Season 1 2011

26 Renovators contestants – the Jacks and Jills of all trades – arrived at the warehouse to be greeted by host Brendan Moar and judges Robyn Holt, Peter Ho and Barry Du Bois. Introduced to six houses from hell, the hopefuls learnt that the first selection would be awarded to the best performer of the first Challenge – which then arrived on the back of a truck. The contestants were given 48 hours to renovate the dilapidated house in question, inside and out. Phil adopted the role of project manager, dividing the troops into their areas of expertise and setting them to work. The house was completed on time, and spectacularly, with the judges giving special mentions to Keenan, Michael, Peter and Natalia. Joanne was judged to have contributed the most overall, giving her first pick of the houses, as she choose the Sixties Suburban.

A new day in the warehouse began with a Basic Skills Challenge – the contestants taking it in turns to hammer in nails. Those bending their nails were eliminated from the first stage of the Challenge, and subsequently whoever missed the nail and hit the wood was also sent to the sidelines. The winners went through to the second round, which involved picking a chair from the storeroom and restoring it. Bob, Christie and Luke made the final round, the White Room Challenge, in which they had to renovate a room and base it around their chair. Luke’s striking monochromatic room secured him the overall win, and he selected the keys to the Inner-City Terrace.

The contestants competed in an Off-Site Challenge, all except for Joanne and Luke, who already held house keys. Split into two Teams – Black and Gold – each worked on renovating houses that carried the same purchase price. Whichever Team was able to add the most value to their house in a day would win their captain (Kathy for the Blacks, Jason H for the Golds) pick of the keys to the remaining houses. The captain of the losing Team would sit out the following Challenge, and have to pick a fellow member to join them. Both Teams produced exceptional results, but the Golds managed to add $30,000 more value to their property. Jason H chose the keys to the Weatherboard, while Kathy selected Bob to join her on the sidelines for the next Challenge.

With another house key up for grabs, the action kicked off with a White Room ‘Car Wars’ Challenge. Teams of three were required to renovate a room based around a car obtained from the wrecker’s yard, incorporating as much of the car into their design as possible. The ideas all showed immense creativity, but it was the Formula One-inspired executive suite produced by Peter, Chris, Lisa, Laura, Tina, Christie and Samantha that won the judges' vote, sending them through to the Basic Skills Challenge. The first round was wallpapering, with Peter, Chris and Lisa the standout performers. The final round saw the trio painting walls, which had to be completed to the judges’ satisfaction. It was a closely fought battle, but Peter narrowly took the win, and selected the keys to the Half-Done House.

With keys for the last two remaining houses up for grabs, the ‘Street Appeal’ Challenge stakes were high. Contestants arrived at the warehouse to find a row full of houses with lifeless facades and dirt yards. Breaking off into pairs and picking houses, the Teams had four hours to transform their property frontage into something appealing to a buyer. With a striking black and white colour scheme, Michael and Fiona were voted the winners by the Challenge’s guest judges – 250 members of the general public. To decide who would get first pick of the remaining keys they competed in a Flat Pack Challenge, won by Michael. He decided to go with the Fibro Cottage, leaving Fiona to take The Shop.

The contestants were informed that a double elimination would be taking place. First they competed in a Basic Skills Challenge, which required estimating the correct length and sawing a replacement table leg, with Barry judging the results. The unsuccessful contestants went through to round 2, a White Room Challenge where the task was to express themselves. As the judging began Phil made a shocking announcement that he would be withdrawing from the competition for personal reasons, leaving only one elimination spot to be decided. The judges gave Christie’s room the nod over Laura's, sending her home. The Renovators’ key holders then took it in turns choosing the renovation teams for their houses.

The teams finally left the warehouse for their houses, but not before learning that when they returned they would need to present their renovation plans, and the team judged to have the most profitable blueprint would be awarded a $10k Bunnings Gift Card. Walking round their respective properties the teams realised the gargantuan task that lay ahead of them, but attacked their renovations with enthusiasm. Once the presentations were done back at the warehouse, the judges announced Jason H’s Green Team as the winner, giving them a massive early advantage in the competition.

At the Warehouse the contestants are introduced to respected Australian Interior Designer, Greg Natale who will be the guest judge for a special coffee table challenge. In their teams the contestants must design a table, using a specific material, to compliment a White Room decorated by Greg. The coffee table that is deemed most original and well suited to Greg’s room wins a working bee on their house, where all the contestants pitch in and renovate for the day. The losing team faces an elimination challenge. The teams design and construct their coffee tables in a tense five hours. Back at the Warehouse they reveal their designs and Greg decides the winner – The Shop team!

The Sixties Suburban Team find themself in a Real Estate Stress Test elimination after losing the Coffee Table Challenge. ‘Team Chris and Tina’ is up against ‘Team Nathan and Joanne’ to guess the market value of a house in Caboolture, QLD. The unfortunate losers, Nathan and Joanne go head to head in round two creating renovation plans on scale models of the same house. With one hour to complete the plans the house deemed most profitable wins. Nathan’s plans get him through and Joanne must hand back the keys to The Sixties Suburban. Back at The Shop the rest of the contestants are happy to see Chris, Tina and Nathan.

There are no challenges! The contestants have some time off so they can relax and soak up the expertise of the judges with a How To masterclass. They see a funky modern bath room, designed by Peter, become a reality with the help of Barry; Robyn takes them through a decorating session, working with the theme of romance; and Peter visits an old style Bungalow home with architecturally designed renovations, sympathetically and cleverly mixing old and new styles.

With Jo eliminated, the remaining members of the Sixties Suburban team competed in a Brick It Wall Challenge to see who would get the keys and take over as head renovator, with an overjoyed Tina taking a surprise win. Contestants then competed in a White Room Challenge, voting on a theme of French chic. They would have five hours to complete their rooms, which would then be judged by French design expert Helen Hargreaves. With a $10k prize up for grabs, the competition was fierce, but despite a valiant performance from the Fibro Cottage team they couldn’t stop Peter's Half-Done House crew taking the win and the valuable prize.

Judgement Day began with Ali announcing her decision to exit the competition, leaving her Fibro Cottage team in disarray. The judges asked her to sleep on it, then return the following day with a decision, but overnight Michael was unable to convince her to stay. The judges visited each of the houses to check on their progress, delighted by some aspects and concerned by others. Returning to the warehouse, the judges revealed that Peter’s team had blown them away with their progress on the Half-Done House, while the Fibro Cottage was bringing up the rear, meaning its team would face elimination.

The Navy Team are up for elimination in a Panic Room Challenge. One member of the team will go home. Michael, Kelly and Jarrad enter three separate rooms left in a mess. It looks like a party gone wild! There is food everywhere, holes in the walls and bright paint colour on the walls. With three hours to clean up and renovate their dining room the boys prove that they have the decorating skills needed. Kelly, described by Brendan as the “wonderful wildcard”, is the unfortunate renovator to go home.

After saying farewell to Kelly, it was back to business as usual in The Renovators warehouse. Brendan introduced the next challenge – ‘Garden Mania’ – in which teams would select a garden theme at random and have five hours to transform a 6x6 metre patch of bare earth into a landscaped wonder. Guest judging the challenge was gardening legend Don Burke and award-winning landscape designer Daniel Baffsky. After a thorough assessment of the results the judges decided that the Orange Team’s Australian Costal Garden and the Grey Team’s Australian Dessert Garden were the standouts, giving the overall win and the Working Bee prize to the Greys. The Mediterranean Garden was considered the most lacking, leaving the Khaki Team facing an Elimination Challenge.

The Khaki Team of Tina, Nathan and Chris arrived at the warehouse ready to face the Real Estate Stress Test that would result in one of them being eliminated. The first round involved the contestants having to research and valuate a house in the Melbourne suburb of Collingwood, with the closest to the mark going safely through to fight another day. Meanwhile back at The Shop the remaining contestants took part in the working bee won by the Grey Team’s Garden Mania effort. Chris and Tina then contested the final round of the Elimination Challenge, planning renovations of the Collingwood house on scale models. The judges deemed Tina’s the most profitable, sending Chris home.

The contestants enjoyed a breather at the end of another hard week with a How To Masterclass. Welcoming expert cabinet maker and furniture designer Laura McCusker to the warehouse, Baz conducted a tutorial in how to make use of some of the materials the contestants had thrown away during their renovations. Tina and Nathan were treated to a private Masterclass with Chris Gray, who took them around a multi-million dollar renovation. Robyn then proved that the ‘Aussie Beach’ theme shunned by the majority of the teams in an earlier White Room Challenge has plenty of potential for inspiring results.

The contestants began a new day in the warehouse with a Build It challenge, having to hang pictures with absolute precision in order to win an advantage going into the White Room challenge. Tina and Nathan were the first to complete the task to Baz’s satisfaction, giving them first choice of the ‘hero colours’ each team would need to base its White Room on. Selecting yellow, they made their early advantage count with a beautiful end result that wowed the judges, securing them the win over second-placed Weatherboard’s green room. Tina and Nathan’s prize: $10,000 towards their renovation.

Judgement Day began with the contestants learning that a big prize was on the line for the teams impressing the judges most with their progress - the Top 3 going on to compete in a challenge for a prize of up to $40,000. The judges visited the six houses to check on the status of the renovations, before returning to the warehouse to deliver their verdict. The Fibro Cottage, Sixties Suburban and Weatherboard were selected as the three best performers, with one representative from each team going forward to compete in the Panic Room Reward Challenge for a massive financial advantage.

The Panic Room Reward Challenge began by each team nominating a member to compete: Keenan, Michael and Nathan stepping forward. The prize was revealed to be a pool package, which would boost the worth of the lucky house considerably. The challengers stepped into their rooms, which were offices that looked as if they’d been tipped upside down. In three hours they each had to clear the mess and transform the room into an impressive working space. Michael took the win, giving the Fibro Cottage the pool its team had craved from the beginning. Brendan also revealed that the Sky Blue Team had finally been granted DA approval, freeing them to begin work on the actual Inner City Terrace house itself.

Working within their teams, it's a fun and environmentally friendly challenge for the contestants as they head off to Reverse Garbage in Sydney's Marrickville to create masterpieces from the shops discarded treasures. Each piece, made of recycled materials, is auctioned for charity. The highest bid goes to The Weatherboard team's film negative chandelier winning them a highly valued working bee day. And The Sixties Suburban find themselves in another Stress Test elimination when their recycled wood coffee table is bought for the lowest price.

It's working bee day at The Weatherboard and the contestants arrive at the house in rain to start renovating. The Green Team want to try and progress with their plans as best they can in the conditions. Back at the Warehouse Tina and Nathan from the Sixties Suburban find themselves in a Ground Hog day situation, facing for the third time, a Stress Test elimination. They value a property in NSW and Tina finds herself more than $2K from the market value, meaning Nathan wins the round and gets a 10 minute advantage in the sudden death challenge. Tina loses when her scale model renovations for the property fail to provide a large enough bathroom for the residence.

Before the week’s How To began Fiona dropped a bombshell by withdrawing from the competition due to medical reasons, handing the keys to The Shop over to new team leader August. Peter Ho then took the remaining Grey Team members to an offsite house inspection, while in the warehouse Baz and Brendan led a Masterclass on how to build a stud wall. Robyn then welcomed Taubmans paint representative Shaynna, who helped her explain colour theory to the group.

Peter Ho made a dramatic entrance into the warehouse on a train carrying a cargo of Lego blocks. One member from each team had to compete to see who could build the highest Lego tower in three hours – the winner would get the power to choose which contestant moved across to join Nathan on the Khaki Team. Natalia, Luke, Jarrad, Lisa, Jason H and Nathan fought for the prize, with Nathan taking the win and choosing Suzanne to join him. Robyn then revealed the White Room Challenge and the prize on offer: $10,000 from Taubmans to be spent on painters and painting. Nathan chose the theme – Retro – and the teams got to work recreating the past. The Orange Team took another win, thanks to some impressive styling from Lisa, giving them a serious leg up on the competition.

Judgement Day arrived with the teams all encountering their own stumbling blocks. Suzanne began work at the Sixties Suburban and found it a struggle integrating herself into the new look Khaki Team. The Inner-City Terrace suffered another permit-related setback, while cracks began to show at The Half-Done House, with Kim taking the blame for the deck needing to be rebuilt. Back at the warehouse the judges revealed The Weatherboard to be the week’s standout renovation, winning them two tradies from the Yellow Pages. The Orange Team were not so fortunate, sent through to face an Elimination Challenge.

The Orange Team faced a Panic Room Challenge more punishing than any before it. Entering their rooms they were presented with kitchens from hell, with dirt and debris everywhere. Each of the contestants selected someone to assist them with the ardous tasks at hand. Peter and Lisa demonstrated impressive skills throughout the challenge, while despite her best efforts Kim struggled constructing flat-pack furniture, meaning she wasn't able to fully complete her kitchen within the four-hour time limit. The judges declared Peter’s black and white kitchen with red features to be the most impressive, with Kim falling just short against Bob and being sent home.

Brendan revealed that the next Off-Site Challenge would follow a great Australian theme: a BBQ build. He welcomed friends and neighbours Tanya and Jodie to the warehouse, who outlined the task: to build their husbands the ultimate BBQ areas. Breaking off into two teams – Black and Gold – the contestants had six hours to get the job done. The Gold Team struggled with fitting a BBQ the size of a house into their space, while the Blacks had issues with paving and tree roots. Troy and Rod’s friends judged the spectacular results, giving the nod to the Gold Team. Judged to have contributed the most to the effort, Michael won a working bee for the Fibro Cottage. As the losing team the Blacks would all face elimination.

The losing members of the Black Team from the Off-Site Challenge arrived for their Stress Test, which began with a curtain hanging round. The contestants had to hem the curtain material, fit the rail and hang them perfectly, with the six best performers being safe from elimination. Lisa, Kathy and Jason J were left at the end and went through to round two: the dreaded Flat-Pack Challenge. All three had to construct and dress a queen-sized bed able to pass Baz’s meticulous inspection. Kathy was first to make the grade, leaving Lisa and Jason to battle it out. Lisa completed her bed first but it was missing some washers, allowing Jason to come from behind and take a narrow win, sending Lisa home.

Torrential rain slowed the progress of all the teams, punishing the freshly laid concrete at The Weatherboard House and stopping pool excavation at The Fibro Cottage. In the warehouse the How To began with Brendan creating ‘Robyn’s Corner’, a beautiful space recalling memories of her childhood. A surprise helper was introduced in the form of Brendan’s dad Jim. Michael and Jarrad were taken to a multi-million dollar renovation for a private inspection with Baz, while Robyn talked the others through filling their design with personality. Peter concluded the How To by building a billycart, which Christie helped take for a test drive.

The contestants arrived at the warehouse for their latest challenge: to build a car port over and around a car. Two members from each team competed, with the first three to finish the job to the judges’ satisfaction winning the right to compete in the White Room Challenge. The Navy Team placed first, and were joined by the Sky Blue and Orange Teams. The White Room was luxury bathroom-themed, with the best room getting a $15,000 bathroom package. The pairs had five hours to finish their rooms, picking helpers to work through the night finishing the tiling. Michael and Jarrad most impressed the judges with their executive penthouse bathroom, while pre-challenge favourites the Orange Team struggled after Peter ran out of time to fully complete his dramatic vision.

Judgement Day began with the Sky Blue Team realising that if the back wall of The Inner City Terrace wasn’t properly supported during the demo it risked bringing that and adjoining walls crashing down. Over at The Fibro Cottage better weather finally allowed pool excavation to be completed, allowing the Navy Blue Team to forge ahead with its extension. After checking on progress at The Sixties Suburban, Brendan doubted that the Khaki Team was maximising the outdoor space. The judges praised work over at The Shop and the Grey Team for its meticulous planning. They weren’t nearly so impressed with The Weatherboard House, however, sceptical that the Green Team could keep to its budget. At the warehouse the Sky Blue Team took the outright Judgement Day win, while the Greens were left facing an Elimination Challenge.

Arriving for its first ever Elimination Challenge, the Greens faced a Panic Room. Given three hours to transform courtyards from hell, each contestant picked an extra recruit to help them with the task. Jason H created a very functional area; Melissa an exotic courtyard with green walls and a hero chair focal point; and Keenan a beautiful textured space closed off by plants and featuring a central deck. Deciding a loser was difficult, but deciding that his space felt more interior than exterior the judges sent Jason home, while Keenan’s “practically faultless” courtyard won him the keys to The Weatherboard House as its new head renovator.

For the week’s Off-Site Challenge each team had six hours to create a feature light to display in the Victoria Room, following the theme of British Raj. Lighting designer Marc Pascal introduced the challenge and served as guest judge. Each team had a specific core material to work with, producing some amazing creations, but it was the Khaki Team’s beaded chandelier that truly blew the judges away, winning them a Working Bee. The judges declared that the core material of glass wasn’t prominent enough in the Green Team’s light, and the Orange Team’s fabric offering didn’t have enough depth, sending both through to face another Stress Test.

The Orange and Green Teams arrived for their Stress Test, which took place over two rounds. The first round required them to put a selection of chairs from various decades into chronological order. With both teams correctly guessing the first few, it was the Orange Team that ultimately slipped up first, sending Peter and Bob to face-off in a ceiling painting challenge. The rest of the contestants, meanwhile, got stuck into the Working Bee over at The Sixties Suburban. In the second round of the Stress Test Peter was both faster and neater than Bob, winning him safe passage and eliminating his teammate.

Peter Ho took Jason J and Suzanne off-site to marvel at some award-winning light installations, while in the warehouse Baz and Brendan conducted a How To on replacing windows with French doors. Barry called upon Melissa, Sam and Kathy to help prepare the space, before Brendan walked through the fundamentals of hanging the doors, calling upon Peter to assist him. Robyn presented a mix and match masterclass, educating the contestants on the finer points of eclectic styling.

For their first challenge the teams had to lay the perfect concrete slab, with the top three finishing to Baz’s satisfaction going through to the White Room Challenge. Peter took a hard fought win for the Oranges, followed by the Navy and Green teams. The theme of the White Room Challenge was banquet halls, with each team picking a theme: Orange (Victorian), Navy (Moroccan) and Green (Australian Country). The winner of the challenge would receive $10,000 of LG white goods. The contestants created some of the most spectacular rooms seen yet, but it was the splendour of Peter’s Victorian room that won the day, its architect graciously splitting the prize with his helpers the Sky Blue Team.

The teams raced to complete as much work as they could before Judgement Day began. Excavation hit a snag at The Inner City Terrace, but the issue was thankfully overcome with minimal delay. Timber frames finally arrived and were erected in record time at The Fibro Cottage. Progress was steady at The Shop and The Weatherboard House, while Baz was concerned that after repeat warnings the damp problem still hadn’t been fully rectified at The Half-Done House. At the warehouse the judges revealed that the winning team would receive two tradies over two days, as well as power over the competition. By next Judgement Day all teams had to have one room completed and fully furnished, with the winning team getting to pick which room. The judges gave the nod to the Khaki Team, who selected the bedroom, much to Peter’s dismay. The Sky Blue Team were judged to be lagging behind and would face elimination.

Members of the Sky Blue Team entered their Panic Rooms to find them empty, save a hero wall featuring a summer beach scene. They then had 60 minutes to use furniture from the Freedom Summer Range to create a summer themed room that complemented the feature wall. The results truly captured the spirit of summer, with Kathy’s room judged to be the standout. The judges loved Sam’s choice of colour, but with her decking only partially covering the floor felt that the room was confused between an indoor/outdoor space, resulting in her elimination.

The Off-Site Challenge was to create an exotic design for the exclusive Pool Bar at The Ivy. The space was divided into two halves, with the Black Team given a Roman Bathhouse theme and the Golds Japanese Bathhouse. They had six hours to transform their spaces. The competition was intense, with Suzanne clashing with Christie while gathering props. Communication on the Gold Team suffered a breakdown, with Christie having to take the team aside to regroup. The detail of their Japanese effort most impressed guest judge Justin Hemmes, however, with Christie winning a Working Bee for The Shop. Black Team members Luke, Kathy, Jason, Peter, Nathan and Suzanne would all face elimination.

The safe contestants arrived at The Shop for the Working Bee, while the losing members of the Black Team entered the warehouse for the Stress Test. In round one the teams had to position lights in chronological order, with Peter winning the safe spot. The Sky Blue and Khaki Teams faced off in round two, each contestant having to complete a tessellated tile pattern perfectly. Suzanne struggled from the start, having to begin again after misplacing tiles, resulting in her elimination.

With no challenges to worry about, the contestants relaxed and enjoyed the week’s How To, which began with Baz talking them through some dramatic uses for concrete and proceeding to make a stunning bathtub. Peter awarded the Green Team with a private How To, taking them off-site to see a renovated property very much in the style of The Weatherboard House. Robyn showed the contestants the finer points of Australian Country styling, before Brendan concluded the How To by unveiling a dramatic outdoor setting for Baz’s tub.

Twenty-two of the The Renovators contestants, past and present, are reunited for a special week of challenges in flood ravaged Queensland. In this episode they fly to the Sunshine state to makeover the house of Greg and Janet, and their two baby girls. Forced to live in a caravan on their property after their home was devastated by flood waters, they get the surprise of their lives and the Renovators are given two days to complete a challenge that they will never forget.

The second task for the week in Queensland was at Rocklea State School, with the contestants breaking off into teams and each having to create an outdoor area. The Gold Team got first choice of theme, picking a learning centre to build, while the Black Team had to create a BBQ area. Going was clearly smoother for the Golds, while the Blacks could never quite get in synch. The result was close though, with the Gold Team scraping the win. Their prize: to compete in their individual teams the following day for the chance to choose which eliminated contestant re-entered the game and on which house.

The contestants arrived in Brisbane’s South Bank for their latest Queensland challenge: to craft street furniture in their teams. The teams had five hours to complete the task, with award-winning designer Alex Lotersztain mentoring them. The teams threw themselves into the task with some spectacular designs, although the time-consuming process of working the metal was a tough pill for many to swallow. Natalia’s design, inspired by South Bank’s nature, won the challenge for The Shop, who selected Samantha to rejoin the competition on Peter’s team.

For their final Queensland challenge the contestants faced their biggest task yet: to transform a flood-ravaged community centre in Darra. The renovators were divided into Blacks and Golds, with the former working on the outdoor area and the latter the indoor. Both teams achieved miraculous results given their tight timeframe, with Brendan giving them an extra half hour to ensure they could finish the job. The Darra residents voted for their favourite space, with the Blacks winning the majority. Keenan was chosen as the most valuable renovator, winning The Weatherboard House a Working Bee. For the members of the Gold Team it was back to the warehouse to face elimination.

While the safe contestants tried their best to conduct a Working Bee at The Weatherboard House despite a torrential downpour, the other arrived at the warehouse for their Stress Test. Each had three hours to create a vertical garden, which would be judged on design, style, craftsmanship and plant use. Jarrad, Michael and Luke were solid throughout, Peter overcame early nerves to produce an impressive arrangement, Jason’s wall suffered from overcrowding while Kathy’s wall was far too sparse to create much of an impression. This left the judges with no choice but to send her home.

The contestants arrived back at their houses to see how progress had continued in their absence. Peter welcomed Sam to his team, while the Sky Blues learned to cope after Kathy’s elimination. Peter stopped by to go through their budget, expressing major concern, before taking them to a nearby similar property to get some ideas. Baz checked in on progress at The Weatherboard House, with Robyn making stops at The Shop and The Fibro Cottage. Brendan concluded the visits at The Half-Done House, querying the lack of funds for landscaping and furniture and giving Peter plenty of food for thought.

The contestants walked into a White Room Challenge like never before: rather than having a set theme and choosing furniture from the warehouse, the teams were asked to express themselves with an original design, sent out to buy their furniture and fittings and provided with $24,000 per team to spend.

They had 24 hours to get the job done. The renovators all relished being given free reign and a huge budget, but it was the Navy Blue Team’s bedroom/bathroom space that left the judges reeling, winning them the challenge and $20,000 worth of Freedom furniture for the Fibro Cottage.

The teams raced to finish their bedrooms before the judges arrived for inspection. Baz, Robyn and Chris Gray paid each team a visit, expressing amazement at their efforts while offering constructive feedback on how to make the rooms even better.

Back at the warehouse the contestants discovered that the teams responsible for the best rooms would go on to compete against each other in a reward challenge, while one standout would win the power to select which room needed finishing by next Judgement Day. The Half-Done House, Sixties Suburban and Inner City Terrace were the three best, with the Sky Blue Team taking the outright win and picking the bathroom. The result reduced to Natalia to tears, who was taken to task by Jason.

The best performers from Judgement Day arrived for their Panic Room Challenge, with an incredible prize on the line: a landscaping package worth $20,000. Entering their Panic Rooms, they discovered it was a bathroom they would need to completely transform. Nathan immediately got stuck in, despite suffering from flu and being a one man team. As usual Peter set himself a massive target and almost bit off more than he could chew. He and Sam managed to pull through, however, finishing a phenomenal space and giving them a clear win and the all-important prize.

Sustainability expert Michael Mobbs was welcomed into the warehouse to introduce the next Off-Site Challenge: creating a site office made from recycled materials at Kimbriki tip. Black (Grey, Khaki and Orange Teams) and Gold Teams (Navy Blue, Sky Blue and Green Teams) each had five hours to create their offices, which would be judged on eco friendliness, craftsmanship and beauty. The Gold Team, led by Luke, hit an immediate snag with the positioning of their roof, while Michael expressed concern that the sun would turn the Black Team’s effort into a sauna. Taking measures to avoid that scenario, the Blacks did enough to secure the challenge, winning the Grey, Khaki and Orange Team’s each a solar panel package worth $10,000 for their houses.

Brendan dropped the bombshell that a member of the Grey Team team would have to move over to The Sixties Suburban. Representatives from each team would compete in a wall styling challenge, with the winning house getting to choose who would join Nathan. Before the teams could dress their walls they had to repair them, causing headaches for Jason and Christie especially, who found life a lot easier once she realised her drill had been working in reverse. Despite technical hitches Chrisite’s end result suitably impressed the judges, giving her the win. August then took the strategic decision to move Natalia, leaving her in tears.

The contestants moved into their respective houses, which promised to be a less than comfortable experience. Natalia was welcomed to the Khaki Team and was instantly shocked at the amount of work left to do at The Sixties Suburban. Brendan arrived for a How To at The Half-Done House, where he helped them lock down the plan for the yard. Baz pitched in at The Inner City Terrace, while Robyn helped the Navy Blue Team with how to bring some colour to The Fibro Cottage. Brendan checked on progress at The Weatherboard House, with the Greens discovering that sewage pipes needed replacing eating massively into their budget. Chris Gray then talked the Grey Team through their progress at The Shop ahead of Judgement Day.

The contestants awoke in their new homes, before heading off to face a styling challenge at Freedom Furniture. The teams had an hour to make an artistic statement with a piece of furniture, with the winners getting a 30 minute head-start going into the second challenge back at the warehouse. With a striking if surreal piece masterminded by August the Grey Team won, taking the advantage in a White Room Challenge that asked them to create a space inspired by Coco Chanel. The Sixties Suburban managed to take a much needed win, securing them a massive prize: $10,000 worth of LG electrical goods.

The teams raced to complete their bathrooms ahead of the Judgement Day inspection. With a massive cash prize of $30,000 on the line for the best bathroom, there was more incentive than ever to blow the judges away. Putting in an incredible overnight effort to get their bathroom finished, Nathan and Natalia’s toil paid off as they won the challenge, while the second-placed Inner City Terrace took away a $20,000 prize. In third place The Half-Done House scooped a desperately needed $15,000. The judges were so impressed with all the bathrooms, however, that the remaining teams were still awarded $10,000 each for their troubles. As the winners, the Khaki Team got to decide the first pair to go head-to-head, choosing The Shop’s Christie and August.

August and Christie left The Shop for their head-to-head, knowing that one of them wouldn’t be coming back. At the warehouse Brendan revealed the challenge: creating a piece of furniture that would fit perfectly at their property. Having first choice of materials, August selected to construct his with timber, leaving Christie to use glass. With first choice of contestants to help him, August picked Michael, Jarrad, Jason, Luke and Sam, while Christie was assisted by Peter, Mel, Keenan, Natalia and Nathan. Arriving at the timber yard to begin building, August’s clear vision helped him forge confidently ahead. Christie struggled to realise her initial ideas given the time-sapping process of moulding glass. Both managed to complete stylish pieces – August a cabinet, Christie a table – but the former proved a better size for The Shop, sending its maker into the Top 6.

The contestants were introduced to soon-to-be-wed Jason and Millicent, who set them the next Offsite Challenge: decorate the venue for their wedding reception the following day. The Gold Team was given an ‘indoor forest’ theme, while the Golds had ‘industrial.’ Natalia and Peter project-managed the Gold Team’s effort and Mel the Blacks. Given six hours to complete their spaces, the happy couple would then decide their favourite, with each member of the winning team receiving $2000 to put towards their renovations. Though the Golds looked more assured early on, a late surge from the Blacks saw them complete a stunning space which better fit the couple’s wishes. Mel and her winning troops then got to decide who faced off in the second head-to-head, choosing Peter and Sam.

Peter and Sam squared off in the second Head-to-Head, Peter having to complete the living/dining space at The Half-Done House while Sam worked on the backyard. Sam’s nerves were stretched thin by teammate Jason taking longer gathering materials at the warehouse than she’d anticipated, and the narrow walkway into the yard made transporting plants and materials difficult. Peter suffered no such setbacks, producing a room stunning in both design and craftsmanship. Though the judges commended Sam for her effort, it wasn’t enough to stop Peter winning a well-deserved place in the Top 6.

Needing a boost in the aftermath of the Head-to-Head, the contestants were surprised by visits from their loved ones, who joined them for a family member Working Bee. Baz stopped in at The Inner-City Terrace to pitch in with some paving, Brendan gave August some landscaping advice over at The Shop, Robyn discussed colour palettes with the Greens at The Weatherboard House, while Peter Ho leant his considerable expertise over at The Half-Done House.

For their final White Room Challenge of the series the teams had to build a kids' room, given a storeroom of materials to choose from full of colour and fun. The contestants all reverted into childlike states as they got the jobs done, which proved an emotional experience for the parents among them. From the Grey Team's fort to the Green Team's cubby house, the results were inspired. Brendan then introduced the guest judges: screaming kids aplenty, who would each cast a vote for their favourite design. Mel and Keenan took the win with their ambitious effort, winning them the help of four tradies for 48 hours courtesy of Rexona.

For this week’s Judgement Day the teams had to race to enhance the ‘Street Appeal’ of their respective properties before the judges arrived for inspection. Facing tight deadlines the contestants were in panic mode trying to get all the work completed, with the $10,000 prize for the winners raising the stakes even higher. Ultimately it was Keenan and Mel who were judged to have best understood their house’s demographic with its immaculately landscaped facade, securing them the all-important cash injection. Impressed with all the houses, however, the judges decided to award the remaining teams consolation prizes of $5000 each. As the winners, the Greens decided the next pair to go head-to-head, selecting Luke and Jason.

Jason and Luke arrived at the warehouse for the third Head-to-Head: a White Room Challenge. They had four hours to transform their spaces into stunning kitchens, with Luke getting first choice of theme and selecting 'city', leaving Jason to go with 'country.' Luke selected Keenan, Jarrad and Michael for his team, with Jason being assisted by Mel, Natalia and Nathan. Both Sky Blue Team members had their issues, with the tight deadline impacting the level of craftmanship. Luke's team was called up on hanging overhead cabinets upside down, while Peter felt that Jason's effort suffered from some functional problems. The judges had one of the most difficult decisions yet but gave the edge to Luke, sending him into the Top 6.

Brendan arrived at The Weatherboard House to give some words of encouragement to Keenan and Mel ahead of their Head-to-Head. Their challenge was to complete the property’s second and third bedrooms, with Keenan choosing the latter, wanting the opportunity to showcase his workmanship by tackling the bigger job. Keenan picked Nathan and Peter to help him, leaving Mel to be assisted by Natalia and Jarrad. Both rooms came together nicely, although with time ticking away Mel suffered from the windows needing planing to get them to fit, while Keenan appreciated the nightmare of constructing flat-pack without the luxury of time. Ultimately Mel’s styling and use of space proved the deciding factor, as she caused one of the biggest upsets of the series by displacing Keenan as The Weatherbaord House's head renovator.

The last two teams faced their Head-to-Heads. Over at The Sixties Suburban Nathan opted to take on the living room, aided by Peter, leaving Natalia and Luke to work on the dining room. Back at The Fibro Cottage the Navy Blue lads had to complete the property’s living areas, with Michael choosing the front room and Mel to help him, while Jarrad worked on the bigger back room together with August. The Head-to-Heads were fought at a frantic pace, with Natalia’s styling skills giving her the edge over Nathan and doing enough in the judges’ eyes to send her into the Top 6. With too much to do in the time available an emotional Jarrad struggled, and despite him giving his all it wasn’t enough to claim the keys from Michael.

They may have won the right to take their properties to auction, but there was no rest for the renovators as the final How To of the series began. With so much to do before auction day, the contestants raced to complete their renovations. Thankfully help was at hand in the form of the judges, from Brendan giving landscaping pointers at The Fibro Cottage to Robyn discussing style tips with Peter. By the close all six key holders had taken a massive step further towards the dream of finishing their houses

The final Judgement Day of the series arrived, with plenty to play for as following their inspections the judges would decide which of the houses they thought was the best heading into auction. The six head renovators raced to put the finishing touches on their houses ahead of the judges’ arrival, hoping that the smallest details could potentially take them over the line. Whoever won Judgement Day would not only receive a confidence boost going into finale, but also a desperately needed Beach holiday in Bali. The judges were amazed by all the transformations, but the level of craftsmanship coupled with a thorough understanding of the property’s demographic shown by Luke won the day and the luxurious prize.

Auction day arrived, with the Top 6 holding their collective breath as the auctions got underway. First up was The Weatherboard House, with Mel and the rest of the Green Team watching anxiously. The poor state of the property market was immediately apparent, with bidding getting off to a worryingly slow start. With the price creeping up steadily, however, The Weatherboard managed to reach $575,000, a profit of $1145. Next up was The Shop, with August pained to see his pride and joy fail to make a profit as the hammer fell at $700,000. Peter and Natalia were given equally little to celebrate, with The Half-Done House going for $770,000 and The Sixties Suburban for $730,000, some way short of their respective profit points. Thankfully it was a different story for Luke and The Inner-City Terrace, which enjoyed by far the best action of the night up to then by selling for $925,000 – a tidy $25,732 profit. The stage was set for a battle of David and Goliath, with the only house that could topple the competition’s biggest being its smallest. Incredibly The Fibro Cottage exceeded expectations, reaching $440,000 and a profit of $68,012, winning Michael the crown of Australia’s best renovator and $100,000 in prize money.