Starting a pretty massive (for me at least) project of redoing my kids bathroom. I don't know what I'm doing yet, and for some reason this forum has experts in everything.
Current state of the bathroom. No access to anything unless you want to sit on the toilet. I have 3 girls that are going to share this for years to come, so its not exactly ideal.
Its manageable, but there's alot of plumbing rework. Moving the drains is my biggest concerns. its the 2nd floor, and I dont want to destroy the ceiling below so going to access everything by removing the floor.
My concern right now is the tub drain. The drain is moving 18", so its not a big move. however. is it possible to install a tub without access below? I could leave the floor off away from the tub maybe. if I glued a section of pvc to the tub then dropped it in so that I could connect it after, that could work? I've never installed a tub before so this is gonna be alot of learning as I go.
If you are going to punch out the wall like that, I would leave the tub where it is and move the toilet. Put up a wall at the end of the tub and swing the toilet into the space it creates. You could even put in a small privacy door so somebody could be using the toilet while another of your girls was at the sink doing her thing.
Just to throw out an idea, maybe move the tub to the right where the sinks are, put three sinks along the left wall where the tub is and into the new area, and put the toilet on the right of the new area. Possibly with a little privacy wall between it and the sinks.
also, I wouldn't worry about opening up the ceiling below. It's only drywall and there are companies that can do it fast and pretty cheap.
id also suggest adding more outlets than you think you need, especially above/next to the sinks
In reply to jfryjfry (FS) :
I love the idea of getting three sinks in there, but if I extend the vanity to 72, there's not any room for a toilet there. the 60" cutout is going into the master bath, and there's no more room there without shortening that vanity, which I dont want to do.
In reply to mad_machine (Forum Supporter) :
This would be alot easier, but I don't think it looks as good. it isnt as open, and I kinda like the tub and tile being the focal point when you walk in. I picked up a gorgeous glass tub door on marketplace, which should look really good when you walk in.
3 sinks, god, no.
In my current house the master bath has a 60" vanity cabinet and a 36" makeup counter area at the end. The 2 sinks are huge at 28" wide each. Sound luxurious, until you realize that 28" + 28" = 56" of the 60" area leaving absolutely no counter space in the 60" stretch.
In another house, the master also had a long counter with 2 sinks that we reduced down to just 1 sink and a whole lot of counter space.
So, my advice, very few sinks and keep the sinks small. All we really do in the bath sink is wash hands and brush teeth. I can never think of a time where we both had to wash or brush at the exact same time. In my experience, girls want counter space for setting makeup, hair dryers, curling irons, etc. So, lots of mirror and lots of counter space with very little sink.
In your samples above, i might put in one sink and 3 picture-frame style mirrors. One mirror over the sink and another mirror on each side of it over open counter space trying to denote 3 "working areas"
If you find that you have to stay with this floorplan, only put a standard vanity under the one sink closest to the door and then where the second sink is continue the counter (like a shelf.) A standard vanity might come out 20" from the wall and then this shorter area should come out about 10" from the wall. My goal is so that one (or two) of the girls can stand between the mirror and the toilet. Since there is no cabinet under this shelf you might also be able to keep a hamper or similar under there.
My rudimentary example:
In that area next to the toilet, the girls will actually be standing much closer to the mirror. This will be appreciated for make-up and times like when checking to see if they have an eyelash out of place.
In reply to John Welsh :
I didn't even consider one sink. That makes alot of sense. one sink on the middle would allow for more drawers, and room on both sides. both would be more beneficial than another sink.
Definitely not sticking with the floorplan. demolition starts tomorrow.
Do your girls use the bathroom at the same time? Would they? Ever?
That will decide how many sinks you need.
Alternate suggestion...
Can you accomplish a makeup area that is NOT in the bathroom? It would save a heck of a lot of time in the 3 person daily rotations.
Double sinks are over-rated.
My wife and I just built a master bath. We didn't have enough square footage to do 2 sinks. We only had 58" on the sink wall no matter what I did, and 1 sink would have been tucked behind the toilet (like yours).
We installed a 3' vanity centered with small "wing" counters on each side. It's lovely, and works perfectly. She and I have never brushed our teeth at the same moment in 36 years.
In reply to SVreX (Forum Supporter) :
I'm sure bedrooms will be used more in time. right now they are 5, 7 and 8. got a bit of time before dealing with the makeup situation. just planning for everything now.
Oh, and there is a problem with your layout...
Moving the toilet is harder than you think. You are moving it more than 5'. You will need a new vent. This may need to go through the roof.
In reply to lnlogauge :
Understood.
Another question... Do you really need a tub?
Switching to a nice shower could save a lot of space.
The master bath my wife and I just built is only 5'x8'. We used a shower- no tub. All the finishes are premium. Yes, although small, it's still luxurious.
My wife is not a big makeup person, but she does have a separate makeup area in a different room.
SVreX (Forum Supporter) said:
Double sinks are over-rated.
I agree they're overrated, as they seem to be rated as a necessity right behind a toilet. But they're pretty high up on my list of wants.
In reply to lnlogauge :
Do you know where your plumbing stack is? It's important.
They are frequently behind toilets, and usually on common walls between baths when they are adjacent.
You could have a primary plumbing stack that services both bathrooms located directly behind that toilet. That would make the project much more complicated, and expensive.
We have one bath in our house that is nearly 200 SF. It's in the guest room. Our master bath is only 40 SF. It's much more luxurious.
Careful design is important.
In reply to SVreX (Forum Supporter) :
your questions are fantastic. thank you.
behind that toilet is just a vent. I'll move the vent when I move the toilet, and tie it into the rest in the attic. I havent been into my attic yet, was planning on going over everything with my dad this weekend before starting. Assumed the wall wasnt load bearing. that was a false assumption. so adding a beam to the wall just made this even more of a project. A beam for 60" doesnt have to be that big, and above the shower will look fine I think. \
Starting to think it wouldn't hurt to pay a plumber to review this plan.
I thought about getting rid of the tub, but with three girls im sure the tub function will get used enough. especially with the 5 year old, it will get years of use before she wants showers.
We recently had a addition put in with a new bathroom for our kids. Hands down the best feature it has is the sinks are separate from the toilet/tub. 1 child can bathroom/shower while the other gets ready for bed. Not sure how cramped this would feel but a pair of pocket doors and you could do it in your bathroom. LC would be a linen closet that you access from the shower/toilet room. You could have a cabinet door in the bathroom wall that allows you to access the upper part of the LC space also.
None of the sketches suggested show the toilet in front of the tub. This is a standard layout in small baths. (And would maintain your desire to keep the shower and tile as a focal point).
It also keeps your toilet much closer to its current location, which should minimize plumbing work.
In reply to lnlogauge :
I wasn't suggesting no tub for your 5 year old. I was suggesting that maybe you had another tub in the house that could be used.
In reply to lnlogauge :
Can you add a couple dimensions? How big is this space?
Tubs are 60", and I am exceptionally good at judging spaces based on stuff like that, but it might help.
lnlogauge said:
In reply to jfryjfry (FS) :
I love the idea of getting three sinks in there, but if I extend the vanity to 72, there's not any room for a toilet there. the 60" cutout is going into the master bath, and there's no more room there without shortening that vanity, which I dont want to do.
I disagree. In that sketch you have exactly the same amount of space for the toilet that you started with.
(Although, you have sketched it too far to the right. Toilets need 30" of space. 36" is better. The centerline of the toilet should be 15" from any side wall)
Another question...
Do your floor joists run top to bottom in the drawings, or right to left?
I think they may run right to left...
If they do, moving the toilet by the door may be difficult. You will have to hack through every floorjoist across the room.
Plumbers are often exceptionally good at compromising floor structures...
daeman
Dork
12/18/20 5:08 p.m.
Personally, I dislike shower over tub setups, they seem to be a poor compromise. It's a big step over for younger children, the floor of the tub always seems to be much more slippery than a tiled shower floor and they're awkward for older people too due to the step over and slippery factors.
Multiple sinks have always seemed more trouble than they're worth its extra expense, extra plumbing and less counter top. What are people doing in a bathroom concurrently that would necessitate a need for their own individual sink that couldn't be achieved by simply standing to the left and right of a centralised sink?
I'd be thinking toilet on the left if the plumbing will allow it, vanity dead ahead with a single sink and a good sized shower to the right.
