There is one visit during your entire renovation that is more important than any other. Not the handover inspection, not the carpentry delivery—it's the day before your walls and floors close up, when the electrical conduit and plumbing pipes are laid and still visible.
Miss this inspection, and any mistake gets buried—literally.
Why This Moment is Irreversible
Once screed is poured over conduit and pipes, once walls are plastered, and once tiles cover the floor, the infrastructure inside is inaccessible.
- Fix-Later Costs: Adding a power point later requires channeling into finished tiles or walls. Moving a water point means hacking open bathroom tiles you just paid thousands to install.
- Efficiency: These fix-later jobs cost 5–10x more than doing it right the first time and create significant disruption.
- Preventative Action: The rough-in inspection eliminates these issues by catching them when they're still cheap to fix.
The Electrical Rough-in Checklist
Walk every room with your electrical plan or notes and confirm:
- Living/Dining Area: TV power point and signal conduit are at the right position and height. Additional points are near sofas and dining tables. Ceiling light and pendant positions match the lighting plan.
- Kitchen: Dedicated 20A circuit for the induction hob. Correct positions for built-in oven, refrigerator, microwave, and dishwasher points. Under-cabinet lighting and exhaust hood connections.
- Bedrooms: Bedside power points on both sides at the right height (typically 30–50cm above finished floor). Aircon, wardrobe lighting, and study area points.
- Bathrooms: Water heater connection (storage or instant). Bidet or smart toilet power point (must be ground-fault protected). Mirror cabinet power connection.
The Plumbing Rough-in Checklist
- Bathrooms: Shower head position (centre of area, correct height). Basin tap rough-in position matches your vanity selection. Toilet rough-in distance from finished wall matches your toilet bowl spec.
- Kitchen: Sink outlet position and height. Water filter or instant hot water tap points. Washing machine inlet and waste if located in the kitchen.
Measurement Tip: For every water point, confirm the position in relation to walls and tile lines. A tap that's 15cm off-centre creates an asymmetric look, and a wrong toilet rough-in distance means the bowl won't fit.
How to Document This Visit
- Tools: Bring a tape measure and your floor plan printout.
- Measure: For any position that matters, measure from the nearest wall and note it down.
- Photograph: Take pictures of each rough-in with something in frame for scale.
- Follow-up: Send a brief summary to your contractor: "Checked all rough-in positions today. Everything looks correct except [X]—please confirm this can be adjusted before screed."
What if Something is Wrong
A rough-in at the wrong position needs to be corrected before the next phase. At this stage, the cost is minor—some additional materials and an hour of labour.
Don't let a contractor talk you out of a correction by saying "it won't matter" or "we can adjust when we tile." While cabinet positions can be adjusted later, most electrical and plumbing positions cannot be moved without significant rework. Correct it now.
The Bottom Line
Schedule this inspection specifically with your ID or contractor before the project starts. Request a 24-hour notice before the screed is poured and walls close up. Any professional contractor will accommodate this standard request.
One 30-minute visit at this stage prevents multiple expensive problems later.
