2nd View

Dimensions

Inspiration/ materials

The only thing I can see is that if you are off-setting the sink, you might re-think having 2 lights flanking a round mirror. It will look oddly placed and not give you the right view of the mirror from the sink itself if that makes a difference to you. In other words, the mirror will not be centered over the sink.

thanks outsideplaying - I thought about that for awhile, too. They're kind of space holders right now but I was thinking for utility sake, I'd rather have good symmetrical lighting for makeup etc. In our old bathroom we mounted the lights above the mirrors and it is HORRENDOUS for casting shadows. I have to turn the lights off to put my make up on! Haha this was the only way I could have it both ways. Does it make you twitchy? Do you think it would turn people off?

Can you think of a way we could do the lighting so I still get good coverage?

Your showing Bi-pass shower doors in your inspiration, yet only appear to have room for a single swing door for the shower?

Can you think of a way we could do the lighting so I still get good coverage?

Consider a full-wall mirror over the vanity and have the lights come "through" the mirror on the sides.

hi millworkman - yes we only have space for a 24" single swing door in this bathroom. This is what we have in our old bathroom and it works fine.

sjhockeyfan - that is a GREAT idea! Plus a full wall mirror would help the bathroom feel a bit bigger and brighter. Thanks for the suggestion!

I've also been kicking around the idea of doing a floating vanity (like in the inspiration pic) - might open up the space a bit more visually. I'm a little concerned with the cleats being strong enough to support a stone countertop, though.

I think there are going to be problems with the glass shower surround abutting the wood vanity. You will see the side of the vanity but not be able to access it for cleaning or maintenance and moisture will get trapped in the interface between the glass and the wood, and there will be finish deterioration. And a very small gap will still get dust in it. If there is a true gap it has to be at least 4".

You may do better having a tile pony wall or a stone counter that waterfalls into the shower pan with the glass set on top.

Likewise there is an issue with the glass going all the way to the floor next to the toilet. You will be able to clean it, but it will be sort of a pain to clean because your head will be down at the toilet level as you reach around. This too might be a good place for a pony wall although it means you lose a couple inches. Maybe you can clean this area with some sort of squeegee.

palimpsest those are both very good observations - I was thinking about the pony wall on both sides but was worried it would feel too closed in. I actually really like your idea of the stone waterfall into the shower - that would look sharp. Do you have pictures of something done like this?

I'm not as concerned with the glass by the toilet as I have that much clearance in my current bathroom and have had no problems cleaning the glass.

Thank you all for the input!!

This post was edited by Swentastic on Thu, Jul 24, 14 at 17:39

30" is just not very wide for the toilet alcove--indeed an absolute code minimum. Some areas require more.

I would also suggest doing a full mirror above the sink area and having the lights come "through" it.

I don't think I'd do a (permanent) bench in your shower. If you don't make it permanent, you can get a little more room for your toilet area. And, frankly, I am not sure how many people use their bench. The inspiration picture shows a wood "bench". I think I would consider either a fold down bench, or just a removable one (or none at all).

You might consider a less-deep vanity so that you have a little more room for your shower door, too.

I think there are many good ideas posted.

1) Pony walls instead of glass at the vanity and the toilet. Your eyes aren't going to be looking out at waist level are they, lol.

2) off set sink does offer more continuous counter space. I did this and am happy even with my sconces and the mirror centered over the whole vanity.

3) Take the built-in bench out of your plan as others have said. I have seen posts on GW where people stated they would not put a built-in bench in again, if they had the choice. You'll probably need the extra space to put the pony wall in by the toilet so you can keep the 30" needed for the toilet area.

4) Where is your heating/cooling vent coming in? I have a toe kick vent in my vanity for my heating/cooling instead of a vent on the floor.

5) instead of floating vanity, you could put in a toe kick that is a bit taller and a bit deeper than regular, to give the illusion of a floating vanity, but offer the stability of setting on the floor. I put in a dimmable LED light strip under my toe kick and it gives a look of floating at night. It is my night light. I have this in both my bathrooms now. love it.

6) are you putting in an exhaust fan?

7) Where will your switches go for lighting, fan, floor heating (if used), etc. Will it go on the exterior wall where the window is located?

If you are concerned about a floating vanity, you can do sort of a "fake float." We did this because we didn't really want to lose too much storage, but wanted the room to feel somewhat expanded in that direction. I guess it is actually a very tall toekick, maybe 9 inches, and it is about halfway back, so still provides support. The room is not big enough that you can actually see back there anyway, plus that dropped toothpaste cap can only roll so far back. We put a strip LED light under there for a nightlight. No pix yet, the room still needs a mirror and the lights installed (they are on the side and are mounted through the mirror.)

Hmm I'd never thought about the taller toe kick before - that's a great idea! Are your LEDs hardwired then?

I'm not as sold on the built-in bench as DH. I think he imagines more "steamy" shower sessions than I do (IYKWIM). I've been looking at those fold down/wooden benches and I think he's warming to the idea. I also am not totally confident in built-in benches for water tightness. Will definitely consider this. The code here for toilet space is indeed 30" - we have a little less in our current bathroom (like 28) and I'm not sure how we passed inspection. Anyway, the pony wall kind of defeats the purpose of the curbless shower but if we have to go curbed I'll definitely reconsider this. It'll be cheaper than glass!

enduring that vanity is amazing - I love the idea of furniture as fixtures. Very classy and thanks for the advice! We'll have an exhaust fan installed where the heat lamps are currently - those things terrify me!! All the electricity is wired to the exterior wall, you are correct. We're having new ductwork run through the entire house, so I'll have to consult with the HVAC guy next week about where to put the vent - it'll come up from below so I'd probably have him mount it under the glass block window on the floor. I do like the idea of putting it under the vanity though - and it would be even easier if we did the tall recessed toe kick like you guys have mentioned. Do you find that your lotions and stuff stay nice and warm in the winter? Haha added bonus! Again, great ideas!

What do you all think about in-floor heating? Would it work under a "wet-room" situation? I'm having my doubts about the life expectancy of those electrical systems and doubly worried about it setting my house on fire. Since we're ripping out an existing bathroom, I'm not sure what the subfloor looks like. Would the thickness of the electric tiles under the floor screw up the slope for the bathroom? We're having hardwoods installed in the bedroom and I don't don't don't want a transition strip in the doorway - in fact I'm not even sure if we can with the pocket door. Either way I'm worried the extra thickness plus the mortar he'll need to use for the tile plus then the tile on top would put us above where we'd need to be to have a flush transition with the wood. Did you guys contend with that?

I'm puzzled about how you are going to slope the whole floor with a curbless shower sloped to a linear drain at the toilet end. With curbless, the drain must be something like 2" below the entry to the room. (I think). Will your toilet lean to one side?? (just kidding) Will that end of the shower floor be 2" lower than the floor that the toilet sits on? Am I missing something here?

-Babka

Edit: Ah, drain against outside wall. OK. I would put it on the floor against the shower the wall with the shower head.

With your bench directly under the shower, it would be tough to shave legs, as the running water would wash off all the soap, unless you turn off the water to lather up? I wouldn't have a bench there. Just a nice linear drain.

Think about a 20" pony wall at the toilet end. That would give you a nice height to put in a corner ledge for shaving or whatever.

This post was edited by Babka on Sat, Jul 26, 14 at 13:44