A few suggestions:

* Consider not only a one-piece w.c. but a skirted model such as those from Price-Pfister (pictured) and Toto that don't mirror the swirly waste passages inside the appliance. Also, be sure to get an insulated tank model. That may be the cause of the mould you're dealing with.

* Tie in the fan to the light switch. In fact, sometimes Code has required me to do just that. But since a fan should be running for sometime after showering is over, a timer switch could be used too. If nobody is using even the light, a motion detector switch could be used.

* I didn't know anyone still made those 1980s style tracked doors. Instead, use the swinging door style.

* Smooth tile baseboards can be used instead of wood. Look good and easier to clean.

Could it be that the real source of your aggravation is that everyone but you treats it like a public bathroom? "Not my job to clean Buddy!"

This post was edited by worthy on Mon, Aug 26, 13 at 22:30

They recommend 36" as minimum spacing now for toilets. (30" is still the minimum in many locales).

Here is what I am doing in my bathrooms (which will probably end up with 30" toilet spacing because they are tiny).

Tile with sanitary base at the floor and to a height of at least to 36"-40" around the room.

Skirted or concealed trapway toilets. (Smooth on the outside).

One toilet will be wall hung with a concealed (in the wall between the studs) tank.

Tile all the way to ceiling and maybe the ceiling in the tub/shower area. (One tub/shower will be Swanstone solid surface wall panels).

The shower is getting a one piece shower base, either terrazzo or cast iron. No tile shower floors.

Vitreous china vanity tops, or some kind of seamless vanity tops, no caulk joint around the sink

Widespread faucets so there is plenty of room between the handles and faucet to clean.

The vanities are being built into an alcove so the counters are attached to the walls on each three sides and there is only a "front". One of the vanities, at least, will not have a floor. The tile floor will extend all the way underneath, but you will be able to clean under it by opening the door under the sink.

No glass shower doors. It is much easier to be able to take a curtain down, throw it in the wash, bleach it , and have full access to all the walls for cleaning.

Vinyl wall covering above the tile.

Minimal organized storage in the bathroom vanity. A closet outside the bathroom to store everything that is not used daily and the towels that are not being used.

Heated towel radiators in the bathroom.

Seamless shower alcoves or a single high shelf for shampoo and soap. No tiled alcoves with inside seams.

One client wanted to have a drain in the middle of the bathroom floor and a spigot so she could connect up a hose and just hose the whole thing down. We looked into it but the entire bathroom would have had to been constructed like a shower pan. It was possible but we didn't think her contractors would get it right.

Mrs Pete-
When we vacationed in st croix the house we rented was tiled everywhere on the floor. The bathrooms were tiled on the floor and halfway up the walls without any baseboard trim. I loved it. Everything flowed from floor to walls/shower seamlessly. I know they did it from a moisture standpoint, but every time I was in there I kept thinking that it was a perfect cleaning solution! There really wasn't much of an edge anywhere. The top of the tile was at shoulder height and was just a top tile piece, and easy to access.
Been thinking the same thoughts as you!
Jen

We have fans on timers in every bathroom, even our powder room. I can't imagine NOT using a fan to remove moisture or, ahem, odors. I set my bath fan before I step into the shower and have it continue for 20 minutes after I'm out. We don't have an insulated toilet, it's in a smallish alcove with the shower and I've never had mold.

Dust is another matter and one thing I've learned is certain brands of toilet paper create a massive amount of fuzzy dust which of course gets trapped in the type of alcoves you and I both have. I don't remember which are the worst offenders anymore, but there's a big difference in cleaning for me now.

You may not have shower door issues in your next bath but the one you have can be cleaned and you can get rid of the 'gunk'. Take the door(s) off the track - they are easy to put back, even I can do it! Then you can access the entire track and the bottom of the door(s). Put a nice layer of old towels on your bathroom floor first so you have a soft place to put the door and work on cleaning it.

They now make sliding shower doors that don't have a track but a sloped edge so the water drains into the tub.

I have a glass shower door that I love...I HATE shower curtains as they always attack when you're showering...scientists have even studied why that is so and it has to do with air flow and temperature changes with the running hot water.

I have seen wall-hung toilets in a residential situation...they look more modern but are much easier to clean than the floor ones...but they also look commercial. I've seen too the toilets with the wall mounted flusher unit so it's easier to clean, though I don't know what you'd "jiggle" if the toilet started running and would imagine any plumbing repair would require breaking drywall.
{{gwi:1492769}}

I think a urinal would be key to keeping toilets clean and if you want to spend the bucks, you can get extremely fancy ones...though there too, the fancier the harder to clean.

I wish I knew what my vacuum or mop was going to be before we installed the bathroom as then I would've made room for the mop to fit in on each side of the toilet. I also would've had the plumber make the water feed line higher so it would be easier to clean under. But when you're in the middle of 10,000 decisions, some just fall under the radar and you leave it to the pros to figure out.

Hi....coming from a mom of 6 boys....I know a thing about bathroom mess!!! We have the toilet shown above and I really like it. Also, having enough room all around it, that I can easily fit my shark steam cleaner helps so much.

Not sure if you have heard of "Fly Lady" or not....google if interested. She has changed my life and thousands more claim the same. She really helps you get a grip on organizing and cleaning, etc. She is a firm believer in a daily "swish and swipe" of the bathrooms and it makes a huge difference on doing huge "deep cleans!" Just thought I would mention if interested :)

I think some sort of tiled walls would be nice perhaps, as long as the grout is not an issue. We had an insanely expensive shower pan made from cultured granite and then tiled the rest. I DID NOT want grout and tile on the floor of our shower. It looks amazing and cleans wonderful and feels great underfoot. I'm also am a huge fan of NO SHOWER DOORS!!!

I think you are getting some great responses, again I feel the biggies are....an easy to clean, stream-lined toilet, plenty of room around the toilet, no shower doors, and to be careful with grout (shower pans, etc). I used to think the boys bath should be all hard solid surface with a drain and a power sprayer. I envisioned myself just power spraying from floor to ceiling, wall to wall and being done :)

The flush mechanisms for the concealed tank are accessible through the flush panel. Remove that and you can make adjustments and repairs.

More space for the toilet is a must. I think I'm even willing to sacrifice a bit of vanity space for this purpose.

Insulated tank . . . I don't know about this but will investigate.

I definitely see the point in the "skirted model".

Our current fan IS tied into the light switch, but I think part of the problem is that we aren't necessarily using the light switch all that often. Because the bathroom has two windows, it isn't dark during the day.

Another issue is that our bathroom is very large, and we have two separate light fixtures. I prefer the lighting from the one in the middle of the room, which means I'm not using the one connected to the fan as often. I'm definitely getting the idea that this is one of our big problems. Our new bathroom will be smaller than our current one, and we'll have only one overhead light.

The "1980s style doors" are probably from . . . the 1980s. Yeah, a change is in order, but it's not tops on my list. For our current bath, I'm considering ditching the doors and going with a curtain.

However, at this moment I'm thinking about planning for our new bath more than fixing our current one. I know, not particularly logical.

I'm fully convinced that tile is the only option. We're not building on a shoestring, so I can have all the tile I want.

Concealed tank -- isn't this a bit risky? We occasionally have troubles with the tank, and we need to look inside. If it's concealed, this would be very difficult. What is a flush panel?

I think I like the idea of building a no-sides vanity. That's something I hadn't previously considered.

Yes, I'd already thought of using wide-spread faucets -- or perhaps even wall-mounted faucets.

Yes, toilet paper dust is an issue. I do always buy the same brand. Perhaps a switch is in order.

Placing the water feed a little higher is a great idea. I'll add it to my list of 1000 things. This is why I'm reading these boards a full two years in advance of building. I learn little things every week, and I write them down. I'm sure I'll be an annoying client once we begin building, but I hope to end up with a house filled with little things that make life slightly easier.

Thanks for the thoughts. I'm open to more.

All of the working parts of the inside of the tank are accessible through a panel that contains the buttons you push to flush the toilet.

Here is a link that might be useful: In-wall tank system.

This is very simple but it helps me: I keep a squeegee in the shower and I squeegee the walls and seat after every shower. It's a fairly good sized shower with 2 large glass walls plus a small angled glass wall, and two tiled walls. But it only takes me a minute to squeegee it all off, and the whole thing stays easier to clean and I have less of a problem with mold in the grout because it dries faster.

We too, in our old place, after we redid the bathroom, dried the tile after each shower and I never really needed to be scrubbed in the several years we lived there, and developed only one tiny spot of mildew, which seemed to be a combination of being near where the most water hit the tile when the shower was occupied and a small joint in the caulk.

It literally took seconds to dry off the tile and the bathroom didn't need a deep scrubbing in years. I don't know that you could expect kids to do this really.

In our master bath we have two fans. One is over the toilet area and is motion activated. The 2nd is over the shower and tub area and is turned on with a switch. This bathroom stays less humid and cleaner than our other bath with only one fan.

Make sure you fan is actually venting completely out of the house and is the right size for your room. Also, people forget to clean their fans. Take them apart once a year for cleaning.

We also use a squeegee in the tiled shower. Actually I'm the only one who uses it but it really makes a difference.

DH wanted to put a drain the in the tile floor in case the toilet overflowed. The town would not allow it. Said that is what insurance is for.

I agree with one of your current problems being too much square footage in the bathroom. I hate the recent trend of oversized bathrooms. We've looked at houses with master baths so large you could put an island in the middle.

In our hope-to-break-ground-very-soon build, we kind of made an L-shaped design so there is some privacy from the entrance to bath and not a lot of wasted floor space.

We are not having baseboards ANYWHERE. Actually, they will be there, but the drywall will be on the same plane so it will just look like the wall goes all the way down to floor. I hate dusting & painting baseboards - especially behind toilets.

We will have a ceiling fan in the bathroom in addition to the vent fan. This is mostly because I like a fan when I'm drying my hair. We did this in a previous house and loved the air movement after showers. We live in a humid climate so quickly moving the air will hopefully make a difference in cleaning, too.

Putting more space into the shower so if ever needed, will be wheelchair accessible. This allows for no door or curtain.

Not getting a huge tub. We've lived in enough houses over the years that I know the annoying, time-eating things. Don't like a tub that is so large I have to step into it to reach the other side for cleaning the ledge. We'll eventually get a hot tub outside for the soaking & relaxing needs.

Our bath vent is on a timer so you press a button and it automatically runs for 15 min and stops. The fan unit is in the attic hanging off the rafters on chains so it is absolutely silent.

I've always hated those hotel rooms with the loud fans connected to the light switch so I was sure to be awakened for every trip DH made to the potty all night long...

This is a great topic, Mrs. Pete.

I have a few questions/comments:

We are renovating and when the plumber ran the water lines to our current toilets after switching to pex pipes, he ran the pipes through the bathroom floor instead of the the wall behind the toilet as they had been previously (the existing toilet alcoves are very narrow). This is really annoying, so speak up and make sure the plumber does not do that to you. We now can't fit a mop around the floor of the toilet to clean, so I have to clean on hands and knees and flopped around a toilet with a cloth (we also have three boys LOL). Can anybody with a better plumbing background guess why our plumber might have run the lines through the floor rather than the walls where the copper pipes were previously? We are considering having him return to redo it as the wall are not dry walled yet.

I wondered about Flint's comment about not having sticking out baseboards. Does that mean, Flint, you will just not hang your drywall to the ground and mount your baseboards to the studs behind instead of on the drywall? That is certainly an idea worth exploring, or just having tile instead of baseboards as mentioned by others.

There is a book on this topic. I wish I could remember the title, but I think it was something using the key words low maintenance house. Anybody know which book I am referring to?

Carol

This is what flush baseboard looks like. This one has a reveal at the top which is fairly typical: This needs to be planned pretty much from the framing stage because it is much easier to rough cut drywall to length and then cover over any gaps with baseboard. It's a more expensive detail.

Something like this needs to be done, creating a clean edged recess for the baseboard to fit into and of course the bottom edge has to be parallel with the floor so that it all looks even. In typical construction, that's easier said than done.

Off-topic a bit, but a bounce-off from those of you who keep a squeegee in your bathroom: I keep a dishwashing wand (meaning one of those things that holds liquid dish soap in the handle and is good for washing glassware by hand) in my shower. I fill the handle with 50% original Dawn dishwashing liquid and 50% white vinegar. I have handicapped bars in my shower, so the wand just "hangs" on the bar. It cleans super-quick and easy. Every couple days -- after my shower, while everything's still wet -- I run over the walls with this thing, then I turn the water back on and rinse the walls with the handheld shower. WORKS GREAT on both the walls and the glass door.

Back to the topic . . .

I love the idea of two fans -- so obvious, but I don't think I'd have thought of it. When you walk into our new bathroom, the toilet will be to the immediate left, then there'll be a 5' vanity, then the opening (not door) to the walk-in shower. So a fan over the toilet AND a fan just inside the walk-in shower make perfect sense.

No, we haven't been cleaning our fan -- I mean, I dust it with the vacuum occasionally, but I guess this is something I should investigate.

I definitely like the idea of a push-button fan that cuts off automatically after 15 minutes and is separate from the lights.

I totally agree that an oversized bathroom is part of our problem. Our new one will be large enough for comfort, but it will not be nearly as big as this one.

Ditto on nixing oversized tubs.

I don't want to do without baseboards throughout the house, but I do like the idea of eliminating them in the bathroom. Instead, I like the idea of tile floor meeting tile wall, especially behind the toilet.

Thanks for the ideas, folks! You've exceeded my expectations and added to my list of bathroom must-do notes.

Maybe this would not work as you are remodeling. A friend just did a 'wet room' remodel, as her husband has Parkinson's. The whole bathroom is a wet room, with the towel and toiletries storage built into the far wall and more storage in the hall just outside the bath. It looks wonderful and helps her so much as there are 'accidents' at the toilet due to her husband being so unsteady. I have wanted a wet room for ages...it makes so much sense to me as a nurse.
Hope you find an idea that suits you!!

Pal and ilmbg,

Good ideas and info. Thanks.

Carol

We have the entire bathroom with walls tiled to shoulder height. I like it a lot and it is very easy to maintain. If a bathroom is not oversized that reduces the cost, too.

Rosefolly

Make everything in the wet area waterproof to a linear floor drain so you only have to deal with a slope in one direction rather than the "bowl" around a center drain. That means the toilet/shower are sorta the same room. You want it small enough that it's not cold for an early a.m. shower, but large enough that it can be handicapped accessible, and with blocking behind the walls for any future needed grab bars. That confines the messiest functions to the area easiest to clean the mess.

And, as I put in another thread, "His" and "Hers" baths are on my wish list for my old folks house. One of them can serve as a guest bath if needed, with a "jack and jill" type door. He can clean his and I'll clean hers. Or, he can hire his cleaned, I don't care. I'm not cleaning his toilet in my retirement, that's for sure!

I just want to chim in. I´m in Europe and we have in all the new houses here the wall hung toilets Annie posted the photo of. We did also have them in our old home we build in 1995. Can not for the life of me understand why anyone would not have them. So easy to clean around. The water tanks are also build in. I could post a photo if anyone would like to see.
just my
2 cents

Many Japanese homes have a wet room, as they like to "shower" first and rinse off by sitting on a stool and using a bucket, then soak in the furo. So this whole area has a drain and is waterproof. The toilet area is far away from the shower room. They also have the advanced/smart toilet / bidets like Inax or Toto, so less toilet paper dust. they are also clean freaks!!

We have tile baseboards in two baths; they are easier to keep clean than the normal baseboards in the other two baths. I wanted tile behind the boys' toilet in our last house, but we couldn't figure out how to work with the design of the tile, the way we were using accents. Oh well. And Mommyto4boys, you'd better take a head count...mom to 6 sons? BTW, another "FlyBaby" here, changed my life. Swish-n-swipe every day :)

MrsPete,

Did you finish your floor plan? if so, could I see it?
Thank you!

A picture was posted of a flush baseboard. We considered that exact look, but are going even sleeker. The space between drywall & baseboard will be filled in. We are building a fairly contemporary home. That's what people will think. We're really planning for aging in place above all else. Cleaning baseboards is not one of the things I want to do in old age.

Yes, we do the head count thing often....last count was 6 boys...LOL....someday I'll get my username changed!

Yeah, another fly baby! Time to go pick up #5 From PreK.

I am very interested in the concept of a wet room. It sounds so functional.

Naf Naf, we are essentially "there" with the floor plans, and I'm pretty well pleased. I'll get them up here, but with school having just started, it'll likely be next week. You always have good ideas, so I would very much value your thoughts.

NO WHITE GROUT EVER, EVER, EVER.

Brilliant planning to think of this ahead of time!

Is there really a problem with toilet tank sweating and need for an insulated tank with today's low-flow (

We installed a wall mounted faucet in a laundry area and liked it so much we did it in our new bath. Much easier to take care of.