Baths

Pinkangel

Hi folks

My boyfriend and I are about to buy our first house, and are hoping to put in a new bathroom straight after moving in (there's currently just a wet room). So in researching baths we came across Carronite ones, which I'd got my heart set on. But on visiting a local shop we learnt we could get a Puracast bath for less money. The one in the showroom seemed pretty sturdy, and reading the spec it sounds very similar to Carronite. Just wondering if anyone has any experience of Puracast baths (good or bad)?

As a second point, the gap for the bath is 1665... We're hoping it'll be possible to shoehorn a 1700 bath in there, if the plumber can channel out some of the wall. Just concerned about losing too much from the ledge bits on either end of the bath. Does this sound do-able?

Many thanks!

ryder72

Carronite/Purecast etc are all cast mineral baths and very similar to each other. I dont know specifics of either of these brands but make sure that the finish and colour consistency is acceptable to you. If something is cheaper its usually for a reason. Poorly made cast mineral products are known to react to everyday use gels/soaps and cleaning products causing them to discolour and stain.

Your bathroom has a wet room for a reason. You cant shoehorn a 1770 bath in a 1660 space. That bath is probably designed for 1750 wide alcoves.

Pinkangel

Oops sorry, I meant to say 1700 bath! I agree that trying to fit a 1770 bath into that space would be ridiculous! A 1700 one however, which is 3.5cm too big, I'm hoping might be possible.

Pinkangel

Measurement in original post corrected!

ryder72

That seems more feasible particularly if the walls are plasterboarded but get a plumber to check and confirm before you go about buying the bath.

A.Penny.Saved

Presumably there are tiles on the walls ATM?

Plaster & tiles should be at least 15mm, I measured mine at 15-17mm. Two walls will be 30 to 34mm. You might have thicker tiles and thicker plaster so you might get a 1700mm bath in. That is probably what the room was made to fit.

There are some baths which are fractionally under 1700mm, 1695mm which might give the extra room if a 1700mm bath would be too tight a fit.

There are 1600mm baths but it does limit the choice by quite a lot and at such a size, fitting could be more difficult and awkward.

jellie

I've had a Carronite 'P' shaped bath with shower over for nearly a year. It's a lovely surface, very easy to clean and feels solid. Much nicer than the old acrylic bath I had before, but it wasn't cheap.

Pinkangel

Hi A.Penny.Saved - Unfortunately the measurement of 1665 already takes into account the wall covering having being removed, so there's no extra space to play with there (other than the plaster obv). We'll get a plumber in to check before buying a bath anyway, I just thought it would be good to get an idea of what size baths we should be looking at beforehand... As you say, 1600 baths are quite limited. We did find one 1665 bath - the perfect size for the gap - and it's a Carronite one too (Delta). But on testing it on the showroom, it didn't feel nearly as comfy as it looked - very curved back rest. If it turns out that's the only bath that will fit though, I'll maybe be able to get used to it over time.

Jellie - Thanks, the Carronite baths do look and feel really solid. and it would be taking a battering - my other half standing in it for showers, me using it for baths. Like I say above, it's just a shame that the only one we know will definitely fit is so uncomfortable to sit in!

A.Penny.Saved

It sounds like such a tight fit that the slightest mistake could mean it not fitting. Measuring in different locations could make a difference because rooms are not often totally square.

Knocking out plaster for the bath width at the bath height and measuring would be the only certain way of knowing. Having to remove a tiny bit of plaster, 5-10mm each side 1-2cm total, to fit in a slightly larger bath would not be a problem but 3.5cm is a quite a lot and the total plaster thickness might not be enough.