What plumbing looks like in a remodel
Every remodel that touches water, waste, or gas involves plumbing work — often more than homeowners expect. Whether you're refreshing a bathroom, gutting a kitchen, or adding a laundry room, plumbing typically breaks into two phases:
Rough-in (the behind-the-wall work)
Happens during framing before drywall. Rough-in includes:
- Running new supply lines (hot and cold) to each fixture location
- Installing drain lines with proper slope
- Adding or extending vent stacks as needed
- Setting shower/tub valves in the wall
- Installing tub or shower pan drains
- Installing washing machine boxes with shut-offs
- Running gas lines for appliances (range, dryer, water heater)
- Adding water softener loops or reverse osmosis pre-plumbing
- Pressure testing all new lines
- City inspection of rough-in before drywall goes up
Trim-out (the finish work)
Happens after tile, cabinetry, and paint are complete. Trim-out includes:
- Setting toilets
- Installing sinks, faucets, and shut-off valves
- Installing showerheads, tub spouts, and diverters
- Connecting dishwashers, garbage disposals, and ice makers
- Connecting washing machines and dryers
- Water heater installation if part of scope
- Water softener install if pre-plumbed
- Final testing and city inspection
Types of remodel work we handle
Bathroom remodels
From simple refreshes (new toilet, vanity, faucet) to full guts (moving fixtures, new shower, freestanding tub). Common bathroom remodel plumbing tasks:
- Moving toilet location (limited by drain venting)
- Converting tub-shower combos to standalone showers
- Installing curbless showers with linear drains
- Adding rainfall shower heads and body sprays
- Installing freestanding tubs with floor-mounted faucets
- Adding second sinks in vanities
- Installing toilet flanges properly (bad flange installs are a leading remodel failure)
- Bidet installations
Kitchen remodels
Kitchen plumbing during remodels almost always involves relocating the sink and dishwasher, plus various new connections:
- Sink relocation to islands (requires floor drain work)
- Prep sink or bar sink installation
- Pot filler over the range
- Water line to refrigerator ice maker and water dispenser
- Gas line for gas range if converting from electric
- Reverse osmosis or filtered water dispenser at the sink
- Instant hot water dispensers
- Higher-flow supply lines for pot fillers
Laundry room additions or upgrades
Adding a laundry room where there wasn't one, or upgrading an existing setup:
- Washing machine boxes with shut-offs
- Utility sinks
- Gas line for gas dryer
- Floor drains for overflow protection
- Sediment traps and lint traps for laundry drainage
Basement finishes
Adding a bathroom or wet bar in a finished basement:
- Sewage ejector pumps (basement is often below main sewer line)
- Rough-in for bathroom or wet bar
- Water lines and drains
- Sump pump for groundwater management
Whole-home remodels
Major remodels are the ideal time to upgrade whole-home plumbing infrastructure — repiping, gas line upsizes, water heater replacement, and adding water treatment. Doing this work during a remodel is dramatically less expensive than as separate projects because walls are already open and access is easy.
How we coordinate on your project
If you have a general contractor
We work as your GC's plumbing subcontractor. Standard coordination:
- Review of plans and scope with GC before demolition begins
- Rough-in scheduled after framing, before drywall
- Inspection coordination with the city
- Trim-out scheduled after tile, cabinetry, and paint
- Final inspection and sign-off
If you don't have a general contractor (plumbing-focused remodels)
For smaller projects — a bathroom refresh, a kitchen sink relocation, adding a laundry — a full GC isn't always needed. We can:
- Manage the plumbing portion directly
- Recommend and coordinate with tile setters, drywall contractors, or electricians
- Pull permits and coordinate inspections
- Sequence the work so trades don't interfere with each other
For larger remodels — full bathroom guts, kitchen renovations, additions — we recommend hiring a GC and we work as their sub. Managing multiple trades is a full-time job.
Common remodel plumbing decisions
Should I upgrade my supply pipes while walls are open?
If you have galvanized, polybutylene, or aging copper — absolutely yes. The cost of running new PEX supply lines during a remodel is a fraction of what it would cost as a separate repipe project. Walls are open, floors are up, access is easy. This is the moment.
Should I add a water softener loop?
If you don't have a water softener but might install one someday, adding the plumbing loop during a remodel is inexpensive. When you do install the softener later, it's a simple connection rather than a wall-opening project.
Where should I put the water heater?
Remodels often reveal that the water heater is in a bad location — too far from the fixtures it serves (long wait for hot water), in a hard-to-service closet, or venting poorly. Relocating during a remodel is much cheaper than later.
Should I install a tankless water heater?
If you're going to run new gas line during the remodel anyway (for a new range, for example), it's the perfect time to also upsize for a future tankless water heater. Even if you don't install the tankless immediately, having the gas capacity in place makes the future upgrade dramatically easier.
Where should I put shut-off valves?
Modern remodels benefit from accessible shut-off valves at each fixture (not just the main). We install quarter-turn ball valves that will last decades and can be operated by anyone in an emergency.
Common remodel mistakes we help clients avoid
Under-planning fixture placement
Once drains are set, moving fixtures is expensive. During planning, we help you think through: adequate space around toilets, showerhead height for tall users, drain placement for shower design, sink height for comfortable use, and clear space for future accessibility needs (aging-in-place).
Skipping the venting
Every drain needs proper venting. DIY remodels and cheap contractors often skimp on venting, resulting in slow drains, sewer gas smells, and gurgling toilets that never work quite right. We size and route vents to code.
Wrong drain slope
Drain lines need proper slope — typically 1/4" per foot for horizontal runs. Too little slope: solids don't flow. Too much slope: water outruns solids and they get left behind. Both cause chronic clogs.
Undersized shower drains
Modern high-flow shower systems (rain heads, body sprays) can overwhelm standard 2" shower drains. If you're planning a spa-style shower, the drain needs to be sized for the flow.
Cheap fixture choices
Homeowners often spend big on tile and cabinetry, then pick the cheapest faucets and fixtures at the last minute. That bottom-of-the-shelf kitchen faucet will look and work terribly in 3 years next to your custom cabinets. Match fixture quality to overall project quality.
Common questions
For any work beyond simple fixture replacement, yes. Moving fixtures, changing pipe sizes, adding drains, installing showers or tubs, or running new supply lines all require a licensed plumber and permits in every Oklahoma municipality. Handyman-installed plumbing during remodels is a leading cause of hidden leaks that don't show up until the finish work is done.
Yes — we work with general contractors regularly. On most remodels, we coordinate our rough-in around the GC's framing schedule and our trim-out after tile and cabinetry. We can also work as the lead contractor for plumbing-focused remodels (small bath refreshes, kitchen sink relocations, laundry room additions) where a full GC isn't needed.
Rough-in is the behind-the-wall work — drain lines, vent stacks, supply lines, and shower valve installation. Happens during framing before drywall goes up. Trim-out is the finish work — installing sinks, faucets, toilets, showerheads, and hooking up appliances. Happens after tile, cabinetry, and paint. Two separate visits from us, coordinated with your other trades.
Yes, and this is often the biggest value of a remodel — putting fixtures where you actually want them rather than where they've always been. Moving a sink or toilet a few feet is straightforward. Moving to an entirely new wall requires new supply and drain runs, possibly a new vent stack, and often creative pipe routing. We assess feasibility during the remodel planning phase.
Rough-in typically takes 1-3 days depending on complexity. Trim-out takes 1-2 days. Between rough-in and trim-out, other trades work — drywall, tile, cabinetry, paint. Total plumbing time on our end is usually 2-5 days spread across the project. Full timeline is set by the GC based on scope.
Almost always yes. If walls are open, it's the ideal time to upgrade old galvanized or polybutylene supply lines, replace worn shut-off valves, add a water softener loop, run gas line for a future range or fireplace, or add hose bibs where they should have been originally. Doing this work during a remodel costs a fraction of what it would cost as separate projects.
Call the family
Remodels are stressful. Plumbing done wrong during a remodel is stressful for years — leaks discovered after tile is set, drains that don't drain right, fixtures in the wrong spot. We do it right the first time. Call for a free consultation.