bathroom remodel / resale question

[videoboy]

hello all,

love this board...long time lurker, first time poster...

so i've got a 1100sqft condo and i'm remodeling the hollywood bath.

already torn out the walls that boxed in the tub and made it feel tiny

attached is my new layout......i took out 1 toilet already and half the vanity space in order to get a bigger tub and a separate shower in the back.

my question ?...now the idea of losing the 2nd vanity/sink in the back and making that whole area in the back a completely open shower is looking pretty good.

is that crazy to cut the vanity/sink space down to 24" ? i've already bought 2 vanities and 2 sinks. i could return one set i guess...

anyway...i guess the general question is does one giant, nice shower, tub , toilet trump vanity space?

i'm just one single guy so i think it's a great idea. but if/when i ever sell this place will the small sink/vanity hurt me?

tia

this is a great board!

stephen
nashville,tn

[jadnashua]

He I'm a DIY'er too. I'd consider a 6' tub. You could make the shower a little smaller, if you needed the space. Also, you want the drain in the middle of your shower floor - couldn't tell exactly where it was for sure. If you are going to do this work yourself (around here, you can't do plumbing or electrical in a multifamily dwelling without a license), then take a look at the Kerdi shower kit. You could use their kit made for a tub replacement. It gives you a great surface to tile to that goes up quick, and the walls are put up using normal drywall, not cement board. check out www.schluter.com and look at their video. Given the layout you have, I'd also consider glass walls for the shower 2' is pretty narrow. The glass would help make it seem more open. I'd also consider keeping the second vanity/sink. I don't think it would be a major factor in resale, but it might help. That's a small space. I also have a condo. My bathroom is between two bedrooms, and has no windows. Take a look at www.solatube.com . If you are on the top floor, and you can get permission to install it, their 10" tubular skylight is great. It might also work to put one in over the shower. Not sure about their optional light in that situation. On mine, it is amazing how much light comes in on the thing. On a bright moonlite night, there is enough light to find the toilet without turning on a light. Also, if you are tiling things, check out www.johnbridge.com

[jimbo]

Well, separate soaking tubs and showers are all the rage these days. That's why a starter home is 3500 sq. ft and cost $550K. My personal opinion: for a small space the second vanity and more storage trump the tub. Neither I nor my wife has taken a bath in over 20 years. Just our preference.

The set-up you propose makes nice eye candy on an open house when you sell it.

[hj]

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, but my opinion is that you are putting 10 gallons of Jello into a five gallon bucket. The two foot "aisle" is going to be very confining and turn off many prospective buyers. If you have a door on shower it will have to fully open into that 2' space, so you may not be able to use more than about a 22" door which can appear small on a large shower. The two foot sink in a two foot aisle will be "confining, and just about useless so dump it.

[Terry]

I'm with hj, it's really too small.

I think most codes require at least 30" for a lav anyway when it's between walls.

[videoboy]

hey all,

thanks for the opinions!

just to clear up...

i feel like i have actually made it much bigger by removing the 2 interior walls that held the tub....

there was...from l to r...a door from the hall, a door/wall into middle where tub is, a door/wall out of middle where tub is, and a door in the back that leads into the walk-in closet. they would all slam into each other if you tried them all at once. i have actually gone on a door rebellion. the ONLY interior door left in my place is the one from the hall into the bathroom.

the glass partition on the left would only be about vanity height, to separate the sink from the toilet.

in the back, the glass block wall would be about 72" high by 24"...just to keep the shower water (somewhat) contained.

so...no doors...

knowing all this, HJ and Terry, you're saying i should dump the back vanity/glass wall and make it basically an open 5x5 shower ? it would all be tiled, so water splatter wouldn't be that big of a deal.

i could just build a lip where the door is into the walk-in closet and put a shower curtain there...

i like my tub, and it's already here and paid for only 32" x 20"high, but the ooollllddd one im removing was tiny...30" by 14" high

anyway,

if you could please clarify...big open shower or 1/2 size shower and 24" vanity

thanks!

stephen

[hj]

Put the tub on a flat deck, no glass block at the left end. The shower enclosure on the right side should be all clear glass to minimize the claustrphobic feeling. A shower that size will not be able to get by without a door because you cannot create the serpentine entry that a doorless shower requires. Well you could if you used that 2' aisle as the entry to the shower stall, But the divider between the tub and shower, and the "return" wall to create the entry should still be glass..

[jimbo]

I keep looking at the doors. I hope they are pocket doors, or open out to the hallway. If they open into the bath, I don't like that at all.

We do sympathise with your problems because you have to deal with the given space. A complete rearrangement of all the fixtures including the tub would be good, but not practical from plumbing or financial aspect.

One thing you might do to get some ideas: use some masking tape or string to lay out the proposed fixtures. This will give you some prospective on the clearance issues.

[videoboy]

jimbo,

thanks for your thoughts.

the one door opens out to the hallway...so no door swinding open into the bathroom...

i did do the tape thing....everyting looks good...a little tight...but basically i have made 3, 5' x 5' rooms, into one 15' x 5' room, so it still feels much bigger to me than it was...

hj,

the tub is a drop in into a box...

i'm curious, why no 3' tall glass block wall on the left end ? i was trying to keep give the toilet a bit of privacy.

so in the interest of minimizing the claustrophobia on the shower end, do you think i should just lose the 2nd vanity all together an make a 5 ' x 5' open shower area ?

thanks for the help,

stephen

[hj]

The toilet does not need privacy and it will "close" in the area. Make the shower the way you show it, but wrap a glass wall around from the left, (tub) side about 30", then tile the area where the sink is and use it as the entry to the shower. This will eliminate the need for a door and since the shower head will have to be on the right hand wall the water will spray into the compartment created by the glass walls, and the enty will be sloped in such a way that any water that splashes out will be caught and directed to the drain. In effect you will create a 5' x 5' shower with a 3' x 5' bathing/water area.

[jdkimes]

Not sure why you'd want two sinks, it's a tight fit for just one person to fit in there. I like your idea of losing one of the sinks.
Have you thought about just getting rid of the tub, open up some floor space or just have the tub and lose the shower? I'd rarely use my tub if I didn't have toddlers that use it every night. It's really too small to "soak" in for a 6' tall person. That will be my next house or when I total renovate this bathroom.

[sulconst2]

just a thought

loose the sink then spin the shower 5'x5'. have a 3' high and wide knee wall between the tub and the shower. install an alcove tub instead of a drop in. you will gain about 6 inches to your walkway. have a 3' kneewall for the far end of tub to keep an open feeling. with a wider walkway you can install a wider door to the shower. the inline panel of the shower door would step up the kneewall. my thought is without the drop in tub you gain space.

[thezster]

Dump the tub..... dump the two ft. lav. and enlarge the shower.... You want eye candy.... get creative in the shower - double heads - side sprays - bench... you know..... a "doubles shower"... Now you can add a decent size cabinet/lav combo where the tub was.... and a linen cabinet where the other two ft. lav was....

[plumguy]

Why not move you're tub to the wall on the right, it should fit as long as the bath is 5' wide. Then spin you're toilet so the tank is resting on the long wall. Then between the toilet and the tub on that long wall I would install a nice big double vanity. This would open up the bath and you wouldn't have that narrow hallway effect, in fact you would gain about a foot!

[plumguy]

Actually, you have so much room on that long wall and you have no closet you could do this. Install two vanities with a tall matching cabinet in between,all three would be attatched. I have seen it done before and it is really sharp. As long as their is a light over each sink it really gives it the his and her effect.