My husband and I both prefer baths to showers, although since 3 kids, I have a hard time relaxing like I use to!! If you don't use the tub you have now, make a bigger niece shower and steal some space for the closet instead :). I think an lot of people in this forum have opted to forgo the master tub because they don't use them. Get something else you'd rather see. That's the advantage of not worrying about resale, right? That and the sudden drop in whirlpool demand means the price will drop for my build :)

My builder said he has just built two $1mm+ houses that didn't have tubs in the master bathrooms. More closet space is a good idea! I need storage more than a tub.

We are looking at a pricey home that has a tub and a super small shower. We are probably going to pass and would much prefer no master tub to an itty, bitty shower. As long as there is a tub for kids, it wouldn't bother me a bit. We prefer a large shower with multiple heads and a bench to a tub any day.

We are building our last home, too. We are going with a large shower with a bench on one end with a handheld shower head by the bench end. We will have a tub enclosure in the other bathroom should anyone want to use.

We are also skipping the tub. We didn't have one in our last master and planned on having one this time thinking if we had one we would use it.

The deciding factor - we had a mini-getaway complete with a jacuzzi tub and all we could stand to be in it was about 10 minutes. From there we discussed that over the years any time we were at a hotel with access to a tub we barely used it, wasn't that comfortable to linger and sans kids we had the opportunity to do so.

So while the dreamy thought of it seemed so nice (visions of candles and soft music you know the picture) and relaxing, the reality is we wouldn't use it. For surely not in this phase of life but even later it wasn't likely.

If I really want a bath we do have a tub in the full bath that I could easily use.

I think the size of the tub matters. If you have one of those oversized tubs that take a long time to fill then I know I would not use it much. We have a standard sized jetted tub that we do use but not all the time. It does come in handy when a doctor say to "soak" a twisted ankle or such. I know an active 70 something you regularly uses their whirlpool bath as it helps if everyday aches and pains.

Deb, you got to the crux of my fretting about this. We have a friend who was in a bad car wreck several years ago. She is very active and never complains, but she soaks in her tub every morning to get the kinks out so she can get one with her day. Another friend developed severe arthritis and did the same every morning.

The builder did mention that he could expand the shower and go to a 5 foot tub. Is a 5 foot tub going to be too small for my 6'3" DH, though?

I cannot abide the thought of sitting in dirty water. The few times I used the jetted tub in our former house, I filled the tub with water; showered to get clean; then got in the tub to soak. Every time, I ran out of hot water. The new house will have a tankless hot water heater so that may not be an issue.

Can you make the tub in the other bath large enough for you to really like using it if you want to or need to in the future? I for one think my baths are a fine luxury that I enjoy tremendously and as often as able. It is my one escape for me while everyone is sleeping and I want to relax. But, if I didn't love it, I wouldn't use important space for it in the master. I understand a lot of people don't use a bath & probably shouldn't waste the space or money. I would try really hard to have a larger bath in the secondary. I have found the depth to be more important than the length....though I'm average height and enjoy sitting up in the tub.

mt4b, I thought about increasing the depth of the tub in the guest bathroom. However, we have friends who had a deep tub in their guest bathroom. Every time I stayed with them, I nearly fell on my face trying to step out of the tub after my shower. For sure, I always stubbed my toe the first day we were there. From then on, I would remember.

Knowing that my elderly mother will be visiting us from time to time, I don't think that is a good option for us, although it may work great for other people.

Just as an aside, I taught my daughter to shower by the time she was 4 years old. Granted, I got pretty wet, because at that age I would have to reach in and soap her down and wash her hair then make sure she rinsed off adequately, but it was far preferable than her sitting in a tub of water.

Trend wise it is pretty common to have just a shower in the master these past few years.

I would go for the deeper secondary tub solution if you are interested in the contingency plan for medical.

I have two thoughts-- one is that about a decade ago my ILs built what was to be their last house. Then my MIL died suddenly and a couple years later my FIL met a wonderful woman whom he married. His new wife, understandably, did not want to live in my late MIL's home, and so my FIL ended up selling the house that he swore he'd leave feet first. Life is uncertain, you may need to sell this house.

Second, I agree with those who say that baths can help with certain medical problems. Just a couple months ago, my husband had Lyme's disease, and the only place he was comfortable during the worst of it was in the tub.

We're putting in a soaking tub-- it's bigger than the tub/shower that we'll have in the kids' bathroom, but not so big filling it will be a hassle.

I like the advice of making a secondary bath larger, just in case. Is it in a spot you would actually use it? Meanwhile, you can have a large, luxurious shower that you use and enjoy daily.

We have both. DH and I both use the tub when our bodies need it. I had a back injury one year and needed it daily then. Same for DH- he had a minor injury but soaking helped. I've also used it when I've been sick/congested/achy/crampy. However, for the most part, it is unused. So, it's a nice to have rather than a need to have. I am not sure I would go to the trouble of using a secondary bath, but that is because of our layout.

The second bathroom on the first floor is all the way across the house from the master. Granted, the house is not huge, so it isn't a far walk.

You need to try out the tubs by sitting in them.

I thought long & hard over this myself, but in reality I had to put the tub in, just b/c my master is the only br on the main floor. I actually wound up making the upstairs bath a little smaller, and only putting a standing shower in it. Gave us room to make one of the closets a bit bigger.

If my master weren't the only full bath on the main floor I wouldn't have put the tub in.

If you have a bathtub already, a large shower to accommodate a wheelchair is a good idea. I know that nobody wants to think about a "wheelchair", but if you've ever been injured, with a leg or back involved, you'll understand what I'm talking about.

If this is your last house, it's a good idea to make it so ;)
That means a bedroom downstairs, large shower, and at least one tub (for soaking injuries, or whatever), door knobs with handles, 3 ft doors etc. All this should be on the first floor. You can always close up the upstairs.

A hot shower will help with aches and pains. As long as there is a bench to sit and relax on, I would say, get rid of the tub. But dats juz me.

Thanks, dabunch. I'm trying to think through all of this. Our doorways are all going to be wide enough for a wheelchair to come through straight on. If we add a shallow ramp, a wheelchair will be able to get from the front porch or garage into the house, then all around the LR/DR/kitchen, into the MBR and the master bathroom. A wheelchair will not be able to go into the master closet, but I don't forsee either of us living alone if we are in a wheelchair.

I was at the cabinetmaker's shop yesterday at the same time a woman in a wheelchair was there planning her kitchen. So many things I would never have thought of...like the microwave not only lowered, but also not over a cabinet.

Well, as Bette Davis so famously said, "getting old isn't for sissies." We're not old yet, but we are hoping to be. So we are planning for it.

I'm not retirement age yet, but this house is starting to feel too big for us. We had it built with "things" in mind.
DH got hurt in our previous home, and I have some back issues....and we know things can happen.

Recently, I decided on changing the door knobs to easy handles. I wish I had it done when the house was being built. I addition to a micro in the cabinet, we have an Advantium micro/Oven combo under an elevated counter so either kids or wheelchair bound people can use it. Also, we have an outlet for INDUCTION cooking in case Gas would become dangerous for elderly or kids to use.

dab,we are on the same page! My last two houses have had lever door knobs and I never gave it a thought. The condo we are renting while the new house is being built has knobs. Every time as I leave the bathroom, I have to remember to open the door before I put on hand lotion. With levers it was never a problem. Heaven only knows how much of an issue it would be if I had arthritis in my hands! So, I've told the builder "levers on all interior doors."

And, yesterday I went to see an induction range live and in-person. It is now on my list!

Had it been just a year ago I would have said I never used my tub in our house in the master, but in the last 2 months I've used it a lot to soak in Epsom Salt to soothe tight and sore muscles. I don't know why as I age my muscles are becoming so tight and hard vs. what it used to be even less than a year ago. I now seem to use it weekly and sometimes several times a week. What I do have on my tub is a hand held shower that I can use to wash off after I'm done and wash and rinse my hair so I don't have to move to the shower afterwards.

edit: I should say I'm in my lower forties so not that old yet.

This post was edited by lyfia on Thu, Nov 7, 13 at 16:31

I'm of the same mind as mommyto4boys.

I like a good soak when I get the chance. So does my dh.

We had a whirlpool and never used the jets. So we put a cast iron 5 1/2 ft tub in this house. It is perfect for me but too short for dh. Next house gets a cast iron 6 ft.

If you don't want a tub and you really don't want to use the space for one, don't put one in. But I hope you don't regret it.

In the big picture, if you are designing your home...how much room does a tub really take up?

we've lived in this house 12 plus years-no tub in the master
bath

we do have a tub/shower upstairs

we're building anew home and my husband says it has to have t tub somewhere in the house-so like it or not, we're
having a soaking tub in the master bath along with the shower
parents of "babies" need tubs -most other folks like big showers

Consensus has been reached, which is a polite way of saying DH has formed an opinion. He thinks we should put the tub in. Since I was pretty wishy-washy about tub or no tub, then I will go with what he wants.

DD has one of the huge corner jetted tubs. She can honestly say she uses it every day. She has 3 mesh hampers that she uses for dirty clothes. They reside in her tub.

And then there is my elderly friend who can say the same thing. She has a beautiful shower curtain across the tub in her bathroom. Behind it is she hides her outdoor cushions when she brings them in off the porch!

We went with a jetted tub along with a large walk in shower. The jetted tub has a heater in it (out of sight of course) to keep the water warm.

We went with no tub in the master bath and put in a steam shower instead. Everyone we talked to said they simply don't use theirs at all or hardly ever. Also, a peeve of mine, the tub is always under a window, yet I'm one who opens and closes windows frequently and didn't want to have to step in and out of a tub to get to the window.

So we put the jetted tub downstairs in the guest bath where we had more room. If we want to use it, we have it, but we saved a lot of space upstairs where we needed it.

The "huge" corner tubs are less than ideal, I have read here.

If you want a tub, there are choices which use less water and take up less space.

This is our tub...ours is the drop in version. No jets. Nice and deep. Retains heat well.