Ensuite or Walk in Robe

kmmr

What do you think of a shorter bath? Would reduce the 'tucked in' element - and incidentally give me more space to make a nicer ensuite shower.

Or is a short bath the kiss of death for family options...

Doozergirl

What size of space are we dealing with here - combined bathroom and ensuite? Does that space already exist or are you building walls? Shorter bath really is a compromise and defeats the object of two bathrooms somewhat. What is the point of a shorter bath? Are you going to relax in it? It's fine for the kids, but not for an adult really. I do not like the tucked in element at all. I can understand why people didn't buy this house before and it's simply the weird proportions of trying to adapt something to fit in a space that it simply doesn't. I'm in the process of regularising it again.

Why have you changed you mind about the ensuite from this morning? Does a couple living together need an ensuite? You don't. My friends didn't and they spent a lot of money on their flat. It would never have occurred to me when I was looking for a two bed - and we did have a child at the time.

As a developer myself, I don't really see the need for a second bathroom, however the idea that the enuite is the largest bathroom and there is another space for guests makes sense. However, it is a luxury - but so is a huge wardrobe. I think your walk in wardrobe, nicely finished with sensible fittings and a thoughtful layout of space will add as much as that ensuite would.

What I cannot get my head around is why you are employing an architect for a renovation You could do those pics on the back of a fag packet. My gut feeling is that the moeny would be better spent on trying to move that second bedroom so it leads off the hall and not the kitchen/living room/diner. That is your compromise and it will be a big one for some people. It's a very typical London Victorian converted house, ground floor layout; the bedroom there notsomuch?

kmmr

Hi,

The whole space where the bedroom and bathroom (s) and WIR is one big reception room at the moment. The reason for the (cheap friend) architect is because there is a big extension going on the back, and I need him to do all the stuff for the planning pack. He is at the same time doing the interior - basically as I directed, with a few options relating to this space.

Why have i changed my mind? Because I am easily led! I think all the opinions are valid, and am just not sure which way to go with it. In relation to the short bath, I never use a bath, I'd personally rather have a lovely big shower, but I get the impression that a bath is a must have for many people - especially in this country (I am australian). It's not critical to decide now, just thought I would get the opinion of the informed forum members here.

The space from door of bathroom to the far wall is 4.3m, but 60cm indent by the door of the main bathroom has to stay. Basically I think it makes a too big and long bathroom, and I may as well use the space on the other side for something.

I suppose I just wanted opinions from this housebuyer forum as to what adds more value, or more importantly doesn't detract from the house.

Any ideas where to put the entrance to the bedroom? I think an entrance through the kitchen is worse, and seems a big cost in effective use of space to move the kitchen just for this.

Whole house is pretty much being gutted, so the main walls have to stay, but anything else can be moved.

Doozergirl

Dead exciting actually and I do agree with you about the long skinny bathroom - it's exactly what I did to create my wardrobe and ensuite - the existing ensuite one was stupid and you could't actually get any more in there.

If you can afford to, then take your time because you will have a 'yes' moment eventually. It's really hard without the spatial awareness of standing in the actual space. And of course, knowing where the existing utilities are.

Have a look at right move because they all do floor plans now and so, so many flats on the marlet are very similar to yours in the space that they fit everything into.

My friends have same but I'm suspecting larger, but perhaps not if the bathroom is 4.3 from front to back.

Bedroom is front like yours with a skinny ensuite - just like yours, layout one but halved again so it's skinny, then a bathroom off the hall where yours is. Second bedroom comes off the hall as well and is L shaped so it goes back behind your bathroom into the other half of your 'ensuite' and that is where the double bed goes. That room has a light well (it's been extended from this point obviously as they've got this small open space). The hall continues into a great big square open plan living kitchen diner with huge folding sliding doors across the back. It's an absolute stunner of a place.

You can fit an ensuite into less than 2m x .8m if you put the door in the middle - shower to one side, loo to the other, basin in the middle. It might actually work in your space giving you an ensuite and even more importantly, a 2nd double bedroom!

Bet that makes no sense at all! But another double is where the money is at and if you have space for an ensuite, there is potentially space for a bigger bedroom. I'd consider that extra space to fit a bed into on the other side if the bedroom came off the hall.

MrsE_2

getmore4less wrote: »

Another thing that can provide a lot of storage for little loss of floor area are over bed units. the bed moves away from the wall about 3-cm 1/2 the full depth of a robe/

We have a couple similar to these(bought very cheap).
over bed with the narow side units.




we have matching robes but these are seperate since they don't fit the shape of the room in our current house

I hate units over the bed.
I don't think they would add value anymore.

Pssst

I think ensuites are so passe....the last thing i want to see/smell/hear is my partner having a no1/no2.

WASHER

Pssst wrote: »

I think ensuites are so passe....the last thing i want to see/smell/hear is my partner having a no1/no2.

My feelings too, I have an ensuite and no-one uses it, cause the insulation is rubbish, I do not want to hear my husband peeing or him hearing me.

I have an ensuite, main bathroom and a downstairs toilet, I hate it, I'm certainly buying an older house next time, no need for families to have 3 toilets. I would much prefer the space downstairs to be used as an add on to the kitchen diner, but I'm not allowed to remove it as per buildings regs:mad:

Fire_Fox

I don't understand what Doozergirl is saying about how to get the second double bedroom BUT from past posts she does know about property and renovations so I'd go with that! I can't see the point in cramping up the main bathroom just to squeeze in an unnecessary walk-in wardrobe or en-suite, but I can for two double bedrooms. As your layouts stand the small bedroom looks too small for a flatshare, and too far away from the main bedroom for a couple with a baby.

And I don't like top-boxes over the bed, but maybe that is because my parents have them: I think they make the storage dominate the room and the walls seem closer together. Shorter baths are OK if they are only a little bit shorter and if they are also wider than standard so you can have a shower without constantly bashing the shower screen.

g_attrill

Interesting addenum - I viewed a nice 2-bed house a few months ago. Off the master bedroom they made an en-suite shower in the void over the stairs. Just a shower, so there was a bath mat and heated towel rail in the bedroom itself. I thought it was a bit pointless, you would always need to use the main bathroom unless you peed in the shower and kept a toothbrush there. Presumably the person who installed it had a serious requirement, but I think most buyers would have preferred storage space!

kmmr

Thanks all! Lots of ideas.

I did just discuss with my partner whether I could have an en-suite without a toilet - as I also hate the noise! So probably not ideal. He, however, is adamant that a WIR is only for women, and men looking at a house wouldn't see any value in it, and would much prefer the en-suite. (At which point I reminded him that women make the decision anyway!)

Second bedroom has it's problems I know, but I can't move it anywhere else. This is a basement mid terrace flat, so there is no option for a light well and bedroom in the middle (Doozergirl I think I get your idea). I love the big open plan back idea, but I just couldn't find a way for it to work. The open plan as it stands looks good, as someone else in the street has done it, and I just can't see a way to get the bedroom somewhere else - and I am limited somewhat by the shape of the building. Moving all the structural walls gets more and more expensive.

So I think the two bathrooms is probably going to end up compromising both, so perhaps will go with proposal 2, at least til I change my mind again! And I get a full size bath, which I think is better. I am trying not to have any room too much like a compromise, and anything non-standard makes it look like a compromise.

Doozergirl, it is great fun! At least at this stage... until the money starts to flow for real.

This is the floorplan for the place down the road. They made a skinny bathroom with a bath you enter from the end. I really just wanted to find a way to avoid that. The place looked beautiful, and the bathroom was top spec, but I just thought it could be improved a bit.

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