Need help with Ensuite Bathroom renovation
We bought our house 2 years ago (1980 build) and recently found out our shower base/tiles in our Ensuite have been leaking and the subfloor is damaged. Not covered by insurance of course so will have to rip it all up, replace and get rewaterproofed. We are taking this opportunity to maybe redesign the ensuite a little to make it more modern and, preferably, low maintenance.
It currently has tiled floor. Thought on tiles versus concrete or a shower base maybe?
Also not sure if we should make a wall-to-wall shower (to where the toilet is) of if that would clutter the space too much. We could then move the toilet to the other side or back and have a smaller vanity?
We've currently removed the main entry door, maybe put in a cavity door instead?
All comments and suggestions appreciated :) thanks!
178cm door to window
241cm wall to wall
Comments (19)
oklouise
6 years agoa wider shower would mean sacrificing almost half your generous vanity counter as you'll need at least 700-800wide space for comfortable use of a toilet with elbow room for an average sized adult (although adding a custom vanity counter across the top of a suitable toilet will salvage some counter area) and add wall to wall mirror doored wall cabinets for substantial storage for small items to make up for lost under counter space .. i prefer hinged entry doors for reasons already stated by Dr Retro and the back of a solid core bathroom door is a handy place for towel rails and clothes hooks when wall space is limited...i suggest that a standard 1500 wide shower base (or Reece had a 1660wide base?) with the gap in the floor tiled (plus optional shower seat to nib wall?) and sliding glass door would be my choice as i've yet to find any open shower or hinged glass screen that does'nt allow water all over the rest of the floor ..while planning this reno also consider all the surrounding rooms as the bathroom will have to stripped back to the frame so now is the time to check next door as well...best of luck with your new bathroom
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4 Bedrooms and 1 Bathroom, or 3 Bedrooms and 2 Bathrooms (ensuite)?
Comments (15)We're building 4x3.5 Two with ensuite and the others with a jack and Jill. Life has changed unfortunately and now everyone in the household works, kids stay at home longer and ageing parents sometimes move in for care. At the moment we have a 3 x 1 and really the only thing we really want for is a second toilet, which growing up we had because we had the one out the back with the red backs....See MoreNeed help for design of VERY small bathroom & ensuite
Comments (11)Thanks "The Hut Interior Design". Do you mean that I should work with the current width of about 2.5-2.6m wide (which is width of current bathroom and cupboards combined? When you say that I should split the space in 2, do you mean that the dividing line should split the current depth of 3.080m into 2 spaces of equal space. This would mean that I would have a front space of 1.54m deep and 2.6m wide in which to put the main shower and vanity, linen storage and B/I for bedroom and then the back of the current bathroom would be the ensuite also of 1.54m deep and 2.6m wide. Is there any chance you could scribble a diagram of what you mean. The diagram wouldn't need to be to scale but it would be great if you could suggest the overall space to be allowed for the main bathroom as compared to the ensuite and b/i wardrobe. Somewhere I would have to have a bit of linen storage too. I had thought about using the back of the bathroom where the window was for the ensuite and the front of the current bathroom for the main bathroom (once area is gutted). However, I could figure out how to do the ensuite and B/I wardrobe without wasting space and still be workable. Do you think in reality, I would have to put in 2 skylights. One for each bathroom. Unfortunately, I can't take space at the moment from any other room connected to the W/C as the front bedroom is quite small and I would like to keep the house as a 3 bedroom house at the moment. By keeping the current toilet where it is, it means that the main bathroom would not need a toilet in it. I have ripped out the bath and it is just sitting in the bathroom waiting for someone to help me move it out of the house (luckily I live alone here at present). There was no asbestos around the bath but the sheeting on the shower side (on which the shower tiles sit) plus the ceiling are both asbestos. That is the only asbestos in the area. From what you have said, do you recommend just working with the current bathroom and cupboard space and not taking another 0.4m x 2.1m from the bedroom (The bedroom is 3.080m deep, so I allowed 980mm for the door to swing back on current wall - If I were to eat into some space in the current bedroom).. I really appreciate your advice - it is along the lines of what I had been thinking but the 2 dilemmas I had were 1. how to make the ensuite/built in design work and 2. since main bathroom wouldn't need a toilet, how to keep make it not look way too small and cheap, knowing that it won't require a big space (square meterage) in order to work in a practical sense. ie. It may work in a practical sense, but due to its small size, it may look cheap and nasty. Many thanks for the time that you have taken to respond and your advice....See MoreChanging a laundry to en-suite & adding separate toilet to bathroom
Comments (30)Hi Paul In apartments, the killer for layout changes are always drains, then water supply, then load bearing walls. Before you consider doing any changes to the layout, I would advise you to locate the drains (pics would be good) as they will likely restrict you. The drains are important for obvious reasons but also important is the fall (ie downward slope) of any drain you wish to install in a separate location. It means you have to take into account more height the further away from the existing drain you go. It is likely that your existing laundry trough/basin has a drain going down to the floor, and this is going to interfere with the proposed ensuite entry location. Ditto if it is going into the wall. The big one is the new shower. It will need to have a 50mm waste (drain) in the centre of where your washing machine now is.... and the question is where is it going to go.... I would suggest swapping the vanity and shower over to access the existing trough waste if it is large enough. In a lot of these older apartment buildings, the waste sizes are down at 38mm, which is not going to drain fast enough for a shower. If your existing waste is that size, you will need to have a hob to the shower as it will fill up, and you will also need to check health regs to see if it is allowed in your state. To get the drain for the new ensuite vanity and new laundrette sorted, I would punch through the new kitchen wall and run drainage along the wall behind the new cupboards and around to the existing kitchen sink waste. This will give you plenty of fall and a place to hide the pipes. For the new basin to the existing, you will need to see if you can get it around to the existing basin waste in the bathroom adjacent by running it around and under the bath. Cheers...See MoreHelp Where to fit 2nd bathroom/ensuite
Comments (26)the narrowest walking space would be about 60cms (and there won't be a lot of traffic in the space and with 3800 (not 3400) the ens doorway can be pushed towards the front of the house, not centred and makes more standing room in front of the shower and easier access from the bedroom to the ens but also depends on the distance from the new wall to the side of the bay opening and that was probably centred when the house was built and before the wardrobe was installed so you need to carefully measure the room again... we now have three different widths for the room and the hall is shown as metres wide!!...is the master bedroom 3400 or 3800 or 4460 wide (ignoring the bay window) and what is the length of the whole room (ignoring the wardrobe) and what is the depth of the wardrobe from the outside and also measure from the outside of the architrave around the bedroom door to the front of the wardrobe ..could you gain some space by moving the bedroom door closer to the wardrobe and/or hinging the door to open towards the wardrobe to feel less cramped? ...we can make lots of suggestions but need to start with precise information about what you already have and based on new information and the size of an average king sized bed and the wider room my suggestion would be to place the bed in the centre of the room, lined up with the centre of the bay window and then measure how much space is available on either side for the ens and for wardrobe and bedroom door and you'll probably find that even if the bedroom door is moved there would probably be about 60-70cms between the bed and the new wall and minimal space between the bed and the door on the other side so try losing big bedside tables and use hanging lamps and mismatched side table or shelves ( a cut down stool makes a tiny side table) and keep in mind that, unless you remove the whole chimney (big job but will supply a huge number of bricks if you need some paving) the thickness of the brick walls will decide how much space is available in the chimney alcove for the vanity so measure inside the chimney not outside wall spaces but, despite limitations imo the ens is well worth the effort, cost for the improved resale value and quality of family life.. but, why not move the bed and add something to create a barrier to represent the proposed ens wall and see how it feels as something like this could work but depends on accurate measurements...See MoreKatrina H
6 years agolast modified: 6 years agooklouise your plan is very close to what we were thinking! Not sure about a seat in the shower - or could have a size somewhere between a single and a double shower with a space on the end for hanging towels etc? (where the seat currently is in plan). The toilet is in a good position also on your plan.
The kind of vanity I am thinking is shorter and a bit higher than our current one, with a mirror/s that open with shelving behind... thoughts?
(see image below for an idea as you walk in - would be looking left, then shower could be on other side/right?)
Other ensuites that catch my eye:
PRODr Retro House Calls
6 years agooklouise's suggestion to provide a low tiled bench at one end of the shower is very good, especially if a family member likes to shave their legs in the shower. You don't have enough length to put a towel rail at the end of the shower recess unless you like soggy towels.
Master Bathroom Shower with spa accessories · More InfoBest of luck,
Dr Retro
oklouise
6 years agooklouise
6 years ago
siriuskey
6 years ago
PROCipriano Italian Home Design
6 years agoKatrina H
6 years agooklouise
6 years agoKatrina H
6 years agoKatrina H
6 years agosiriuskey
6 years agoKatrina H
6 years agooklouise
6 years agoSteve Gibson
6 years agoKatrina H
6 years agoOkay so progress is small on this project. Shower still out of use but soooo many options.
We are no longer thinking of a 'double shower' but instead one glass panel / walk in shower (see pic below for idea). That will take up the left hand side of ensuite. With a tray or tiles?
The right hand side of ensuite we are thinking small hung vanity, regular toiler, and a recessed mirror cabinet. Like the 2 photos below.
Also, do we have to tile floor to ceiling? Or is bathroom paint okay for some areas (ie not shower area).
Thoughts pretty please!!!!!
Dr Retro House Calls