What would you do if you had a fresh slate

last year

5 X 8 secondary bathroom had a leak and had to be essentially gutted except for toilet and tub. I can just install new vanity, floor and tub/shower tile and call it a day, or do something different. My wife wants to convert tub to a walk in shower? I am wondering if that is a good idea for resale (we have 3 other tubs in the houses, so I don’t think it would matter). But, I was wondering if anyone else had any thoughts while I have the whole bathroom open etc. It is like a blank canvas! I’ve attached a pic, but it is just a basic bathroom. Thanks!

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Comments (16)

jck910
last year
What do you consider different? I would do just a shower. Large tiles 24x12 less grout. Make sur to add grab bars
PRO
User
last year
last modified: last year
I'd hire a great kitchen and bath designer to help me with the million decisions ahead! I have several colleagues that do online work, if you cannot find one locally.
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Marilyn's no jackass ... but she gives some a good home. Plus some horses slated for slaughter. Go, Marilyn. As for me - for much of my working life I lived in an employer-owned house ... but knew that on the day that I got fired ... or retired ... I'd have to provide my own, so began an investing program to deal with the issue. Recently asked my banker if he could give me one good reason (or two or three poor ones) why I shouldn't take my money out oof his bank, dig a hole in the back yard, and bury it. He said that we need money for businesses to start new projects, for young ones to finance homes and other ideas to keep the economy going. I said that they guarantee to pay me the amount that I gave them, after two, three or five years, etc. - same deal as my cash in the hole in the back yard (of my rented house - which info I didn't feel it useful to share with him). The only difference is the rent that they pay me on the money, called "interest", at about 2.5%. Interest income is taxed at top rate, and if I'm in 25% tax rate, that .625% to the government (granted, to pay for roads, schools, healthcare, etc.) ... ... leaves 1.875% in my pocket. The other rat that eats my invested cheese is called "inflation" and that hits my "guaranteed" money in the bank and in the hole in the backyard equally. The official rate is around 2% ... but if you"ve visited a grocer or other business lately, you'll dispute it. As many governments owe huge, and increasing, debts, they have less than a smidgeon of interest in seeing interest rates rise any appreciable amount in the near future. If I buy shares in your bank, they pay about 4.5% dividends ... and, as you know, I pay a much lower tax rate on those dividends. I bought shares in a Canadian bank just over 50 years ago, for around $4.17 per share, paying about 10 - 12 cents/year dividend, at lower tax rate. In 2007, before the financial troubles, I could have sold them for about $110. and the annual divdend rate was $3.08. Big drop in share price after that, some said they'd cut dividend rate. They didn't - but no increase for four years. I figured that if I'd keep them a few more years, they'd pay each year the original price that I'd paid. They did - about four years ago. Annual rate $5.44 last Dec, now $5.60: 34% above original share price. But I have fewer shares. When I transfer shares to a charity, I receive a tax-deductible receipt for the full amount ... and avoid the usual tax at usual rate on half of the capital gain. The banker didn't really have much of an answer for me. ole joyfuelled
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Sammie J
last year
Get rid of the tub for nice shower. The rest of the layout is pretty set due to size of room. Or, do you need a shower at all? If not, you could put a nice vanity across the entire wall where the bathtub currently sits.
auggie1020
Original Author
last year
As far as different I was thinking of maybe a barrier less shower?
just_janni
last year
I have a Kohler Ballast shower pan - DO IT, The feeling of spaciousness you will get from a low profile shower pan that is flat for the full width will be tremendous. AND it will really open up your room if you put in a custom glass enclosure.

Taking a shower in a tub is a poor compromise.
PRO
Aquaiaw Plumbing
last year
Yes, it's a great idea to convert tub to a walk in shower.
kl23
last year
If it is a secondary bathroom, who uses it? If your wife uses it, I'd put in whatever she likes. If guests use it, I'd think about their needs. If you had to use it while you renovate your main bath, what would you like? What feature in your main bath would you miss? If it doesn't matter, it's still a good value to make the wife happy. If she wants a frameless glass shower wall, can I strongly suggest that whatever the side walls are tiled with, you try to continue it out into the rest of the bathroom or at least make it the same color. And do the same for the floor; whatever you choose for the shower floor, continue it out into the rest of the bathroom, even if you have a low-curb shower. Try to eliminate contrast between the shower area and the main room. The frameless shower is a new critter that does best with that continuity. If you or your wife wants contrast, the back wall is an option; if it is darker than the sides, it will appear to recede slightly. A feature I really like in a bathroom is a bidet seat on the toilet. The toilet-paper hoarding for COVID made me a convert to bidets. Now the toilets at work feel like outhouses by comparison. I like a wall between toilet and vanity for any bathroom with multiple users. I like a heated floor including the shower and a heat lamp just outside the shower to keep from getting chilled. Some people really love heated towel bars for comfort and faster drying of towels for less mildew. An anti-fog heated mirror and a really great vent are nice for shaving or makeup after the shower.
PRO
JAN MOYER
last year
last modified: last year
"You have three other tubs in the house"

Who lives in the house?

How many kids?

Do you have guests, what age?

What bedroom is this near?

What's the style /flavor /colors in that bedroom?

It's 5 x 8 ( basic, not wide open) ........ unless you are stealing space from another room, moving a toilet ? It's 30 inch vanity, toilet space and then shower or tub, in that order...

What tile, what style? That's why I asked above : )

This used to be a walk in closet. 5 x 7.5.....( one of two ) 0ff a guest bedroom that had no en suite bath......

Everything has a context. A why.

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kl23
last year
Wow, Jan! Beautiful as always! You are so talented!
PRO
Diana Bier Interiors, LLC
last year
You are correct, KL! Which is a wonder why so many here don't take Jan's valuable free advice!
PRO
JAN MOYER
last year
Hhahahhahaahaha! Because I am a pain in the A? A dog with a bone? Annoyingly truthful? Painfully opinionated ? Uh..... could be . Yes, definitely : )
kandrewspa
last year
I think it's good news that you have other bathrooms so you can take your time with this one. There are a lot of ways you can go. Sometimes all the options lead to decision paralysis. I suggest you look at pictures on Houzz and create an Ideabook with pictures you like. Seeing what the pictures have in common will help to narrow down your choices. If there is someone else who has opinions in your household, pictures will help you to communicate your vision with each other. Just bear in mind what the rest of your house looks like. Don't go too far afield with one room. Especially if this is a secondary bathroom you don't need to go crazy. But I haven't heard any reason from you why you shouldn't eliminate the tub, so maybe you can go from there. Here are some pictures to get you started.

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cpartist
last year
last modified: last year
No house needs 4 tubs. Put the shower in.

Get a good bath designer. Not a salesman.

Make sure you get someone who knows TCNA standards when you do your new shower. Proper waterproofing is KEY! Otherwise you'll be back here in a year or two asking about how to fix a leak.

And remember: With proper waterproofing you'd be able to shower without the tile and grout on the walls and floors. Tile and grout and sealer are NOT waterproof.
shead
last year
I would opt for a nice shower as long as there is a tub somewhere in the house (resale). I would suggest looking into The Onyx Collection for your shower, which is what we used versus tile. I LOVE how easy mine is to clean because there are no grout lines and you can get custom sizes. I used a dark gray pan and white walls. There are many, many choices for color combinations, though. You can even use their pan and do tile walls. I hate the feel of grout lines on my feet, too, so there's that :)
Amy Loves Pink Bathrooms
last year
In that house, and not my cottage, I would do a shower only bath. With some great colorful tile work that would echo my love of vintage tiled bathrooms. Maybe barely lilac and gray. Because that would make me smile.

Your house should make you smile. It should also work for the functions that you need. You haven’t defined what those are.
kl23
last year
I will admit, Jan, that when I first ran across your comments on someone's project, I felt bad for the person. So I thought I'd go check out your portfolio. I was very impressed. I decided that if you ever commented on one of my projects, I would find a way to look past anything that hurt my little feelings and be grateful for your advice. These latest photos of a project of yours make me realize just how versatile you are too. I am attracted to the marble, the bedroom mirrors and the window treatments especially. I saved your photos to my bedroom ideabook.

What would you do if you had a fresh slate

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