Small Home Appliances

How to fit a small bathroom shower


What do you do if you want to install a shower but you only have a very small bathroom?

While I love my bathtub for the rare occasions that I get to use it for a long relaxing soak, I don’t know what I would do without my shower. Showers are quick, refreshing and a lot more economical than taking baths. When I had the chance to redesign my small bathroom I jumped at the opportunity to improve the shower that was installed above the bathtub at the time.

The first thing to remember is that there usually is a way to do these things and you mustn’t give up before you’ve really thought about the problem. Don’t be put off by the fact that you don’t seem to have much room to play with in your bathroom design.

So what are the options?

Throw the bathtub away


Taking out the bathtub will give you more than enough room to fit a sizeable shower enclosure. Unfortunately you won’t have a bath anymore. While this might fit in well with your current lifestyle you might want to think about what you might have need of a few years down the line and when you come to sell your property.

When you sell a property you must have a bathroom with a bathtub even if it has a great shower instead. People expect to find a bath in the bathroom and the lack of one can seriously depress the value of your property.

Put your shower in your bathtub


If you have no other option you can install a showerhead above your bathtub together with a shower curtain or splashguard. This should be the easiest solution, as it will take up no additional floor space. Personally I’m not keen on this option.

Turn your bathroom into a wet room


This is an ambitious design that will involve turning the floor of your entire bathroom into a giant shower base and drain. It can be a very expensive option to convert a conventional bathroom into wet room but it has the advantage of allowing you to put your small bathroom shower anywhere you like. Even over the toilet if you want to although I wouldn’t advise it.

Install a curved quadrant shower cubicle


The option that I like best for any bathroom is to install a separate shower enclosure either free standing in the room or in a corner of the bathroom. This is a great solution if you can find the space to accommodate the shower enclosure.

The problem with this idea is finding the space in a small bathroom to fit the shower enclosure. Enclosures come in various sizes so you will need first of all to decide on the smallest size that you think you can live with. Even a very small shower enclosure is better than none at all.

To make the space available you should consider the whole small bathroom design. Find a smaller toilet and washbasin and even a smaller bathtub if you have to. Use squared paper and cut out shapes to try many different ways of arranging everything.

Finally look at curved quadrant shower enclosures as a space saving alternative to square or rectangular ones. Finding one of these was the turning point in my small bathroom shower design. Everything fell into place nicely after that.

Read the full article at Small Bathroom Shower

When choosing accessories for your bathroom, you may want something a bit more subdued than bright chrome for your fixtures and towel bars. While you may prefer metallic finishes, shiny gold plated or brass faucets and towel rings may be a bit too outdated for your taste. Brushed nickel bathroom accessories will give a metallic look that will go with many styles of cabinets, bathroom decor, flooring and linens.

You can purchase pieces separately or as a bathroom accessory set. You will need hardware for the sink including the drain, a towel bar, a towel ring, a robe hook, and toilet paper holder. Provided you only need one of each of those things, it is quite a bit less expensive to buy in a set than separate purchases. You can order some of the Fontaine bathroom in box items online or get them at your local home store. They come in modern as well as traditional styles and you can often find cabinet hardware to match. Searching online takes some time but will save you quite a bit of money if you have the time.

Moen makes a beautiful line of brushed nickel bathroom accessories. The Cabrina collection offers towel bars, rings, robe hooks, and toilet paper holders with a dramatically curved post for an elegant look. They also have door hardware, cabinet pulls, mirrors, outlet covers, and switch plates in the same beautiful finish to complete your remodel. Due to the popularity of the brushed nickel finish, there a quite a few complimentary pieces for your bathroom. Framed wall mirrors, shelving, hampers, shower curtain rings and waste paper baskets can all be found.

Brass and chrome have long been popular finishes for kitchen and bath accessories, but brushed nickel is now the most popular choices. It’s soft stain finish works well in modern as well as traditional homes. It is also much easier to care for. Chrome and brass are beautiful when first installed and polished but require considerably more effort to keep them looking like new and quite often the finish will come off which requires replacement.

Metallic finishes are the fashion right now and the trend has carried over into home accessories. Brushed nickel bathroom accessories will give a tired old bathroom and new modern look for much less than the cost of a complete remodeling. All you need is a few free hours a screwdriver, and some patience to transform your bathroom.

Your beautiful bathroom picture gallery

I’m always surprised when I hear of people who embark upon lengthy and expensive bathroom remodeling projects but don’t bother to record progress in any way. It only takes a few minutes to photograph all aspects of your bathroom especially if you have a digital camera, and the results will serve you well as both a tool in the redesign and as a talking point and reminder for the future.

What you must remember when you’re about to begin your bathroom remodel is that your bathroom is never again going to look like it does now. Once all the fixtures have been ripped out, all the ceramic tiles hacked off the wall and the floor covering is lifted, it’s never going to look the same again. In fact you won’t even recognise it.

Try to look forward a few weeks to the point in time when your bathroom remodel is complete and you are admiring it for the first time. You are going to wish that you had taken a few pictures of the bathroom before it was remodeled because you’re already having trouble remembering what it used to look like.

Bathroom remodeling picture – Before work starts

Why should you bother to record a picture of bathroom renovations in this way? Well first of all you are going to forget what your bathroom looked like before the redesign. You might not think it now but you will and even if you don’t you’re going to have a hard time explaining what it looked like to anyone that asks.

If you take pictures of your bathroom before remodeling then you will have a permanent record of what it looked like to refresh your memory and to show to your friends. The pictures that I took of my small bathroom before remodeling began are a constant reminder to me of how bad it was and they more than justify my decision to spend the money on the bathroom makeover.

The before and after bathroom remodel picture gallery from my small bathroom renovation can be viewed at Pictures of Bathrooms Before and After Remodeling

Bathroom remodeling picture – While work is in progress

I like to make a visual record of any major work I have done by taking pictures at regular intervals as the work progresses. If you photograph your bathroom say once a day it will give you the opportunity to review the work as it evolves in your own time. Pay particular attention to any detailed work being carried out and be sure to photograph any new pipe work that hasn’t been boxed in yet.

Pictures of pipe work and other detail that hasn’t yet been covered up can come in very handy later if you ever need to have more work done on your bathroom. The pictures will show you exactly where the pipes and other concealed features are located. You will also be able to examine the quality of joints and bends in the plumbing and identify any problems early.

You might also want to use some of your pictures to point out to your contractors any problems that you want them to correct. I like to take work-in-progress pictures like this when the contractors aren’t around so that I can poke around in places they might not want me to go.

Bathroom remodeling picture – After the dust settles

Any new bathroom picture that you take after remodeling has been completed will be amongst the most satisfying of all the pictures in your visual record. At this time your bathroom looks clean, bright, uncluttered and the ceramic tiles are gleaming. You will want to refer to these pictures often to make sure that you keep your beautiful bathroom looking the same as it does now.

All your friends will be interested in seeing your before and after bathroom remodeling pictures especially if they are considering doing something similar themselves. Make sure that you show off the dream bathroom picture that you have created for yourself and be proud of it.

Even in today’s Real Estate market the return on investment for a Bathroom remodel ranges between 80 – 90%. The key, of course, is to plan, and choose wisely before purchasing your bathroom components. Bathroom vanity furniture comes in all heights, widths, and shapes. Since the vanity is generally the only piece of furniture that you will purchase for your bathroom, getting it right is crucial. Three things to consider when purchasing a bathroom vanity are; height, width, and style.

Measuring your bathroom is the first step in the planning process for any remodel. This will provide you with a good feel for the location of items such as doors, windows, and electrical outlets. These fixtures are important to consider when allocating space for your bathroom vanity furniture. There needs to be enough space for the bathroom door to swing freely without hitting your newly purchased vanity. Keeping the various electrical outlets open, and available, must also be considered. There can also be restrictions in the local building codes for proper placement of vanities, proximate to electrical outlets. Accidently covering over the only outlets in a bathroom can cause additional functional problems. The proximity to other components; tub, toilet, and shower needs to be considered as well. You always want to leave enough space between each fixture to allow for easy cleaning, and for a larger individual to be comfortable in the room.

There are not specific standards for the height of a bathroom vanity. However taking the time to consider who the primary users of the bathroom will be, is helpful in selecting the correct height. If the bathroom is to be used by family members, and guests, choosing the more conventional 32 to 34 inch cabinet is sensible. Remember, cabinets that are taller than standard will be difficult for a child to manage, and anything lower than standard will be uncomfortable for most adults. Today’s trend in bathrooms is to have taller bathroom vanity furniture, more similar in height to those cabinets that are found in any kitchen. However, it is your bathroom, so making it work for your specific needs, while incorporating your desired style elements, is really the most important factor.

The width of the vanity is critical. The first consideration is how wide can it be, and still fit through the bathroom door. Many bathroom vanities come pre-constructed; however, there are also expandable or collapsible vanities available. Their design allows them to be installed in any bathroom regardless of the restrictions imposed by a narrow bathroom door. The vanity door swing, and drawer size also need to be considered. A vanity door that is too wide can result in restricted space, and limited human movement. It is important to remember that there needs to be enough room for the bathroom door to open comfortably without damaging your new furniture. Door dings are unpleasant, and will happen if the space it too tight. In addition a too tight fit can create a safety hazard, that with proper planning, can be avoided.

Cabinet style is also critical. Style sets the overall tone for your bathroom design. Keep in mind that a vanity cabinet that is too large or too tall will make your bathroom feel small, and cramped, however, a vanity that is too small for the space will just look lost, and out-of-place. If choosing a vessel sink, the top of the cabinet needs to be lower than standard in order to allow for the height of the sink bowl to be comfortably accessed. The use of a vessel sink however, does allow for more drawers, and under cabinet storage space. A standard recessed sink limits this available space.

As the bathroom is the room that gets used by everyone, multiple times a day, design flaws will be noticed quickly, and could be costly to remediate. So right size your vanity choice. Figuring out what size bathroom vanity furniture will best fit the space that is available is a good place to start and will go a long way in regard to your overall satisfaction when you are finished with remodeling your bathroom.

The times have certainly changed. A decade ago, bathroom designers saw the first inklings of what has become the latest style of furniture for the bathroom. The do it yourselfer homeowners and bathroom designers both were first considering the conversion of their vanities from antique cabinets for their baths and bedrooms.

This was no easy risk for them to take. It can be risky to store wood antiques in a sun drenched or steamy bathroom. In addition, there waste the potential risk of structural damage due to the installation of a basin, filled with water, no less, in the top of a beautiful antique cabinet.

These days, it isn’t necessary to take such risks. As a result of the increasing availability of durable and beautiful bathroom furniture, vanities that standalone are becoming increasingly popular with all types of homeowners, in spite of the type of home that they live in.

These days, a bathroom vanity looks like a normal piece of bathroom furniture. They have been that way in Europe for a long time, it just took a while for the trend to become popular in the US. This type of furniture is becoming ever increasingly more popular all across the country. One of the reasons for this surge of popularity is that the idea of plain old luxury has become increasingly popular to consumers who want a break from their everyday worries and rushed lives. This is readily apparent in their bathrooms that have been a great escape. The utilitarian vanity of yesterday has become a beautiful piece of furniture which provides the ultimate getaway from that which is usual.

These days, bathrooms are also becoming bigger, sometime as big as 300 sq. ft. That space has to be filled with something besides countertop, and a bathroom vanity fills the bill nicely. Conversely, there are powder rooms and half baths that are great places for this type of vanity.

The homeowner is willing to use a vanity that is freestanding in a small bathroom since it doesn’t cost as much to experiment as it does with a big bathroom. In addition, the homeowner is more willing to deviate from the style of the rest of the house. They will try a French contemporary vanity although the rest of the house is of the Asian persuasion.

Another good fit for our society that is mostly transient is portable bathroom furniture. People move around more than they used to they want to keep those items that they really appreciate and admire about their houses. They want to use items that they can take with them when they move such as a really nice looking baker’s rack or an armoire, and the other usual types of furniture pieces.