Bathroom design help

September 1, 2017 9:48 AM

We are gutting/renovating our small bathroom. We don't have a master bath so the idea is to help this bathroom be the best everyone bathroom it can be. I found a layout I like but I can't picture how it will look in reality and can't find real life photos of this particular layout.

Here is the design we're thinking about. The current bathroom looks like this, but it is just a rectangle (no cut out on the footprint, no pocket door) and the toilet is on the sink side. The improvements would be a double vanity and then the toilet being behind a pocket door. This would make it so multiple people could use the bathroom at the same time with improved personal space and privacy.

What I'm having a hard time picturing is how the tub will look right across from the sinks in a smallish area. And is the hallway door an issue? It seems like it will swing awkwardly into the sinks or the tub but maybe all doors do that and it's not a big deal? Should we consider a pocket door or a barn door for the hallway to save swinging door space? I wouldn't normally (seems to not offer privacy needed), but if the toilet is behind a locking door already, maybe that would be okay?

I'll take any design suggestions or tips, and would specifically love to look at any finished bathrooms that resemble this so I can wrap my head around it. I'm very visual, so not having something to pin that matches what I want is driving me crazy! You can see what I've already pinned here if that helps. I've found a couplet pics that show the pocket door idea, but not how the bath would fit across from the sinks.

I think we're dedicated to keeping a bath rather than a solo shower. Thanks!

posted by LKWorking to Home & Garden (15 answers total)

If your toilet is on the sink side of a similar layout, isn't it going to be in the way of stepping in through the pocket door?
posted by PardonMyFrench at 9:58 AM on September 1, 2017

Best answer: The tub across from the sinks will be fine; I grew up using a bathroom like that and never even gave it a second thought. We had a fairly neutral (i.e. no crazy patterns or anything) shower curtain hanging for the tub and it was fine. Come to think of it, I have a couple friends whose current bathrooms are configured quite a bit like your rendering, and I've never even thought about the tub being across from the sinks/mirror, until right this minute.

I would 100% recommend a pocket door for the main door. The powder room in my current house had a door that swung in to the bathroom and it was THE WORST. When we renovated, we opted for a pocket door and it makes the room feel so much bigger. With a pocket door as your main door, you won't have the issue of the door banging into whomever is using the sink closest to the entrance, because that will happen if you have just a regular door. All the time. And angry words will be said. Ask me how I know.

Sorry I don't have any links to help you out visually. I can definitely visualize what your bathroom will look like in 3-D based on your rendering, and I think it will be nice.
posted by cooker girl at 10:08 AM on September 1, 2017 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: PardonMyFrench, there's no cut out in our bathroom, unlike what I linked to. The toilet would be flush against the same wall as the sinks, so I think fine.
posted by LKWorking at 10:10 AM on September 1, 2017

My parents have a barn door on their bathroom and it's great. The door is larger than the opening, so it is just as private as a regular door, and there are locks you can put on barn doors if you so choose.
posted by Rock Steady at 10:25 AM on September 1, 2017 [2 favorites]

Is it possible to hinge the main bathroom door on the left side? If someone is standing at the near sink when the door is opened, they're going to get hit. At the least, anyone who wants/needs to use that sink will have to step in and close the door behind them. I'd find that annoying. Likewise, it will "hide" the bathtub somewhat if someone is in the shower and another person wants to enter to brush their teeth.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 10:28 AM on September 1, 2017 [2 favorites]

Pocket doors are harder to lock, once they're old and kind of out of alignment. You can't hand towels on the back of the door. Saying that, I live the space saving nature of my pocket door. If you have kids, having a toilet in a room with no sink will make for a gross door. Maybe add a small sink to the toilet area?
posted by Valancy Rachel at 10:52 AM on September 1, 2017 [1 favorite]

Seconding putting the hinge on the bathtub side rather than the sink side. Otherwise, looks good.
Any plans for wheelchair access? Broken legs happen (been there, done that, with a new house and no access without my husband going up several steps on crutches).
posted by TrishaU at 10:55 AM on September 1, 2017

I'd also swap the hinge on the main door so it doesn't hit someone standing at the sink.

You can use the dead space in the w.c. room for a linen closet. (The wall you see when sitting on the toilet.)

I see no issue with the tub across from the mirrors.
posted by hydra77 at 11:09 AM on September 1, 2017

If you have storage for a 12-pack of toilet paper and feminine hygiene products -- and a discrete area for plungers / waste paper -- then the pocket door privacy area is a good one.
Access to running water is critical -- my two bathrooms have the toilet right beside the sink, which I prefer. So did the bathrooms we designed for our daughter's house (see previous comment about broken legs and two-story houses).

I'm not a "come on in" person, even with family. I'm a "someone is sick; this will get less messy with copious amounts of soap and water and a toilet that flushes in a dependable manner" person. And I've been known in desperate times to lie down in the floor or bring in a bean bag chair, since there is no sense in cleaning multiple areas of the house.
I don't understand the palatial bathroom designs of modern house plans -- why waste all that space? -- but I do appreciate room for emergencies. Or bathing children and dogs. Usually not at the same time.
posted by TrishaU at 11:10 AM on September 1, 2017

Also you can add a little stopper thing to your main door hinges so it only opens as far as you want and doesn't bang into the tub.
posted by hydra77 at 11:11 AM on September 1, 2017 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Maybe add a small sink to the toilet area?

you could get a water saving toilet with a sink on the top of the tank so the wastewater from the sink is used for flushing.
posted by poffin boffin at 11:30 AM on September 1, 2017 [5 favorites]

Best answer: Nthing moving the hinge for the main door. My bathroom is quite small and laid out similarly to your plan. The door swings in towards the bath and it is just fine. If you really wing it, it would bang into the tub. It hasn't hindered our use of the tub or anything else. (Personally I hate pocket and bar doors as the main doors on bathrooms--they aren't as private and they don't feel as secure.)

Our tub is also right across from the sink and it is fine.

Here are a few pins that might help you visualize?
Basically your layout
This one has a mirrored pocket door. Dual purpose!
Frosted door next to a dual vanity
Here's another

Something else to consider: where are y'all going to hang your bath towels? Maybe leave some wall space (not all mirror) above the vanities for hand towels at least. If you're doing a full gut, you might also consider inset medicine cabinet(s). More storage for small things and you're already going to hang a mirror somewhere anyway!
posted by purple_bird at 1:51 PM on September 1, 2017 [1 favorite]

Definitely seconding putting a small hand washing sink in the toilet area, for the benefit of anyone who has diarrhoea or a period-splosion.
posted by emilyw at 6:18 AM on September 2, 2017

If you put in a pocket door as the main door it may have to slide toward the sink so it doesn't interfere with the bath supply lines in the wall. But I recommend placing them in the center of the tub,not at one end.
posted by TDIpod at 9:38 AM on September 2, 2017

Response by poster: Thanks for all the feedback! Yes, we are planning on the door opening towards the bath if we don't do a pocket door. The room with the toilet will also have some cabinets for linens, TP, etc. The towel hanging issue is a really good one to think about, as I don't have a great answer. I will make sure we take that into consideration for the final design. I also love the idea of the sink on the toilet tank! We'll definitely look into that.
posted by LKWorking at 7:52 AM on September 5, 2017