Changing the only bath into a walk in shower!!Am i crazy?

anniehoo

I live in a 2 bed, 1 bath decent sized (80sqm) apartment but HATE the bathroom.

I "own" it (mortgage etc) and have no plans to move for the forseeable future.It has no natural light and is currently ALL white, white walls,floors,fixtures etc. This is my home and i genuinely do love it, but want to get rid of the bath and put in a walk in shower like so for example:



I dont "do" baths,never have and never will...but obviously have to think for the future. Is getting rid of the bath but improving the aesthetics a crazy thing to do? It's really not a major issue at all for me, but im thinking of future resell (yeh i know prob not) or rental. As i said, it's my home and have no plans to sell, but would removing the only actual bath be to my reselling detriment? Shower pressure is amazingly good if that's a help.

Cheers for any constructive advice Boardsies

mike65

Do you have any children yet? If the answer is no you might want to keep the bath. You'll miss bath with baby/toddler fun and mayhem! (or that's what my sister said)

anniehoo

mike65 wrote: »

Do you have any children yet? If the answer is no you might want to keep the bath. You'll miss bath with baby/toddler fun and mayhem! (or that's what my sister said)

No bambinos yet. As i said i am thinking of the future,which may or may not include the little feckers My buddy who stayed with her 2 kids the other week did say it's easier in the bath but nothing she couldn't do with a removable plastic bath for the 2 year old. The 4 year old loved my "disco" showerhead (an LED colour change thing) lol!!!

the_syco

Many moons ago, father got rid of the bath in the family house bathroom, and put in a walk in shower.

IMO...

Cons;
can't take baths, but no-one really did

Pros;
space. space is GREAT
less of a mess (door closes, water doesn't land on the floor outside
less slippy. Also, you can balance better as you can stand feet apart facing the shower, as opposed to feet together in the bath.

One thing that I will say is; consider a sliding door, as they stay open easier, and don't take up any space. And by this I mean; with a door, you have to be able to open it, nothing in the way (radiator), etc.

Get a plumber to take out the fittings, remove the bath yourself, buy bath base yourself, get plumber to fit the new bath base in, do everything else yourself, and you'll save a tidy sum.

Note; get a decent size walk-in, and not a corner shower. Also use if it's big; plastic bath as above will fit into it.

=-=

Future resell/rent; can't see a family moving into a 2 bed. Can see a professional moving into a 2 bed, and they'll see the walk in shower as convenient.

Cedrus

You might want to check out where the pipes are, baths are very effective at hiding incoming water pipes and the outgoing waste pipe. You could find that the water is low on the "wrong" wall and the waste is so high that the shower will end up on a plinth. In a shared block you will probably have to sort these out inside your property which may take a lot of space.

Personally, I prefer a shower to a bath and suspect that most people looking for apartments would feel the same. It's a hard call from a property value POV but realistically it's no more of a gamble than putting in a different kitchen.

anniehoo

the_syco wrote: »

Cons;
can't take baths, but no-one really did

I don't know anyone who takes baths. The odd rosemantic one ,but showers FTW.

wrote:

Future resell/rent; can't see a family moving into a 2 bed. Can see a professional moving into a 2 bed, and they'll see the walk in shower as convenient.

Exactly. Although i don't plan on selling anytime soon (in the next 5 years anyway). The "after" picture is what i would love but obviously have to be realistic.

Cedrus wrote: »

You might want to check out where the pipes are, property value POV but realistically it's no more of a gamble than putting in a different kitchen.

Excellent point thanks. Neighbours have already done this with their kitchens,but it's still a kitchen. I'd be changing the "bath"room to a "shower"room though.

Do you like the "after" pic btw?? Not a lot to work with and the Houzz App is addictive

Cedrus

With all the stuff that people can put in their kitchens now though, someone else's design can be very restrictive particularly if space or sockets are at a premium, american fridge or fridge and dishwasher, built in or standalone etc etc.

paddy147

You may have just taken some value out of the apartment for resale purposes down the line.

Walk in shower and family/kids would be a big no no.


Why dont you leave the bath there and get a plumber to instal the likes of a Triton or Mira leccy shower on the wall over the bath.Also install a folding shower screen too.

So you keep the bath and also gain a shower.

paddy147

the_syco wrote: »

Many moons ago, father got rid of the bath in the family house bathroom, and put in a walk in shower.

IMO...

Cons;
can't take baths, but no-one really did

Pros;
space. space is GREAT
less of a mess (door closes, water doesn't land on the floor outside
less slippy. Also, you can balance better as you can stand feet apart facing the shower, as opposed to feet together in the bath.

One thing that I will say is; consider a sliding door, as they stay open easier, and don't take up any space. And by this I mean; with a door, you have to be able to open it, nothing in the way (radiator), etc.

Get a plumber to take out the fittings, remove the bath yourself, buy bath base yourself, get plumber to fit the new bath base in, do everything else yourself, and you'll save a tidy sum.

Note; get a decent size walk-in, and not a corner shower. Also use if it's big; plastic bath as above will fit into it.

=-=

Future resell/rent; can't see a family moving into a 2 bed. Can see a professional moving into a 2 bed, and they'll see the walk in shower as convenient.

Its very common to see kids toys and prams out on the balconies of even new modern day apartments.....(have a look at Northwood in Santry and Beacon,Sandyford for instance)

Lots of young couples out there with a young child look at apartments to get onto the property ladder.

anniehoo

paddy147 wrote: »

You may have just taken some value out of the apartment for resale purposes down the line.

Paddy thanks for replying. Yes, this is my main reason for hesitating in doing this. I don't plan on selling...but that's not a realistic way to look at life or property.

wrote:

Walk in shower and family/kids would be a big no no.

As i mentioned i don't have kids, so don't intend going ahead with this until getting a thorough point of view. Although i do think as Irish we're very conditioned to seeing a "bath" in a bathroom...even though i don't use them.You're right though i will alienate a certain market by doing this,but as pointed out "families" won't necessarily be looking for an apartment.

wrote:

Why dont you leave the bath there and get a plumber to instal the likes of a Triton or Mira leccy shower on the wall over the bath.Also install a folding shower screen too

.
I'd happily keep the current shower...no word of a lie, it's hotel standard the power off it is fantastic (better tbh it's my fav part of the day). There's nothing id change there. It's that good i actually compare showers when i go away or stay in friends houses. Mine is AMAZING....no word of a lie. Apparently my pump (will get the name if anyone wants it) is one of the best.

wrote:

So you keep the bath and also gain a shower.

I need to lose the bath tbh and enhance the shower experience (aesthetic wise). The shower (believe it or not) is fantastic. Those pics do it no favour whatsoever.

paddy147

What happens if you ever want a glass of wine and a soak in the bath with your partner after a hard day at work??

Glass of wine "standing" in the shower wouldnt be as comfy or romantic.:pac::D

paddy147

I have a large walk in rainfall shower in the ensuite (fed from solar system).

I love it,no word of a lie.

But I love the bath in the bathroom just as much,as its a great way to sit back and soak in a nice radox bubble bath and relax and ease out all the sore muscles.

Girlfriend and daughter also love the bath too.girlfriend loves to soak the aches out of the muscles too,after a hard days work,and daughter,well she just loves the bath and filling it up with bubble bath..

anniehoo

paddy147 wrote: »

What happens if you ever want a glass of wine and a soak in the bath with your partner after a hard day at work??

Glass of wine "standing" in the shower wouldnt be as comfy or romantic.:pac::D

It is when im 5'8 and the guys i "drink wine" with are 6'+ ...baths are really not fun for us or the chardonnay!!!!

Staplor

If you don't use the bath get rid of it, I recently did up the bathroom, herself wanted to keep the bath, she has had 1 bath in it since we did it up over 6 months ago.

In the ensuite we have a walk in shower which is all we use really. Didn't get a sliding door as someone told us they are more prone to breaking than a regular door.

paddy147

Staplor wrote: »

If you don't use the bath get rid of it, I recently did up the bathroom, herself wanted to keep the bath, she has had 1 bath in it since we did it up over 6 months ago.

In the ensuite we have a walk in shower which is all we use really. Didn't get a sliding door as someone told us they are more prone to breaking than a regular door.

The doors are only prone to breaking if you go slamming them open and closed all the time.

Soft and gently does it.:)

Dublin_Mom

paddy147 wrote: »

Its very common to see kids toys and prams out on the balconies of even new modern day apartments.....(have a look at Northwood in Santry and Beacon,Sandyford for instance)

Lots of young couples out there with a young child look at apartments to get onto the property ladder.

I would agree with Paddy here. We are having an extension built at the moment so are temporarily housed in a 2 bed apart. I am amazed at the number of young families living in our block (one family has 3 kids, no idea how they fit) I have 2 and we are literally crawling over each other due to lack of space.

Anyway we face a similar dilemma. Renovating both bathrooms and OH wants to do away with bath in favor of huge shower. We have compromised on puting in a bath with an overhead shower, as I do think in a house the lack of a bath would be an issue when it comes to resale.

But at the end of the day its your home!

paddy147

Dublin_Mom wrote: »

I would agree with Paddy here. We are having an extension built at the moment so are temporarily housed in a 2 bed apart. I am amazed at the number of young families living in our block (one family has 3 kids, no idea how they fit) I have 2 and we are literally crawling over each other due to lack of space.

Anyway we face a similar dilemma. Renovating both bathrooms and OH wants to do away with bath in favor of huge shower. We have compromised on puting in a bath with an overhead shower, as I do think in a house the lack of a bath would be an issue when it comes to resale.

But at the end of the day its your home!

Shower in one bathroom and a "family bath" in the other bathroom,with a leccy or thermostatic power shower on the wall over the bath.

If you are rennovating and can afford to install a solar system,then run both showers off the solar system.

It also means that if 2 people in the family want to have a shower,then you have 2 showers to have a quick shower under.

And you still have a bath so soak away in,or for the kids to have a splash around in and bath them too.

Thats what I did.

Simples.:)


As my mother used to say to me........


"better to be looking at it,than looking for it"