How To Plan Your New Bathroom Renovation.
The easiest way to approach your bathroom design is to consult with a renovation specialist, but it also pays to think beforehand about the sorts of things you want. The first thing you need to establish when you’re planning a bathroom renovation is how it’s going to be used from now on.
The bathroom is one of the busiest rooms in any house and sees a lot of traffic. People often need the bathroom at the same times too, which can create a chokepoint in your daily routine if you don’t properly plan for it. Knowing what you have to work with, and what kinds of factors are going to affect your bathroom design will have a strong bearing on the decisions you make regarding what sorts of fixtures you want and where you want them.
If you’re adding new bathroom/ensuite to the home, or if your house is designed in a way that makes access to the hot water system difficult, you might also consider installing a small continuous flow hot water system.
Layout
How much room you have to work with will determine what will fit, where things should go and generally what’s likely to be practical. Measure it out, and then draw a rough sketch of the current and proposed layout and shape, including measurements to give you a reference point. Be sure to include things like which way the door will swing – if it swings in and can’t be changed to a sliding door or adjusted to swing outwards, then you can’t really put anything behind it.
If you want a shower stall, you will need to allow room for a space of about 900mm x 900mm. Unless you have a lot of space, that’s likely to be installed in a corner too. If you want both a bath and a shower but you don’t have the space, consider installing a shower head above your bath. Have a think about the amount of space you have and how much room you’ll need for the vanity and other fittings – don’t forget to leave plenty of space to move around!
When renovating, bathrooms can be made larger but it’s a good idea to plan your new shower, bath, WC and vanity are in the same location to cut down on plumbing costs.
Number of people
A family using a bathroom will have very different requirements to an elderly couple or to a single occupant, so factor this into your updated design. Dual sink vanities, separate toilet facilities and separate bath and shower setups are all ways to get around the daily chokepoint created by four or five people all jostling to do their hair at once. Young children and the elderly or physically impaired will also have different needs to think of. If your bathroom will be used by only one or two people, then there’s no need to overdo it unless you’re planning on starting a family.
Budget and time
You need to think not only the amount of money you’ll need to set aside, but also about the time involved. How much money are you comfortable with spending?
This is entirely personal and will vary from person to person. Just be aware that it’s very easy to get carried away and turn the bathroom into a bottomless pit of expense. Do you really need those designer Italian marble floor tiles, or could you achieve a similar effect with a faux stone or ceramic? The best approach is to decide beforehand what you’re willing to spend, and then work as closely as you can to the confines of your budget. When you’re renovating you will need to account for the fact that the bathroom will be completely unusable for a period of the renovation work. This may involve finding alternative bathroom
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