Where does a downstairs shower/toilet room fit?

3 years ago

Hello Pals,

I am new on here and will appreciate all suggestions on where to fit a downstairs shower room with toilet and basin. It's a detached house with 4 beds, 1 family bathroom, and an ensuite upstairs.

Our family includes 17, 14, and 9 years kids.

We were thinking of fitting the shower room on the front part of the dining area i.e. coming from the porch and through the right door. That room could be partitioned so that the shower room is in there.

But, We are not sure of the best design not to upset the flow of the house and not to devalue the house.

We are both 45 yrs of age and maybe down down-sizing when the kids are all grown up etc

Option A could have a door leading to the kitchen from a new ensuite room!

Option B is a middlebox partition with 2 doors, which will allow entry to the shower room from both the door in front of the stairs and from the kitchen.

Option C. Stud wall that divides the room completely, so the front room serves more like an ensuite? Which means you won't be able to access the shower room from the kitchen.

Also, is it practical to have a window in the shower room?

All ideas and questions are welcome.

NB:

Understairs is just too small and costs as much due to the awkward shape and size!

All equipment in the picture will be moving into an outbuilding to be built as well.

Featured Answer

tamp75

3 years ago

If it’s useful for you to have a shower - which it may well be with 2 teens - then put a shower in. If you’re there for another 5-10 years, make it work for you now.
As for the other 1/3, a built in storage cupboard is always useful.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (13)

pannacotta
3 years ago
Where is the soil stack as that is often a good way to choose. If you can put the loo under a loo upstairs that would make it easier to fit.

Not easy to work out where it should go just from the floor plan.

Could you add a utility space rather than a shower ?
Mega Tom thanked pannacotta
Mega Tom
Original Author
3 years ago
Hello Pannacotta, thanks for your response.
- The soil stack is on the right-hand side of the house, i.e. out of the kitchen and on the left.
- The upstairs bathroom is almost directly above where the dining is.
- Good question about utility space, the washer-dryer, and the dishwasher is already integrated into the kitchen cabinets. So, maybe we don't have further utility room requirements.
- The key thing we need is a downstairs toilet, but I thought it will be nice to have a shower as well.
- The Understairs area is too small and we currently use the place as a cloakroom, with jackets, cuts, hoover, and stuff!
- We hardly have guests, but when they come there is a 4th double bedroom upstairs, currently used as my office.
- 17 yr old Son will start uni in 2022 away from home (Manchester) to Maybe London, but we will keep his room and may be used in his absence!
- 2 girls - 14 and 9 years old are currently sharing a large bedroom with 2 double beds with space.
- The older girl will have her own room maybe after GCSEs.
- I think the downstairs room could end up being used as an office, i.e. I will move my office downstairs, at some point.
Sorry, for the info overload!
Related Discussions
Room layout - ideas?
Q
Comments (25)
Take out sofa, use beanbags and those blow up seats for their friends. Coloured rugs for tumbling and crawling on. Supersoft teddy bear blankets so they can curl up. Add in one of those soft blanket boxes for toy storage and so you have somewhere soft to perch when you are with them. Paper half way up the wall in the wall paper that kids can draw on, so they can decorate in whatever colour they like and you won't mind. A childs lift up desk, bookcase and some crazy lamps in weird colours. Then close the door, collapse on the sofa that you have moved, breathe a sigh of relief and thank your lucky stars that you have another room for the kids to go to. (Grab wine and pretend they aren't yours for half an hour! ;-) )
...See More
Need some ideas for my bathroom
Q
Comments (13)
East Kent Eco - again thank you for your input. As a pro I wonder if you could offer your thoughts on a couple of scenarios 1 - Leave bath where it is - what would be involved in moving the shower 4-6 inches to the centre of the bath? I did consider the P shaped bath and will consider your suggestion for a shorter bath to allow room for the toilet, but I currently had to put in a door stop to protect the shower door from the entrance door handle and I would be concerned about a rounded door being even closer. If I left the bath where it is I have a couple of options, turning the toilet and cistern 90 degrees to the adjoining wall - see above for the considerations there, or I have also considered switching the toilet and sink. I would put the sink facing the wall where the cistern currently is have a large-ish vanity from the base of the bath to the wall, and the if the toilet was where the sink is it would not interfere with the doors for the hot press as the seat would be considerably lower than the sink is currently thus giving me the better access I want. In this scenario the main issue for me would be the toilet would be facing the entrance door, a bit unsightly but if it gave me the space I want I think I could live with the compromise. 2 - A bit more involved, but I have also considered moving the bath sideways along the short length of the room, shower end over the space where the cistern is currently and moving the sink and toilet to the space where the bath is currently. I think this would allow me room for a vanity and maybe also a tall storage cupboard for the towels and linens currently in the hot press. The obvious concern with this is the shower spray in the direction of the hot press, if I got the storage I needed elsewhere in the bathroom I wouldn't be concerned about those getting wet, but would want to ensure I don't end up with a leak over the stairs. Access would also be an issue if repairs were required for the shower pump or the hot water system. You would have to step into the bath to gain access. Is there a solution to waterproof the cupboard?
...See More
Small downstairs toilet & shower - are my ideas gonna work?
Q
Comments (12)
Hi. I think the overall look is good. Large tiles do make a room feel bigger as the pattern is less busy however I've seen the hex tiles in small bathrooms and they seem to work as your inspiration pic shows. I would probably lose the flowers though if I'm honest. Do you want the window for light or ventilation? Could a decent extractor be sufficient? I'm thinking that back ŵall could look quite busy. Is there any opportunity to change the layout? Moving soil pipes can be a little costly but could the sink be moved although ideally the loo would be hidden round the corner. You can pick up some great looking vintage or vintage style taps on ebay although unsure if the quality of the repro ones, If the layout can't be changed maybe have a corner loo and ŵall hung trough sink and put some storage in on the rhs as you come through the door depending on how you plan for the shower to open
...See More
Tub be or not tub be...
Q
Comments (73)
I think it looks great so far. Many of the ads for claw foot tubs, and magazines, show them with encaustic/cement tile and plain white surround. Also, you did something creative and attractive with the tile layout. I love the nickel shine of your clawfoot legs too. If you can maybe get a corner shelf on one side of the wall, you'll have a place for soap, candle or bubble bath. And maybe hotel towel holder on another wall to get the height up. Congratulations and thanks for sharing.
...See More
pannacotta
3 years ago
I was thinking that adding a utility rather than a shower might be better for resale as you mentioned ypou might down size before too long, also nice to have the washing/drying out of the kitchen IMO anyway.

Re your loo,
Mega Tom thanked pannacotta
pannacotta
3 years ago
are you sure you cant fit it under the stairs? Its often a good space for it.

Relocate your coats etc to the porch?

If not somewhere in the middle of the house is ok but might interrupt the flow of rooms a bit?

I have simialr issues with my downstairs loo - no one replied to my post the other day, but please do feel free to have a look and comment. Nice to be able to share our thouights..
Mega Tom thanked pannacotta
PRO
OnePlan
3 years ago
Option c makes for a study/guest room with ensuite, looks best option to me if used by you as an office. But it does mean people going through your office to get to the loo . But in my opinion that’s a better option than having loo opening into kitchen and dining space.
Mega Tom thanked OnePlan
Mega Tom
Original Author
3 years ago
Pannacotta - Regarding using understairs for the toilet. I have had 3 contractors visits and had quotes of around £4k. The main problem is because it's in the middle, they will have to use a macerator linked to the upstairs toilet and out through the side by the kitchen side door. That was the best routing advice instead of digging through the dining floor area on the ground floor, which is concrete and hard laminate floor etc.

Cost is around £6k for new front room work. i.e. Options A/B/C.

Good point about shower vs utility. It will be nice to have more ideas. Thanks a lot.

OnePlan - Great plan and idea thanks. I think option C is cool. But, as you said, it means people going through my office to use the loo. We can't always win, can we!

I was thinking Option B will prevent that, but having 2 doors on either side leading to the toilet/shower in a small space, looks a bit clumsy to me!

What do you think about Options C without a shower, so having the other half of the wall as bookshelf or storage or any other design to support use for office, etc

OR, if it's ensuite with shower, we could still use about 1/3 (on the LHS) of the wall backing dining as bookshelf or storage, etc

Would a shower in Option A/B/C add value to the house i.e. interest future buyers, that maybe 10 years down the line LOL?
tamp75
3 years ago
I also think 2 doors into the space is a bit excessive & I wouldn’t have the door from the kitchen, unless it was used as a utility space.
Personally, as a buyer, I’d be more interested in a utility space than a downstairs shower room, as you already have 2 bathrooms upstairs. I always think downstairs shower rooms are a bit of an odd concept unless it a) either serves a downstairs bedroom or b) you live close to a beach & it’s handy for showering off rather than traipsing through the house (or for muddy, pampered dogs!)
Mega Tom thanked tamp75
Mega Tom
Original Author
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
Wow, another good input. Thanks, tamp75.

Thanks for your point re 2 doors into the new space and no door from the kitchen into the new room.

Yes, there is an ensuite upstairs for dad and mum, and a family bathroom for the kids.

The downstairs toilet will be handy for any guests, and saves a trip upstairs to use the loo! We are 45yr by the way. It feels bad that a 500k house has no downstairs toilet. LOL.

Is this tending towards option C then? i.e. Stud wall dividing dining room, with ensuite or toilet only backing the new wall?

Question: Should we put a window in the ensuite or toilet-only-room? What window size is best or standard for a small ensuite?

I take it that toilet will be on the RHS wall, with a window above it?

Sink in the middle?

Door kind of in the middle, like opposite sink?

If having a shower in the room is consensus, if? Then will the shower will be on the LHS?

Toilet only room or toilet-with-shower?

You guys have freed up my brain space and I am feeling more relaxed, less pressured and I think this weekend will be very relaxing!

Please, I need more advice or tips, or comments. Thanks.
tamp75
3 years ago
Sorry, I meant to say utility space plus downstairs loo (partitioned to be separate) as opposed to shower with downstairs loo. But either way, I think a small window would be good if that’s a viable option - it makes it more of a room than a ‘cupboard’. It could just be a high-level window to let some light in. The layout you suggest sounds good.
Mega Tom thanked tamp75
Mega Tom
Original Author
3 years ago
@tamp75 - Thanks for the clarification.

I think one of the grey areas for me now is a shower or no-shower?

I think, either way, the room could be used as a utility by any potential buyers down the line, say 5 - 10 yrs from now.

Any ideas on what can be done with the LHS of the room?

If it's a toilet only, then we could use half the width, if with the shower we could use 2/3 the width. Does that make sense?

That leaves us with 1/3 or 1/2 for some good use to complete the general room design.
PRO
OnePlan
3 years ago
Making the set up like option C means that you could have a shower and the office becomes a guest room/study with ensuite . If you want to attract those future buyers who want a laundry too you could suggest the shower area could be used as a laundry stack too if preferred . Because size wise it really could - so best of both worlds. The only downside would be if you are working in there - so leave your office in bedroom 4 and use the space as an informal sofa bed lounge guest room for kids to watch tv and hang out .
Mega Tom
Original Author
3 years ago
Thanks all for your input, its most appreciated.

Where does a downstairs shower/toilet room fit?

tamp75

Comments (13)

pannacotta

Mega Tom
Original Author

Related Discussions

pannacotta

pannacotta

OnePlan

Mega Tom
Original Author

tamp75

Mega Tom
Original Author

tamp75

Mega Tom
Original Author

OnePlan

Mega Tom
Original Author

COMPANY

EXPLORE HOUZZ

CONNECT WITH US

Where does a downstairs shower/toilet room fit?

Comments (13)

Mega TomOriginal Author

Related Discussions

Mega TomOriginal Author

Mega TomOriginal Author

Mega TomOriginal Author

Mega TomOriginal Author

COMPANY

EXPLORE HOUZZ

CONNECT WITH US

Mega Tom
Original Author

Mega Tom
Original Author

Mega Tom
Original Author

Mega Tom
Original Author

Mega Tom
Original Author