What does "Already have a corner whirlpool tub and two matching 46" furniture style vanities" mean?

We have already purchased these items and have them in storage. Thanks

Shrink the top walk in closet to hold a stackable washer and dryer and expand the other walk in closet?

use the linen by the shower as the laundry (stacked). Turn the toilet so it has a room running "E-W" in this plan (with top being north). So, you enter the bath straight in rather than at an angle? See how that fits for you.

uhm, I HOPE I'm wrong but it looks to me like the two vanities shown in the floor plan are 36" wide. If you bought 46" wide vanities, I don't think they will fit. I'm hoping that your vanities are actually 36" wide and you just made a typo.

If not, your sketch shows the bathroom is 15'10 wide. The walk-in closet is 4'0" wide, the toilet room needs to be 2'8" wide at a minimum. It would be better if it were 3'0" wide. The two walls of the toilet room will take up another 8". That totals 7'6" which leaves you 8'4" for a vanity and the tub. Typically corner tubs are 5'0" wide which would leave you just 3'4" for the vanity. That is 6" LESS room than you need. Similar math appears to hold true for the vertical dimension.

So, before you worry about trying to fit a washer and dryer into the space, you might want to verify the dimensions of the tub and vanities that you already own and make sure THEY will fit.

And actually, I'd want the closet next to the toilet room to be about 6" wider. Clothing on a clothes rod takes up about 24" of space. That means you" have a 2' wide aisle in that closet. Reaching clothing hung down near the window is going to be a bit like walking into a tunnel. Although the window will help to alleviate the tunnel feeling a little bit, sunlight can fade clothing so you'll prob

ably want to keep the window curtained most of the time.
At 4' x 6', the closet at the top (with parallel clothes rods) will also only have a 2' wide aisle but since it is only 4' deep, you won't have to walk so far in so the narrow aisle won't be as bad.

Thanks to all for the suggestions. We currently have one bath (no shower) shared by our family of 5. Our bedroom closet is 24" deep by 54" wide. Pretty much any set up will be an improvement, but we are realizing we do not like our house plan so much...

Yes - the vanities are 46"

This is a little better, but

-no linen closet
-a stackable w/d in closet is a possibility
-is dryer dust an issue in the closet?
-DW not keen on going thru the bath to get to the closet

Thanks again folks

Unfortunately, somewhat like budget-line clothing, Don Gardner plans tend to "run a bit small." They look great but folks often find they must go up a size to get them to fit.

Are you absolutely stuck with using this floor plan? Even if you've already purchased a license for the plan, as long as you haven't already started building it, it might be a good idea to scrap the plan and find one that better fits your needs. Or, if you like the design in general, it might be possible to expand the plan a little bit and make it work. Sometimes it only takes a few extra inches...

I would imagine that if you've already started building, you have some rough plumbing (drainage lines) already in place that limit how much you can move some of the fixtures around. But, you may still have some freedom to make interior framing changes that could give you a bit more square footage in the bath. For example, would it be possible to move the bedroom door so that the approx 3'x3' space immediately above the linen closet is incorporated into the master suite space? Or, assuming that that is the foyer to the right of the bath, would it be possible to steal a portion of that space?

If there are any options for expanding the space available, maybe we can come up with some better options. We'll need to know the dimensions of your whirlpool tub (get the installation specs), the minimum sized shower stall you can live with, AND it would help if we knew which Don Gardner plan this is.

In the second plan you are looking at a 5x12 walk in closet? That is too narrow for 2 racks of hanging clothes, so you'd have one rack (with good access to it) but it wouldn't be very long when you add in the washer & dryer.

Have you thought about not having a WIC at all? Can you incorporate a good bit of reach-in closet space? Reach in closets are 2.5' wide and if you can fit them along a wall of the bedroom then the space you stand in (when reaching into the closet) is also floor space for the room.

I have to agree with your DH, having to go through the bathroom to get to the closet is less than desirable in my book as well. If I forgot a belt or want to quickly change shirts, I just want to get it and GO.

The plan is cottonwood. I will have to get the tub instructions tonight. The MBR door could potentially move, but we probably need a little transition from the great room? We did expand the width of the MBR by one foot (moved the wall with 2 windows outward).

WIC is not a must. Perhaps the extra width of the bedroom allows for reach in closets on the wall shared with the fireplace? What then with the bath?

I see that on the Cottonwood plan, you have a small closet tucked under the staircase that COULD be used for guest's coats instead of the front entry closet that is across from the powder room. So I thought maybe you might not mind stealing the front entry closet space for yourself! By doing that and moving the bedroom entry door, I came up with this....

Note also that, if you prefer, the door on "her closet" could probably swing inward although you might be limited to a 28" wide door if you did that. I was thinking 32" wide doors as I did the sketch.

P.S. If you're adding up dimensions to check my math, don't forget to add the 4" for each wall. Oh, and DO check the specifications on that tub. While most are 5'x5', a few are bigger and a few are smaller. And you want to think about whether you want any sort of deck built around the edge of the tub. If you do, you COULD make the toilet room shorter and the shower and his closet a tiny bit narrower to provide room for a narrow deck. I wouldn't want to go any narrower on the shower than 3'0" tho.

If this is on the first floor I would add a window on the other tub wall. If it is the first floor, your 2 bathroom windows will be right next to the front door and will always need to have the blinds closed.

Well done, Bevangel! I like that. And, to get to all the linens, the door (or cabinet openings, if not a true door) should be facing the hallway. It will be much too deep (as Bevangel has shared with me before) otherwise.

Good call Kirkhall! I was originally thinking that the stacked washer/dryer might be able to fit in the space between the shower and hallway but, with the shower 5'0" long, the leftover space (2'2") is just a bit too narrow. When I swapped the Washer/dryer and linen closet, I forgot to reorient that opening. You're right that it would function better with the opening toward the hall.

And, I'd probably make the linen area a built-in cupboard with double cabinet doors instead of a "closet." One could even have upper cabinet doors that were decorative glass and use the upper part of the linen cupboard space to display nicknacks while stashing linens away in the lower part.

Chispa, I'd normally agree with you about having not bathroom windows right next to the front door - especially since this Cottonwood plan is a traditional farmhouse with a wrap-around porch which means those windows open out onto the front porch where people are likely to gather.

But I get the sense that OP has already purchased these plans and can now only make minimal changes. So moving the bathroom to another location entirely is probably out of the question and the house's front elevation needs those two front bathroom windows for balance.

However, for windows where you need privacy but don't want to keep curtains closed all the time, one can get textured glass like glue chip, or "rain glass", or frosted glass, or something like that. There are even films that can be added to the regular clear window glass reasonably cheaply that will allow light in but obsure images enough for privacy. So I don't think having the bathroom windows opening out onto the front porch right beside the front door is an insurmountable problem.

Looks pretty good. A couple of quick notes:
We are building this on a basement, so no closet space under stairs.
Basement has been poured.
We've never had a separate area for the toilet, maybe we can save some space by having it more open.
Bevangel - the bedroom door relocation looks promising.
We are in the middle of nowhere, so no real worries about the windows.
We may need to go with a 36 or 48 inch one piece shower instead of tile to keep the project cost under control.
You guys are great - thanks again.

Thanks for sharing the interesting topic... Your discussion is really very good on bathroom.

No closet space under the stairs??? Dang, I guess that means you really need that entry closet to stay an entry closet. :-(

I'm working on another idea but need to know the exact measurement of the section of wall that contains the bedroom door in your original drawing. (i.e., from where the 3'6" measurement ends going toward the right until you hit the bedroom wall. In other words, if we drop the right hand bedroom wall down to create a hallway like I did in my sketch, exactly wide is that hallway from left to right. I also need to know how deep your 46" vanities are. Usually vanities are about 20" deep but yours might be different and that could make a difference.

Also, if you're thinking of going with a pre-fab shower unit, you should definitely pick out the one you think you want so that the design can incorporate a space for it. It is actually easier to design around the idea of having a custom tiled shower because then an inch or so one way or another doesn't really matter. But when you're trying to make a prefab fit, you HAVE to have enough space for it. So if you haven't picked anything out yet, the design has to leave extra room to ensure that something WILL fit.

DON'T actually buy a pre-fab shower tho until AFTER the design is done... just in case we can't figure out how to make your first choice fit. But, pick one out and post the specs. Better yet, pick out a couple of different sized/shaped prefab units that you would be happy with and post the specs for both. Take a look at neo-round and neo-angle showers also. I have a 37" neo-round shower form Maax in one of my bathrooms and really like it. I think I might be able to make a 42" neo angle shower like the one shown below fit in your space AND still find room to give you a walk-in closet.

Need to know those measurements tho before I'll know for sure.

Here is a link that might be useful: Neo Angle shower

46" is an odd non-standard size for a vanity. It's not something you would be able to pick up just anywhere. It would have to be custom made. 36" is standard and 48" is standard. 46"=custom. Are you sure that you have the correct measurements?

36" is small for a daily used shower, especially a master shower. I would not want less than a 42"x42" for a master and would prefer a 42"x48". Those cheap fiberglass units are pretty awful too. You can do a tile shower with simple cheap tile almost as inexpensively as a fiberglass unit. Just make it a standard size and use a prefab pan, and only use tile on the wall in an interesting pattern, like a diagonal with a band of listellos.

I think I may have a solution. Drum roll please....

Note that this gives you the option of either using a prefab neo-angle or neo-round shower in a size to 42"x 42" (blue) or having a custom tiled shower built with a pan size up to about 36"x 54". Might even be able to go a little bigger but I didn't want to crowd the toilet too much or make it too hard to install the stacked washer/dryer combo.

I stuck a built-in bookcase on the LivingRoom side of the linen cabinet because I find that things tend to get lost at the back of linen cabinets that are too deep. But you could skip the bookcase or make it shallower if you prefer a deeper linen cabinet. I envision double cabinet doors (maybe with glass inserts) on the top to show off pretty towels and things, and a single solid cabinet door at the bottom where you could put away less pretty items.

Oh, and if it turns out that live wire oak is right and your vanities are really 48" wide, the closet and built-in bookcase can easily be shrunk by 2 inches to give you the extra room you need.

I envision the window over the toilet being either a small round or octagonal window (about 18" diameter) set at eye level so there would be no need to curtain it but you would get little natural light into that part of the bathroom.

Can't wait to hear what you think.

This looks really good. I appreciate the flexibility given for vanity width and tub ledge. We may still add a closet to the wall of the bedroom as well. Would it make sense to add a couple feet of wall from the bedroom door toward the right side of the plan going under the balcony to give a little hallway effect? We will have a bookcase between this wall and fireplace.

Would it make sense to add a couple feet of wall from the bedroom door toward the right side of the plan going under the balcony to give a little hallway effect?

I don't think that would be a good idea. Unless you're willing to go at least 3 ft toward the right, you create a problem with the bedroom door partially blocking the hall to the bathroom. As shown on my sketch, the bedroom door can swing almost 180 degrees so it sits back against the wall out of the way when opened. If you have a hallway, the door would only be able to open 90 degrees until it hit the wall. Unless the hallway is at least as long as the door is wide, the tip of the door will stick out into the bath hallway.

What you could do is create an arched opening in front of the bedroom door. If you're going to have a bookcase starting right where the edge of the balcony is, then it would look good to build the arch out to the same depth as the bookcase. That would give your bedroom door an "inset" look.

Bear in mind too that you need to get furniture into the bedroom. Two relatively narrow halls at right angles plus a door could be REALLY difficult to navigate furniture through.

The arch idea would do the trick - thanks so much!

I am one of those people who doesn't mind going through the bathroom to get to the closet. I have it in this house, I had it in my previous house. One thing I actually like about it is that there are fewer doors in the master bedroom.

*However*, if the closet is through the master bath, I would consider an enclosed toilet room essential. (We didn't have it in the last house and do on this one.)

There are lots of couples who prefer privacy when using the toilet--and having the toilet open to the shower and to the closet means more negotiation to get any privacy.

This may or may not be an issue for you--but it is for many. Personally, I'd MUCH rather have an enclosed toilet room than an extra w/d stack in the master.

Bevangle's most current plan would make me feel very exposed on the toilet, even if I had the room to myself. Think about it--are you used to or would you be comfortable with, having 10-12' in front of you when sitting there? It works for space, but I don't think I'd be comfortable with the plan.

bethohio3 - that's a good point to be raised, but simply not an issue for us.