How we work
Every Revivio project runs through the same eleven stages in the same order. Not because process is interesting, but because the order is what determines whether the finish lasts — and because you should be able to see where your project is at any point.
From first conversation to handover
Smaller jobs move through some of these stages in a day. A full refurbishment spends weeks in them. The sequence does not change.
Initial consultation
We start with a conversation about what you want from the property, how you use it, and what the budget needs to do. No measuring tape yet -- this stage is about establishing the brief.
Site assessment
We visit the property and look at what is actually there: the construction, the existing services, the condition of the walls and floors, access, and anything that will affect how the work has to be sequenced.
Design, specification and planning
Layout, materials, fittings and finishes are decided and written down, and the programme is built around them. Everything is specified before work starts, which is what stops a project stalling halfway through waiting on a decision.
Property and site protection
Floors, staircases and anything staying in place are protected before the first tool comes out. Dust control and access routes are set up. On managed buildings this includes agreeing hours, lifts and deliveries.
Strip-out
The areas being renovated are taken back so the structure and the services are visible. This is the point where you find out what you are really working with.
First fix
Electrical, plumbing, heating and data routed while the walls and floors are open -- cables, pipework, waste runs, underfloor heating and service infrastructure. Everything that will later be buried is done now.
Building and preparation
Any new walls, openings, boarding, screeding, waterproofing and plastering. Substrates are made flat, sound and ready. Nothing decorative happens until this stage is genuinely finished.
Installation
Kitchens, bathrooms, flooring and joinery go in, in the order the programme sets out, onto surfaces that were prepared for them rather than adjusted to suit them.
Second fix and finishing
Sockets, switches, lighting, brassware, sanitaryware, doors, skirting, architraves and ironmongery, then decoration -- preparation, then paint.
Quality control and snagging
We walk the job properly and list what is not right, before you do. Snags get fixed as part of the project, not after a series of phone calls.
Handover
The property is cleaned and handed back with everything working, along with what you need to know about the systems that were installed.
Why we recommend doing things properly
Most of a renovation disappears before you ever see it
- Electrical cables disappear behind walls.
- Pipework disappears beneath floors.
- Waterproofing disappears behind tiles.
- Subfloors disappear beneath flooring.
- Preparation disappears beneath paint.
Because none of it can be seen once the job is finished, it is tempting to save money there. Revivio takes the opposite approach.
When a property is stripped out and accessible, it is often the most sensible time to address ageing services or poor previous workmanship. Replacing ageing pipework or cabling while the walls are open is considerably easier — and considerably cheaper — than discovering a problem after a new kitchen, bathroom or floor has been installed on top of it.
Build the parts you cannot see properly, and the parts you can see have a much better chance of lasting.
That does not mean we replace everything as a matter of course. It means that when we can see something, we tell you: what we recommend, why we recommend it, and what the options are — so the decision is an informed one and it is yours.
What happens if we find something unexpected?
Sometimes we do. Hidden issues can appear during strip-out, particularly in older London properties — the point of the strip-out stage is that it is the first moment anyone can actually see what is behind the finishes.
When that happens, we stop and explain it: what we have found, what it means, and what the options are. Additional work is agreed with you before it goes ahead.
What we will not do is cover the problem up. Boarding over something and carrying on to keep a programme or a price intact is exactly how the next owner of the property ends up paying for it twice.
If you are renovating a period property, renovating a Victorian house in London covers the things that most often turn up.
Can I live in my property during the renovation?
It depends on the scope, and the honest answer differs a lot between a single room and a whole property.
Smaller projects
A single bathroom or kitchen renovation is usually manageable if there is another bathroom or a temporary way to cook. The work is contained to one area, protection and dust control keep the rest of the property usable, and services are only off for parts of the job. It is disruptive, but it is liveable.
Full refurbishments
A full property refurbishment is different. During strip-out and first fix there may be no working kitchen, no usable bathroom, and periods with the power or water off, with dust throughout. Most clients move out for that phase, and it usually makes the programme shorter as well — the trades can work continuously instead of around someone living there.
The Stratford flat refurbishment was run entirely while the client was away, and the Marylebone refurbishment was a vacant property. We will tell you which category your project falls into at the assessment stage, before you commit to anything.
Want to know what your project would cost?
The estimator gives an indicative ballpark in under two minutes. A confirmed quotation follows a site visit.