-4 days .
Fabric wallpapering slightly complicates the process of wallpapering the walls, but not so much as to significantly increase the time of work – the only difference is in the required accuracy.
Dye
Paint is probably the only way to decorate a room that is more popular than wallpaper. Painting the walls of a room is easier, but it takes much longer than wallpapering the same walls.
Important : consider the porosity of the material you are applying paint to. Painted metal or other smooth surfaces will take much longer to dry than painted wallpaper.
It is worth noting that different paints may dry longer or faster. In particular:
- Water-based paints dry slowly, which is logical – they are made on the basis of water. Such paints are the most environmentally friendly, but it will take at least a day to dry completely (polymerize) at low humidity and good ventilation. The first and second layers will take from 2 to 6 hours. In total – about a working day to paint a room with breaks for the paint to dry and another day for complete drying, we take two days .
- Enamel dries noticeably faster – you can paint a room in three layers in 5-6 hours, and the next day the paint will be completely dry. In total, allow 24 hours for all the work.
Important : until the paint dries, toxic fumes will come from it, take care to purchase personal protective equipment (masks and glasses, first of all).
- Oil paints dry the slowest. You will spend 4-6 hours on the first layer, up to 12 hours on the second, and the completely painted surface will dry in a day. In total, you will need two days if you apply the first layer in the morning and the second on the same day in the evening.
We estimate that painting the walls in a room will take 1-3 hours.
Decorative plaster
Quite a popular type of wall finishing. It is quite simple to perform. A significant advantage is the ability to apply to bare cement, since additional alignment of the walls is not necessary.
Decorative plaster is applied on beacons, accordingly the number of layers depends on the alignment of the walls before applying the finishing coat. Drying of one layer takes about a day .
After applying the last layer, leveling is done with a shaped float, and after the plaster dries, paint is applied. It is recommended to use a sprayer, as it will distribute the paint more evenly, especially taking into account cracks and pores.
Ceramic tiles
Let’s go a little ahead – tiles are laid both on walls and on the floor, so we will consider both options here at once. They are not fundamentally different, the laying itself does not take much time.
The problem is drying. You need to provide the best conditions for the tile adhesive to set. Ideally, it should dry completely in a day on the floor and two days on the walls .
How to speed up the drying of glue:
• Optimum temperature – ±20° C
• Low humidity
• Ventilation of the room
In the worst conditions, the adhesive setting process can take up to a week .
Drywall
The only point where we will not give exact numbers is plasterboard. With its help, you can create partitions and other interior elements, but the time frame for completing these works directly depends on the complexity of the structure. If you do not have the most standard technical task for the craftsmen, the creation and installation of structures can take up to a month.
MDF panels
The simplest option. It is very easy to install it yourself, using regular frames or no less regular glue.
MDF – from English Medium Density Fiberboard , medium density fiberboard.
Both methods are equally effective and quite quick to install. The first method will take no more than one working day , while the second, with less work time, will require time to fix liquid nails (we recommend using them).
Floor finishing
Laminate
Perhaps the most popular floor finishing option today. This is understandable – the price is low, and you can lay it with your own hands if the rough finishing is ready. You will spend no more than 10 hours installing such a floor in one room, you can easily do it in one day .
Linoleum
This material is one of the cheapest on the market. It is also quite easy to install – you basically just need to lay it out, carefully gluing it, the glue sets quite quickly. The catch that many forget is acclimatization. Linoleum should spend 12 to 48 hours in the room so that its elasticity does not become an obstacle when laying the floor. Potential consequences range from peeling to damage from minor physical impacts.
Carpet
A material relatively similar to linoleum, which has similar properties and installation processes. It is also ready for use immediately after installation, but 12-48 hours must pass between its transfer to the room and installation.
Parquet
Parquet sanding is something you definitely won’t do yourself. It’s a fairly complicated process, considering the equipment required, but it doesn’t actually take that long. A standard room can be parquet-finished in one or two days . You’ll be able to walk on the floor almost immediately, in 4-6 hours, but you won’t have to bring in furniture that soon – it will take 3 to 10 days , depending on the quality of the wood and the work.
Warranty period for repairs
If you order repairs from a company, it is worth considering that everyone makes mistakes. Whether it is negligence, unprofessionalism or a coincidence of circumstances – you need a guarantee. Most companies specify the terms of the guarantee in the contract for the provision of services. In this case, you should focus on the terms specified in the contract.
But the law also says something about this. First of all, let’s turn to the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, and specifically to Article 724 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation “Timeframes for detecting inadequate quality of the work result”. The second paragraph of it states:
“In the event that a warranty period is not established for the result of the work, claims related to defects in the result of the work may be presented by the customer, provided that they were discovered within a reasonable time, but within two years from the date of transfer of the result of the work, unless other periods are established by law, contract or business customs.”
In other words, if your contract does not include a warranty, consider this as a guarantee for the performance of the warranty for two years.
Apartment renovation according to the law
The second important document we will refer to is the Law on the Protection of Consumer Rights. Article 27 informs consumers that the contract may specify deadlines for the completion of work. Moreover, it is possible to specify not only the deadline for the delivery of the finished apartment, but also specific dates for each stage of the work: “By agreement of the parties, the contract may also provide for deadlines for the completion of individual stages of the work (interim deadlines).”
Potential consequences of delay are described in Article 28 of the same law. Possible options for resolving the situation:
- Full or partial reimbursement of funds spent on overdue work;
- Discount for future work;
- Reimbursement of expenses caused by delay;
- Free performance of other similar work.
Articles 29 and 30 of the relevant law also provide for similar conflict resolutions for poorly executed work, the deficiencies of which were identified upon acceptance.
Timeframe for renovation of a one-room apartment
As an example, we took one of the recently completed cosmetic repairs in a secondary one-room apartment. The customer did the repairs in the hallway himself, so we were left with a living room, a bathroom and a kitchen.
The ceilings were leveled using plaster. A self-leveling floor was installed. The finishing repairs consisted of wallpapering the living room, painting the ceilings and part of the walls in the kitchen. In the bathroom, tiles were laid on the walls and floor. In the bathroom and kitchen, a slatted ceiling was also installed in connection with the customer’s wishes. The customers also decided to supervise the installation of plumbing themselves.
In total, all the work lasted 44 days .