6 clever ways to make space in a small bathroom

Read article : 6 clever ways to make space in a small bathroom

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Similar bathroom, from £12,000, Ripples

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By Caroline Rodrigues

28 December 2015

Use these design, layout and storage ideas to make the most of a small bathroom.

1. MAKE A PLAN

Start by making a floorplan sketch of the room, noting the length of each wall, the position of the door, which side it opens on and any windows. Then make a scale plan on squared paper, cutting out paper shapes to represent the fittings. There are also online 3D planners you can use; try Ideal Standard. Rerouting the hot and cold water supplies to where they are needed shouldn't be problematic, but the waste pipe from the WC needs a short, straight run to an outside wall to join the soil stack. If that's not possible, fitting a macerator and pump allows a small bore pipe to be used, so you have more flexibility in positioning the WC. Don't forget to allow enough clearance around bathroom fittings so you can move around easily. As a rough guide, you need 70cm in front of a WC and basin and 100cm in front of a bath.

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2. CONSIDER DESIGN SOLUTIONS

There's no reason a small space can't be big on design. Be inspired by the latest wall-hung fittings, introduce luxe finishes for walls and floors, and add sparkle with chrome and glass. Choosing a statement piece of furniture or a bold basin will help create a focal point. When refitting an existing bathroom, there isn't always room to move fittings, but space-saving compact versions can make all the difference. Also consider underfloor heating instead of a radiator to free up more space. If your ideas aren't working, think outside the box and investigate whether moving a wall or window or simply changing the way a door hangs could free up space.

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3. SELECT A SPACE-SAVING BATH

If you love a good soak, don't be denied this pleasure because your room is too small for a bath – there are several models at a compact 1,500mm x 700mm, while the Gem from Bathroom Heaven comes in lengths of just 1,200mm or 1,300mm. Squeezing in a roll-top bath might even be possible – some are designed with squared-off sides to fit neatly into a corner. Or consider a slipper bath; they tend to be deep but short. Rather than having a separate shower, a shower bath, which gets wider at one end to accommodate room to shower, is a good option. These L- or P-shaped baths come with bespoke screens to keep the water in and some are just 1,500mm long.

4. OPT FOR A SHOWER

Made-to-measure screens, £1,900 including fitting; HSK Renodeco shower panel in Limestone, from £295 for a 900mm x 2,550mm panel; all Frontline Bathrooms

Particularly in an extra bathroom such as a loft room or ensuite, a bath is not so necessary and a shower room will make better use of limited space. Enclosures with bi-fold, pivot or sliding doors are space solvers, as are pentangle or quadrant enclosures that nestle into a corner. Or consider a wet-room design without an enclosure, but with a fixed panel to prevent the whole room getting splashed.

5. PICK A PETITE BASIN AND LOO

Many basins and WCs are wall hung – a huge advantage in a tiny room since they don't eat into the floor space so the room appears larger. 'Short projection' basins and WCs and those designed to fit into a corner are other good solutions for space-starved rooms. Cloakroom basins and some 'quadrant' or corner basins can be tiny – good for rinsing your hands, but not ideal for washing your face without splashing. Opting for a single monobloc tap simplifies the basin design, more so if you select a handleless one that turns on and off via a sensor.

6. FIND FURNITURE TO FIT

High cabinet with two doors, £95; mirror cabinet, £50; washbasin cabinet, £115; storage bench, £40; all Silveran collection, Ikea

Fitted, modular or freestanding furniture? It's down to personal taste, though the current trend is to get everything off the floor, including cabinetry. Fitted solutions are tailored to the room for maximum space efficiency. Look out for reduced 21cm depth furniture designed for smaller rooms. Modular storage is a good halfway house, consisting of units in set sizes that you can combine for a personal look. Taking a leaf from kitchen manufacturers, bathroom designers have come up with clever drawers that fit around a basin, and deep drawers with shallower ones nestling inside. Streamline the look with push-close doors instead of handles.

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en suite bathroom to your home" />

If you’ve got a big master bedroom that could potentially be partitioned, or a little used adjacent room, then adding or creating an en suite could be a great way to add a sense of luxury to your bedroom. It is also a great way of adding to the value of your home, especially if you currently have only has one bathroom.

There are several things you need to think about before you go ahead and add a new en suite to your house, from the cost of adding the bathroom, to relocating plumbing, wiring the space and deciding exactly what sanitary ware to invest in.

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How much will an en suite bathroom cost?

The most quoted, average cost of adding a new bathroom to a house is £3000. This is inclusive of labour, fixtures, fittings and finishes like flooring, tiling and painting. However, adding a new bathroom to your house can vary in cost, depending on where your proposed bathroom is going to be. Ideally, you want to add your en-suite directly next to an existing bathroom on the same floor, or above a bathroom on the lower floor.

The issue is, it gets more expensive to add a bathroom if you have to redirect plumbing, especially soil stacks and waste pipes. It is possible to install a small bore pipe with a macerator, but this isn’t an ideal solution. You will have to factor in the day rates of a plumber, but again, it is difficult to predict how long this job is likely to take.

It is far easier to estimate how much fixtures and fittings are going to cost once plumbing has already been sorted.

Bath

A new bath will cost from £70 for a low end, acrylic model, but expect to pay from £300 – £500 for a good quality steel example. When you start looking at cast iron, stone and composite baths, expect to pay north of £1000.

Shower

Your basic electric shower is cost effective, both to buy and to run. They can cost a little as £50, but look at paying between £100 and £200 for a stylish and functional unit. Power showers start at around £200, and feature a pump that increases the force of the water. Digital showers, shower towers, shower columns and shower cabins will cost £500 and up if you want quality, and advanced models can even cost as much as £2000

Shower enclosure

Your shower enclosure is an important decision, because this will create the overall look of the shower. A shower tray and enclosure combo will probably cost you around £150, but could cost you up to £600if you want higher quality.

Wet room enclosure

A wet room will cost upwards of £500depending on the structural work required, this includes waterproofing, plumbing, the shower and a screen, if you’ve chosen one. The cost of a wet room shower can vary depending on your fixtures and fittings, and tiling it afterwards will need to be factored in.

Basin

A simple ceramic basin is an inexpensive choice and will cost upwards of £50. Basins made for vanity units are more expensive, and the cost of the unit is usually separate. These can cost around £100 for a basic unit, but on average you will pay £200 – £300.

Toilet

Toilets are much the same as basins, with ceramic, wall-mounted examples costing around £50.Expect to pay between £150 and £300 for a good quality toilet, and quite often, savings can be made by buying it in a bundle with a matching basin.

Taps and hardware

Bathroom taps often come as an afterthought when your bathroom fixtures, but they are an important addition. A statement tap is usually enough to make even the cheapest basin look high end. You can pay as little as £20 for a basic mixer, and an average of £100 for a good quality one. To get something luxurious, you can easily pay upwards of £400,but this isn’t as extravagant as it seems if you have made a saving on your sanitary ware.

Planning permission for an en suite bathroom

Adding an en suite bathroom rarely requires planning permission if the work is happening in an existing house. If you plan on adding a bathroom to a listed building, then planning permission is essential, as you will be altering the internal fabric of the building.

Building new walls for your en suite

If you are creating a complete new room or partitioning an existing room, then you will need to build extra walls. These will usually be stud walls constructed with a timber frame with plasterboard over the top. Choose water resistant plasterboard when creating a new bathroom to avoid damp.

In the case of a bathroom, you can get structural metal components that will support the weight of wall-mounted basins. The cavity in this type of wall is also perfect for concealing pipework, cisterns, wiring and additional storage

Having a stud wall built will cost you around £15 per m², not including any internal works, like plumbing and wiring, which will need to be planned out in advance.

En suite bathroom heating and plumbing

If you have a combi boiler, which provides hot water on demand rather than requiring a cylinder, you need to ensure that it has sufficient hot water flow to supply an extra bathroom. You should also check your water pressure and choose appropriate mixer taps and shower fittings.

Most people choose heated towel rails for bathrooms, rather than radiators ad these basically offer a solution to both, drying your towels, and the need to heat the room. These can cost as little as £30 for wall mounted options, and can cost as much as £500, not including installation.

Choosing lighting for your en suite bathroom

The most important factor you need to consider when you’re choosing bathroom lighting is safety. There are strict regulations on what lighting can be used in a potentially wet environment. A lights IP rating depends on its distance to the water source, and that determines the type of light you can use. The higher the rating, the better protected the light.

The bathroom is then broken up into zones that correspond with the IP ratings of certain lights.

• Zone 0 is inside the bath or shower, so the light needs an rating of at least IP67.
• Zone 1 is the area directly above the bath or shower to a height of 2.25m. IP45 is recommended, but it is always safer to go higher when this close to water.
• Zone 2 is the area stretching 0.6m from the perimeter of the bath or shower where a minimum IP rating of 44 is required.
• The outside zone is any area where water isn’t likely to go. However, if this is still within the bathroom, it’s a good idea to choose a light with a IP44, just incase.

Featured image: This en suite bathroom was created as part of a whole-house renovation. Read more about this en suite bathroom.

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