PROJECT STORY · COMPLETE CONDO RENOVATION · NEWMARKET · 2017
How We Turned an Eighties Newmarket Condo Into a Move-In-Ready Home
Lynne Moore and Bill Fortnum wanted their downsized home completely renewed before moving day, so retirement could begin with enjoying the condo instead of living through its renovation.
- Location
- Newmarket, Ontario
- Year
- 2017
- Project
- Complete condo interior renovation before move-in
- Main challenge
- Modernizing a dated 1980s condo while coordinating ceilings, flooring, trim, doors, painting and building logistics as one project.
- Work included
- Painted popcorn ceiling removal, ceiling finishing, engineered flooring, luxury vinyl, new doors, trim, painting and baseboard-heater upgrades.
- PLANNING AN INTERIOR RENOVATION?
Existing condition
Dated finishes throughout the condo
Lynne Moore and Bill Fortnum were downsizing to a Newmarket condo and wanted the renovation finished before they moved in. Carpet, heavily painted popcorn ceilings, beige walls and older doors and trim remained from the condo’s earlier interior.
We renewed those finishes while the unit was empty, including engineered flooring, laundry-room vinyl and flatter baseboard heaters.
Carpet, popcorn texture and dated finishes before work
One coordinated scope
Working before move-in
The empty condo gave us room to remove the ceilings and old flooring before the clients brought in their furniture. New doors, trim and paint followed the ceiling and flooring work. Deliveries and waste removal had to fit the building’s access arrangements.
Ceiling work
Removing the painted popcorn ceiling
Repeated coats of paint made the popcorn difficult to soften and scrape. We used mechanical removal with tool-connected extraction and containment, then repaired, smoothed and painted the exposed ceiling.
Engineered flooring
Choosing engineered flooring for concrete
Fuzion engineered flooring was installed over the concrete substrate. The floor assembly had to meet the condo’s acoustic requirements.
We laid out the boards through the doorways and adjoining rooms before installation.
Engineered flooring across the condo layout
Laundry flooring
Coordinating the laundry floor
The laundry received Fuzion luxury vinyl plank. Its colour works with the engineered floor in the living areas, while giving the laundry a surface suited to moisture.
The laundry transition before and after
Doors, trim and paint
Replacing doors, trim and paint
We installed new interior doors and white trim, then painted the rooms blue and green in place of the old beige. The ceilings were painted after removal and repairs.
Wall colour as part of the complete finish
Doors, trim and completed rooms
Small details
Updating the baseboard heaters
Flatter baseboard heaters replaced the older units along the walls. They fit above the new flooring and beside the white baseboards.
Flooring details and the updated heater profile
Building coordination
Condo access and floor requirements
A condo renovation needs a delivery and debris-removal plan that fits the building’s elevator bookings. Common-area protection and contractor documents should be confirmed with management before work begins.
Flooring must also meet the building’s acoustic requirements. That affects the product and assembly selected for a concrete floor.
The Toronto Star connection
The project also appeared in The Toronto Star
Ian Harvey’s 2017 Toronto Star article included Lynne Moore and Bill Fortnum’s plans to renovate this condo before moving in. The related archive story below covers the feature and the painted-popcorn removal method used at the time.
Finished result
Ready before move-in
The finished rooms combine smooth ceilings, new floors, white doors and trim, fresh wall colours and lower-profile heaters. The laundry’s vinyl floor meets the engineered wood at the doorway.
The renovation was complete before Lynne and Bill moved in.
Completed rooms after the coordinated renovation
More ceiling transformations from the condo
Homeowner takeaways
Planning a condo renovation before move-in
Completing this work before move-in kept the ceiling removal and floor replacement clear of furniture and daily use.
- Confirm building access and acoustic requirements before ordering flooring.
- Complete ceiling repairs before final painting.
- Plan flooring heights at doors and room transitions.
CONTINUE EXPLORING
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