New bathroom

Looking at Mumsnet it doesn't seem to make a great deal of difference now if there is no bath. For babies and toddlers they put a baby bath in the shower and the older children go under the shower. It didn't seem to be a deal breaker for most of them.

I have wondered about the same thing. Our small home has two baths and the former owner had removed the tub for a shower so the house now has two showers. I have thought it would be a better house sell if there was a tub for small children or if a soak was needed for injures since we are older. Small children may be frightened if forced to get under a shower verses a tub they can enjoy as we have 13 grandchildren and one great grand.

We are discussing having bath removed and shower fitted we have over bath shower at the moment ,we never use the bath bathroom is small with separate toilet ,our problem is we have lots of pipes running under bath into cupboard which has boiler in how do we get round this we also seem to have problems with poor workmanship so that is a worry also unfortunately don't know anyone who have had this done . has anyone used a known company they could recommend.

The information about the VAT from Whiff may be useful. I'll have to look into that. I have bronchiectasis and asthma. Because of the bronchiectasis I got NTM (a sort of non contagious TB) which involved taking three anti biotics every day for eighteen months. You can catch this from a shower head so I need one that I can take off easily and soak in white vinegar.
We have a new bathroom on order and are having a large shower with a grab rail and are doing away with the bath.
We may have to rethink the toilet though. We did not think of getting a higher one.
They are putting a sort of false wall in the shower and making a recess which will provide a shelf for shampoos etc.

Our house had an old fashioned separate toilet and bathroom. When we modernised we had the joining wall knocked down. The new through bathroom had enough space to have a separate shower unit put in which has been very useful. We also made sure that the new bath was lower which has future proofed that. Unfortunately we never thought about having a higher toilet. Too late. The new bathroom was too expensive to change again. Wish I had read a thread like this before we got started.

Depends on the size of your loo but this is a flexifit
www.plumbworld.co.uk/croydex-eyre-flexi-fix-soft-close-d-shape-white-thermoset-plastic-toilet-seat-wl601522h-252-1253161

Can anyone suggest a good quality D Toilet Seat. Bought a new build house in 2018 toilet seats, Ideal, dreadful. They move when in use and the lid keeps coming off and difficult to get to and adjust. Thinking I might have to have the whole toilet replaced.

Has anyone experience of a combined WC & washbasin (washbasin sits on top of the cistern)? We have a downstairs loo but no space for a separate basin so thinking about changing it. Any help greatly appreciated.

We have a shower tray which fits into the space the bath came out of. It is large enough to put a seat in, should we need one. It has a large fixed glass panel, and the whole thing is very easy to clean. We wanted a tray that was more or less flush with the floor, but due to the configuration of the existing plumbing and joists, we ended up with a four inch step in, which is ok. They advertised the shower tray as being non slip, but it isn’t, so we use two shower mats in there which makes me feel safer. There is a large square thin shower head and an additional hand sprayer which is very useful. We also asked for the controls to be placed where we could turn them on before we get into the shower, so that the water is running warm when you get in, so they are on the wall facing the bit where you step in, not at the end where the shower head is. The only other thing I would say is that we have two overhead showers; the one in the ensuite you can unscrew the head by hand to take it off for cleaning (and they do all need cleaning inside at some point); the new one we found we couldn’t do it without employing a wrench!
The only mistake we made with this bathroom is that I fell in love with a basin tap which has proved to be a bloody nuisance. It looks lovely, but if you turn it on too fast it hits the bottom of the sink and squirts up all over you and the floor! A lesson in not letting your heart rule your head!

Whenever I am looking for any tradesmen I always use Checkatrade who use trusted Trades who have been vetted and monitored to meet their standards. They also have insurance cover should there be any problems. I never have had any.

Thanks for this post. There are some really good points to bear in mind for the future - which seems to be closer than I would like!

I used to work as a housing officer and found many older people just could not use a bath as they got older. I would say definitely get a large shower unit fitted, not an over the bath shower if possible, get a very shallow shower tray so that you don't have to lift your leg to get into the shower .The best choice would be a bath with shower, an independent shower and the whole room a wet room. Clearly if you don't have the room for all of that then I would get a large shower with a seat so that you can sit if needed. And think about having some grab rails fitted so that if you do have problems rising from seated then you can assist yourself.

I'd recommend that you have a heated towel rail that runs both on the central heating system and independently on electricity.
Then you can still switch it on to warm the room and air your towels when the heating is off.
Our builders disputed such a thing existed, but a friend had one so I insisted. I had to find and order it myself though.

We had our En suite refurbished a couple of years ago, and installed Mira valve shower that has a superboost shower pump installed in our Airing cupboard. This gives a really nice hotel quality powershower, much better than any Electric shower could ever deliver, and we also managed to lower the step into the shower by sinking some of the pipework to a lower level benieth the floorboards. The Toilet was also replaced with a Shower toilet, Ideal for Disabled use, as it can also give you a warm wash and air dry at the push of a button if needed, very handy if you struggle with using a conventional toilet and cannot reach to wipe yourslf at times. Not cheap, but well worth every penny. We choseto have it installed into the en-suite so that it was out of the way of any visitors or Grandchildren who may accidentally push the wrong button and get the shock of their lives with a jet of warm water squirted at them!
We also had a new shower cubicle installed in our downstairs utility room, a nice big square metre enclosure with space for a free standing shower stool and plenty of Grab rails. This was rather a disapointment when completed. Due to the floor base being concrete, and space being needed for the water to drain away to a lower level, we ended up with a full 12inch step up on the outside of the cubicle from floor level to get into it. Even with the small set of shallow steps the fitter made for me to gain easier entry, I do not feel secure, and Im afraid of falling. To top it all, the Electric superboost shower they installed is fairly useless. The hose fitting is of a non standard type, rendering it imposible to add a.longer length hose suitable for carer use. It also dislikes being used as a hand held shower, and if pointed in a upward direction, it switches itself into cut off mode and drenches out freezing cold water. Its best use is for showering down the dog when she needs a bath, or showering mud of the groundsheet of our Caravan Awning!
My final tip is regarding toilets. Whilst there are some lovely new shapes available on the market, please consider their practicalities. The more square shaped toilets popular a few years ago are not always easy to buy a new seat for, there are so.many sizes and variations of what various manufacturers consider to be 'Square'!
Choose a Toilet with a good sized base to the bowl below the waterline, and capacity to hold a large amount of contents prior to flushing. Again some of the latest are very small indeed, and can require a second or third flush to clear them, all very embarasing if you have visitors and they are in there for ages trying to flush what they have done away!
I would love a spar bath with a fitted bath lift, I tried a special hydrotherapy pool at a place we stayed at a couple of years ago and loved it. It was designed for disabled use, complete with ramps and hoists for easy access into the water, which was super warm. Just a shame that it was far too big to be fitted into a domestic house, and probably about the price of an entire house too!

Make sure you have a large shower cubicle, one which can take a seat should you need one in the future.We had a double shower fitted, the rounded type ( as in an en suite we once had, I kept catching my foot on the corner of the cubicle) so one without corners is great.Have the whole bathroom tiled.
Have as many cupboards under and to both sides, of the sink as you have room for.
Go for a large showerhead that also has an attachment showerhead (smaller) that you can unwind and use for rinsing hair or just having a ‘half shower’.
Have a large heated towel rail ( linked to central heating) and a small electric heater mounted high on the wall, for the colder days when the CH isn’t being used.Have a really efficient light/lights installed.Go for a neutral colour ....a friend had her bathroom tiled in green, fine in daylight, at night with the light on the effect is ghastly, like a goblins
hideout.

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We took out the bath and put in a large shower cubicle in our main bathroom when we totally gutted it at the beginning of last year. Fitted units along one wall, extra height toilet and tiled from floor to ceiling and floor tiles. Neither of us ever had a bath so was the logical thing to do.
We also have a shower in the en-suite but it doesn't get used now as it's a lot smaller.
We bought all the fittings and fixtures ourselves and used a builder we had used before. It cost around 7k and took around 7 days from start to finish. We are very happy with it.
I've added a few pictures as I kept a photographic record of the whole thing.

I work in a bathroom showroom. Have a look online at the Tavistock Micra comfort height toilet. Some can be quite ugly and bulky looking but this one doesn't stick out so far. They also do matching basins so the porcelain is the same colour.
I don't have any connection with the company, we sell from many manufacturers but this is the one I bought.

DD bought a house where the bath had been replaced by a walk in shower. Didn’t put them off at all and they simply replaced with a new bath because arrival of DGD meant a bath was easier with baby and toddler. Candlelit treat for Mum too occasionally.
30 years ago we bought a house that was notorious locally for NOT having a BATH. I think people are more flexible these days.
PS we put a bath in. Probably used a dozen times in 30 years. ?We do have daily showers though honestly.

Yes did this some years ago in the main bathroom and installed a corner shower - never regretted it. We also refitted another property a couple of years ago and put corner showers in both the main and en-suite bathrooms. We did these with wall panelling instead of tiles too which makes cleaning them so much easier.

We used a local, independent supplier for our bathroom refit six years ago. Spent a long while in there looking and thinking. They solved my concern about hair washing other than in the shower by demonstrating a mini spray that can be plumbed in next to a sink. It seems there are three different toilet heights. Encouraged by the staff we sat on them all. Felt more than silly but of course they were right. We’re both tall, so chose the tallest and are very pleased we did. We have a large walk in shower, a wall hung basin basin to make cleaning easier. The walls are tiled to the ceiling, we loved some ceramic floor tiles so had those installed with some trepidation. So far so good. The supplier could also have recommended an installer, we preferred to use someone known to us. He took two weeks over the whole thing working alone. We were happy with the speed as he’s a perfectionist. If there’s an independent supplier in your area trendynannie it may be worth a visit. We’ve no regrets about taking the bath out and the height of the toilet, good luck with your project.

We have recently replaced two bathrooms.

We kept the bath in one of them for the grandchildren and myself occasionally but also have a walk-in shower.

We removed the bath in the other and had a walk-in shower put in. Where the old shower was we made a big cupboard.

We have tiles floor to ceiling in both and on the floor.
We also had the comfort height toilets put in.
I absolutely love both of them.

We had the bath taken out and a walk in shower put in as we never used the bath. In Spain we had 4 bathrooms and 2 baths and never used the bath in 15 years. I love my new shower but why is it when I no longer have a bath I long for one?

We have a non slip floor on our shower- it’s slightly textured - that was again a definite! Like others who replied our shower has no raised lip on the shower and we just walk in - the glass has two parts so we can adjust it to partly close or have both completely straight! We had Karndean flooring to match the wood flooring in the rest of the bungalow ( sorry put house in my earlier post !) as the floor does tend to get a bit drippy!

That’s a very good price all in Chewbacca and under 9 days too brilliant, yes sparkling the fitting usually costs the earth, we are looking for quotes in next few weeks

We replaced our bath with a walk in shower, no regrets. A large shower tray the length and width of the old bath and one big fixed glass screen. No awkward channels to clean.

Why be concerned about the likes of someone who MAY want to buy your house one day. Have what you like.

Rimless toilets seem the latest thing , worth investigating.