Most families can stay at home during a kitchen or bathroom renovation. It works when the site is planned around them.

Seal the work zone

A framed dust wall with a zip door goes up on day one, with a fan pulling air out of the work zone.

• Floors protected to the front door
• Return air vents sealed

Keep a kitchen

We set up a temporary kitchen with a sink, a fridge and an induction plate before the old one comes out.

A clean site every evening

Tools away, floors swept and the path to the bedrooms clear by five.

The best compliment we get is that the kids forgot we were there.

Plan the loud days

Demolition and floor sanding get named days, so you can be somewhere else.