Bathroom Renovations
Ensuite Renovations in Calgary
An ensuite gets used twice a day by the same two people, in the room with the least air movement in the house. It wears out faster than any other bathroom you own.
We visit your home, then you get a written price and a start date.
McAra Design + Build gives you a fixed price in writing before any work begins. The simplest job is a refit inside the existing walls with a double vanity and a tiled shower. Taking space from a closet or bedroom, going curbless (no lip to step over), or adding a heated floor and a steam-ready shower all raise the price.
The waterproofing system, the fan and the duct run are listed as named items rather than assumptions. You get a fixed number in writing before anything starts.
What's involved
The room two people use at the same time, planned that way.
Most ensuite complaints are about layout and space, not finishes — a door that hits the vanity, only one sink, nowhere to set anything down.
- 01Layout and clearance planning
- 02Walls moved or space taken from a closet
- 03Plumbing changes
- 04Electrical, lighting and outlets at the vanity
- 05Fan sized to the room, vented outside
- 06Waterproofing system
- 07Curbless or curbed shower base
- 08Heated floor and thermostat
- 09Tile, vanity and fixtures
- 10Permits and inspections
What we check that others don't
What we check that others don't.
- §1
Ventilation, because this room gets the most moisture and the least air. An ensuite door stays closed, the window stays shut nine months of the year in Calgary, and two showers a day soak into the same drywall. We size the fan to the room, run it on a timer or a humidity sensor, and make sure the duct actually vents outside rather than into the attic.
- §2
The waterproofing system behind the tile, named specifically. The ensuite shower gets used more than any other in the house, and if the waterproof membrane fails here, it shows up on the bedroom ceiling below. We name the exact system in the scope of work, build the corners and the curb to match it, and take photos of the whole thing before the tile goes on.
- §3
Where the extra space is coming from, and what it costs the bedroom. Taking space from a walk-in closet or a bedroom corner is often the only way to fit in a double vanity and a proper shower. We measure what's left in the bedroom, including door swing and wall space for furniture, before drawing a layout that takes a chunk out of it.
- §4
Whether a curbless shower will fit in your floor. A curbless shower (no lip to step over) needs the drain and its slope to fit inside the space between floor joists, and in some floors that's just not possible without lowering the ceiling below. We check the joist direction and depth before it's designed in, not after you've already picked out a linear drain.
- §5
Whether a heated floor is worth it in your room. It usually is, on tile, in a room you stand in barefoot every morning, and it's cheap to add while the floor is already open. But it's not a heating system, and it won't fix an ensuite that's cold because of an unheated space below it. We tell you which situation you're actually in.
How long it takes
Three to six weeks on site.
A refit inside the existing walls takes about three weeks. Moving a wall, going curbless or relocating the drain pushes it toward six.
Tile and stone are on hand before demolition starts so the room isn't sitting open waiting for a delivery. Where the ensuite is the only bathroom on that floor, we plan around that. Both the start and finish dates are in the contract.
We put it in writing.
- A fixed price
- agreed before we start, and it doesn't move unless you change the scope.
- A completion date
- in the contract, not a range, not a best guess.
- A workmanship warranty
- if it fails because of how we installed it, we fix it. No argument, no invoice.
Most renovation guarantees are a paragraph of conditions. Ours is three commitments you can hold us to.
Questions people ask before they book.
- Usually, and it's the standard way McAra Design + Build fits a double vanity and a full shower into an older, cramped ensuite. We measure what the bedroom keeps — door swing, wall space for furniture, remaining closet space — before drawing any layout that takes square footage from it, so the bedroom still works once the wall moves.
- It depends on the floor structure below it. The drain and its slope both need to fit inside the space between joists, and some floors can't handle that without lowering the ceiling in the room underneath. McAra Design + Build checks the joist direction and depth first, before a curbless shower goes into any upstairs plan.
- In a tiled ensuite you stand in barefoot every morning, yes — McAra Design + Build finds it costs little to add while the floor is already open for the renovation. It fixes comfort, not a cold room caused by an unheated space below; if that's the real issue, we say so and price the actual fix instead.
Where this sits
This work is part of Bathroom Renovations.
People looking at this page usually look at Tub-to-Shower Conversions and Basement Bathrooms in the same conversation.
Get a free in-home quote.
We visit your home, then you get a written price and a start date.
What are you planning?
Or call Chris directly: +1 (587) 837-3113