Need assistance of tub/shower location (and type)

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mediaman

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I was thinking you'll have a full wall next to your shower bench (next to the vanity and tower). If you have a panel on the bench as shown, the gap between the shower and the vanity will be hard to clean. My former bathroom had a similar configuration and I hated it - stuff always fell into the gap and the mop head could not go in (I could only use the Swiffer duster but not their floor wipe). If you have a full wall, you just bring your vanity right to it. Then you don't have a vanity to glass problem. As a bonus you can have a hand towel ring on that wall. :)

Re narrow half glass wall (which I like), vs narrow full wall, yes its an issue, but I don't think it the Swiffer issue..let me explain.

I need to address:
-the bench
-the lower vanity
-the upper vanity

Re the bench, with a half wall, there would be no gap, as the bench can butt up right to the half wall.

Re the lower vanity, again, with a half wall, there would be no gap, as the vanity can butt up right to the half wall.

Re the upper vanity - potential aesthetic problem (no Swiffter problem), as there would be a gap between the side vanity and the glass, and even without a gap, the entire side vanity is visible. So I think only the full wall addresses that one. Hmmm. But what might work there is what is shown below where the sill of the half wall continues up the wall. This address the 'gap", but of coruse ones still sees the side of the vanity while showering. Maybe its not so bad - dunno.

half.JPG
 
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mediaman

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..I don't see the necessity to tile all the walls. If you do it's just for aesthetics not for functionality. Two rows of tile over your tub is enough to protect the walls from water splash. .... I tiled the full wall over the tub, only because there is a big window and it was only 8 sqft of wall space left after the two courses over the tub.

For the tub walls, wife likes the full tile wall treatment. So for other walls (yes for aesthetics) , I need to choose between:
-paint only
-half tile
-full tile
-wainscot ( like that half wall pic above)... very nice@
 

mediaman

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I like that it seems you have good access to the plumbing underneath on the corner tub. There looks like enough room for a small access panel where you could pull it open and use shut-off valves under the faucets. Will there be a grab bar on the bulkhead?

Yes really want to have full access to the tub for access ( and storage as a secondary benefit). The angled part of the deck is easy with 4 hinged doors. The two side wall get a bit challenging but doable with the right creative idea re sliding or removable panels. A buddy of mine had a Velcro type arrangement!

As for grab bars, I assume this is totally done post reno - correct? For my moms condo, we had a social services guy come in and do her shower (two bars) and guest bathroom (two bars for tub) for about $50 parts and labour!). So I assume I don't even have to raise the topic with my contractor.
 

Suceress

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I vote for wainscot. Maybe you can actually get something that matches the color of the vanity? It would likely be easier to put up than tile and might be less expensive. I've never priced wainscot, so I don't know.

If the side of your vanity cabinets are nice, maybe it won't be bad to see them from inside the shower. I mean, you could have a beveled panel on the side to make it look nice or something. I've seen cabinets that had beveled sides that mimicked the look of the doors.

Maybe the spot where you are thinking of putting pictures could have a lightbox of some sort? Something that mimics a window or that just gives more light and looks nice.

I also like white near toilets.

I would recommend at least telling your contractor that you may want to add grab bars later and let him know where they will go so that he will know to make sure there is proper reinforcement behind the walls for it. It would sort of suck to have all that work done and then have the people need to tear something down to reinforce the wall enough to support the grab bars or make sure there were studs or something in the right place for the grab bars. You can take pictures during the reno process and document where the supports are put in so that you will know exactly where the grab bars can be placed.
 

Rapida

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I still don't quite get it why a full wall is not desirable between the vanity and the shower. I think it will make sense if you don't have a tower. If you have a tower, even with a finished side, having it next to a glass panel is weird, IMHO. Is it a lighting issue? If you have lights in the shower, you'll be fine.

As for those glass shelves over the toilet, although they look great themselves, IMHO they are more suitable for small bathrooms in desperate need of storage space, and storage can't be available in any other way (apartments?). Hidden storage is one thing, but these are storage in plain sight. Unless you have some nice decorative items on display there, using that space for actual storage just looks like an afterthought and makes the whole bathroom look cheap. With all the cabinets and towers and laundry pullout, if you still need more storage, hide them in the bulk head area, as suceress suggested. Well, that's only my opinion.

Real grab bars (500lbs capacity) need to to installed on studs, not on sheet rock, backer board or tile. If you may need them in the future, put the extra studs or wood blocks in now, mark/record their locations, so that you know where to install the grab bars later. That will take some planning. To retro fit you still need to find that stud. If they are not exactly where you want them to be, you either settle for the less desirable location, or rip the wall to add the support. On sheet rock walls usually retro fit is not a problem, studs are normally 16" apart, you always will have studs nearby. In showers, though, since the space is tight, some times it's hard.
 
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Suceress

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I guess I'm used to smaller spaces and am a clutter fiend so I love to have storage space. I'm not necessarily a fan of open shelves above a toilet although that is what is in my mother's bathroom. I'd personally go with a cabinet above, but then, as I said, I like extra storage space and I like to have storage near the toilet for things that you might need while on it-- like flushable wipes or extra toilet paper, etc. I don't know what it would look like in a large bathroom though. I do think storage space in/near the bulkhead might work. I almost suggested a book shelf, but a moist environment is probably not the best spot for books-- except for maybe throw-away things like crossword puzzles, word searches, sudoku, and fill-it-ins.
 

mediaman

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Okay, been doing further shopping, pricing and gathering of thoughts!

The toilet movement is going to the back burner now, as to do it, aside from cost, means we now would have to remove a large built-in cabinet in the storage room below for dishes . So the domino effect here is getting out of hand.

We have decided (finally) on the plan with the large square shower (north east corner) and the large oval tub, in the north north west corner.

Latest layout is below. I will have a narrow wall near the shower to accommodate the shower bench on shower-side and a tower on the vanity-side. Still allows for large glass door area.

Took a long time to get there, but we certainly gave every other option a fair shake.

With this plan, I need to choose between three vanity configurations.

Gut feel tells me to go with Vanity Style 2 for these reasons:

- more open
- flexibility to play with location of sinks and width of mirrors and tower to adjust for unforeseen
- tower is wide - maximal storage and can have combination of open and closed storage
- tower can accommodate laundry bin at bottom
- more space coming out of shower
- tower "symmetry" is there as I have one tower approximately n the NE corner, and one tower/bookcase in the SW corner by the end of the tub

Style 1 is a close second - its the same but without the centre med cabinet

Style 3 is what I started with, on the notion its the most symmetric, but the towers get kindda narrow and the vanity becomes shortened.

Thoughts?

General layout:
H6-VanStyle2-R0.JPG


Vanity Style Options:
van-styles.jpg


Concept sketch for Style 2:
[vanity-style2-concept.JPG


Style 2 has the tub butted to the vanity... like this:
de3r.jpg
 
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Suceress

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Sorry for the late reply. I stopped getting e-mail updates and had some problems with my ISP. Had to have a technician come out and replace the connectors for the coaxial cable (installer used the wrong kinds of connectors so water got in and messed up my signal).

Have you considered a 4th plan with the vanity just as wide as in plan 2 but having a cabinet sit on top on the west side? It would add the upper symmetry.

I wish I had the right tools to draw it, but I was thinking it could overhang the tub deck and go all the way down but have a sort of neo angle and instead of having a door face there it could have little shelves (all out of the maple-- treated to resist moisture). Well, that is if it would have enough space. I need to get an inexpensive tablet and stylus or something to sketch my ideas. MS paint isn't cutting it. LOL.

I just realized that the east cabinet does not sit on the vanity.. Hmm.. Maybe you could have an upper cabinet on the west side that is about the same width but that tapers to not cut in to the tub deck too much? And maybe have the neo angle and shelves that I mentioned? I'm not good at eyeballing to see how much space would be taken up.
 
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