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we so need a second loo

(53 Posts)
petunia Thu 09-May-19 08:36:17

(I mean this to be lighthearted0

I really, really really need a second loo in the house.

We downsized several years ago and are now both retired. We have a lovely house and garden but I so want a second loo. Maybe a second bathroom. But there's no way to add one without major expense and upheaval

When we were both working, it didn't matter. Our routines kept us busy and out of each others way, but not now. Whenever I'm about to shave my legs/have a shower/cut my toe nails or whatever, there's a plaintive cry at the bathroom door. His bowels need to move AT THAT PRECISE POINT.

And no, he cant wait. It has to be then. So I stop what I'm doing and let him in.
Then of course, I have to go back in to the smell that creeps up my nostrils and lingers all day.

I believe there's some unknown biological mechanism that men possess that alerts their bowels to the woman's need for some time in the bathroom. Its like an alarm clock.

harrigran Thu 09-May-19 08:45:40

I agree Petunia, DH spends much longer in our bathroom than I do and has taken to asking whether I will be requiring the use of it in the next half hour. Am I bovvered ? I will just use the guest bathroom.

sodapop Thu 09-May-19 08:54:55

I know how you feel petunia we don't have a downstairs lavatory and its a nuisance. It was real problem when I fractured my pelvis and was in a lot of pain. Unfortunately we have no space suitable.

B9exchange Thu 09-May-19 08:57:14

I agree, you need a separate loo, there must be somewhere you can squeeze one in, with macerators you can use much smaller piping. Under the stairs maybe? Box off part of a room? Why not ask for builder recommendations and get a few ideas and quotes so you know what is feasible?

Do not put up with being turfed out and having to live with the pong any longer! DH takes the cryptic crossword in there, if we didn't have a separate one I would be in agony! grin

midgey Thu 09-May-19 08:57:35

Oh Petunia how I agree with you! I take furosemide.....which can lead to an emergency grin, he says he can’t move. I have been known to have to hurry to Tesco!

Luckygirl Thu 09-May-19 09:27:12

We live in a bungalow with three loos!! How decadent is that??!! The GC quite like choosing their loo when the call comes.

SalsaQueen Thu 09-May-19 09:34:00

petunia......I know what you mean. My house is a 1930s place, which had been extended by the previous owner. The bathroom was downstairs, but the actual toilet is separate and is downstairs (a real pain when I have to get up in the night for a wee). My husband created a bathroom upstairs, by using part of my bedroom and part of the landing. The toilet is still downstairs, as there would be a massive amount of digging down to the mains sewer, we were told.

Luckygirl................how I envy you all those toilets.

Framilode Thu 09-May-19 09:48:51

Between houses we went into a rented house for a few months that had no downstairs loo. It was then that I realised how essential it was for us and didn't consider any houses without one.

The only problem is that my son in law insists on using the downstairs loo for the full monty and stinks the place out. I was given some of that VI Poo spray as a joke present but it works. Maybe you could ask your husband to use some of that if he insists on using the loo when you want to be in the bathroom. It has a lovely lemon smell as it is made with lemon oil. I'm not advertising but it has worked for us.

Bathsheba Thu 09-May-19 09:54:28

Oh I too yearn for an extra loo! It's me, though, that is usually found hogging the littlest room for too long blush. We probably could find the room for a downstairs one to be installed, but I can't bear the thought of all the upheaval it would entail, all the mess. One day, one day....

David1968 Thu 09-May-19 10:07:25

In our previous home we had a second loo installed in the cupboard under the stairs. It fitted nicely into this remarkably small area; there was just room for the loo and a small basin. It was great to have it, and we were so glad we had it done. (And when we came to sell the house, it was a significant factor in its favour - many buyers expect second loos now.) It also made us sort out all the crap stuff we kept under the stairs; we bought a small cupboard for light bulbs etc. and we put the vacuum somewhere else. Recommended as an investment in your health and home - might it be worth you getting a loan for such a project?

annsixty Thu 09-May-19 10:49:07

Those systems which use macerators(sp) are a good idea but boy are they noisy?
My friends bought a dormer bungalow with two bedrooms uostairs and had a snall shower/loo made out of part of the landing and part of a bedroom
The loo would wake everyone up if it was flushed during the night.
It was so awkward to me that I chose to stay in a near by Premier Inn went I went over to see them.

Alexa Thu 09-May-19 11:11:55

Petunia, maybe he would enjoy a caravan in the back garden all of his own with a porta potty in it .

petunia Thu 09-May-19 11:46:45

Ha ha. Thanks for all your replies. Unfortunately we have no stairs to put a guzunda. And our rooms arent spacious enough to steal room for a loo. The only way is outwards-which involves, an extension, drains, moving the greenhouse etc., etc.,etc.

I have days when I think-sod it, just extend. Others when I think-first world problem, just be grateful for indoor plumbing. Today is a sod it day

Poppyred Thu 09-May-19 11:58:03

If you have 2 double bedrooms why not make one into a single and add a loo?

Eglantine21 Thu 09-May-19 12:03:17

Extend!

Nonnie Thu 09-May-19 12:11:22

I think it was Michael Caine who said "The secret of a happy marriage is separate bathrooms".

aggie Thu 09-May-19 12:16:01

I would extend , and the sooner the better , when the GSs visit it is a couple of hours before I can brave the guest loo

Grammaretto Thu 09-May-19 12:20:21

I once stayed at a 4 star hotel which boasted en-suites. What it really was was a converted cupboard, the shower and loo just big enough to function and no more.
However it gave me an idea and on returning home I had a look at my own cupboard in the eaves and phoned a plumber, who said there's plenty room enough so for the past 10 years we've had a spare shower room. The loo is round rather than oblong to make space for legs but this was only a problem when you want to put a baby training seat over it. I often wonder how we managed before we had a spare loo. I can remember resorting to a potty in the night when I was pregnant...
As others have said, there are macerating loos now which don't require much plumbing.
www.plumbingsupply.com/when-and-where-to-use-a-macerating-toilet.html

Fennel Thu 09-May-19 12:40:45

petunia do you have a staircase? If so I know of a few people who have created a loo in the understairs space. Good in an emergency.
It needs a reliable system of odour expulsion though.
Another idea - an outside 'netty' as my Grandma called it. In the back garden.

JenniferEccles Thu 09-May-19 13:03:36

Are you absolutely sure you can't have an extra loo or bathroom?

It may well be less expensive or less problematic than you think.

Why not get some quotes? There may well be a way to fit one in that you hadn't thought of.

I wouldn't give up on the idea without investigating all the possibilities.

Poppyred Thu 09-May-19 13:09:49

In the meantime..... a squirt of toilet gel will get rid of any nasty smells ??

Willow500 Thu 09-May-19 13:26:20

We bought an apartment off plan a few years ago and as it had a large cupboard directly behind the bathroom we asked the builders to install a second toilet and washbasin which was great. Fast forward 2 years we put it up for sale and the couple who finally bought it were Japanese. The woman couldn't understand why we had had an extra toilet fitted to the expense of storage. To this day I wonder if she had her way and sacrificed the toilet for shelves and hanging space! grin

Willow500 Thu 09-May-19 13:27:32

PS I also recommend VIPoo or one of the other ones on the market - they do work.

JackyB Thu 09-May-19 13:37:11

We have a second loo downstairs, bur in the large house I grew up in in the 60s only had an upstairs loo. At least it was separate from the bathroom.

With us, it would be the other way round. DH, who was a teacher and had to stick to a timetable all his life, is as regular as clockwork. I was only ever a housewife or working in an office and could always go when I needed to, so I would be the one banging on the door!

Cabbie21 Thu 09-May-19 13:43:35

One thing we looked for when buying this house was an additional downstairs loo. It is in an extension tacked on to the back of the garage, and has a shower too. We often both need the loo at the same time, so both loos are well used, but the shower will really come into its own if one of us ends up needing to sleep downstairs.

Incidentally we also looked for ease of access, not on a slope, on a bus route, walking distance to shops, doctors etc. All boxes ticked.