Shall I swap a bath for a shower unit?

[Gyvybe]

Hi,

We are thinking of removing a bath in our tiny bathroom and installing a shower unit.

The total bathroom space is 165 cm x 179 cm (toilet is situated in a separate room), so with a standard bath and a basin already in there we pretty much struggle to find space to turn around.

The solution seems to be to get rid of the bath completely and give one of the corners to a shower unit, wining more space for a decent bathroom cupboard, towel rack etc.

How would this affect the value of our property? Would potential buyers still be unhappy without having a bath?

Do British home owners care?

P.S. This is a 3 bedroom 1960ies house.

[Hawkwalk]

Removing a bath is not always a good idea if you are thinking of re-selling at some point. A 3 bed house is often attractive to people with young families who will want a bath for the children.

It could either reduce the value or greatly restrict the amount of people who would want to buy it.

Alternatively you can buy a short bath and place a shower over it which will give you some extra space for a unit and keep a bath in place should you wish to sell.

[weeal]

I would expect a 3-bedroom house to have a bath, as a family home. Just my personal choice tho.
You could always opt for the shorter length space saving bath with shower over? I only have a shower room in a one-bed flat and miss the bath.
Maybe clever moving of existing fittings would help, some bathroom suppliers will help re-design the room for you, or you could do it yourself using graph paper.

[tezestwing]

you could try this for size http://www.diy.com/diy/jsp/bq/nav/nav.jsp?acti on=detail&fh_secondid=9382046&fh_hth Tez

[shylock73]

Why not install a shower above the bath, then you have the best of both worlds? I love to have a good soak at least once a year whether need it or not.

[Gyvybe]

Thank you all for your advice and the link (Tez), highly appreciated.

We were also wondering if knocking down the partition wall between the loo and the bathroom would improve things. We'd need to block off one of the entrance doors, but the question would again be - is it OK to only have one bathroom (toilet) space for a 3 bed house?...

Many thanks again for your suggestions.

[butterflies]

A separate toilet is always a great thing. How many people get pestered while in the bath while some other member of the family are 'dying' to go to the loo!
Could you get a washbasin/cupboard fixture?
Could you fit a towel dryer/radiator behind the door?
Just an idea.

[butterflies]

Sorry, seperate!

[andrea81]

Not sure how everyone feels, but we're in the process of looking for a house and we were put off by a house with a shower and no bath. We have a child and one on the way and I couldn't imagine life without a bath for them!

We have a tiny bathroom too, but we have a mixer tap for shower and bath in one.

[bimbo123456]

separate was right (I remember it by "pare" like in pare an apple meaning to peel) This one was one I always used to get wrong!

[Papaleekie]

Remember that you can have a shower in a bath, but can't have a bath in a shower cubicle! Not so critical in a bungalow, as a shower is easier to use for an elderly or disabled person, but a 3 bed house attracts families and as is mentioned above, kiddies need baths. I'd always elect to simply fit a shower above the bath, with a shower curtain rather than a fixed screen.
Remember that electric showers now have to be installed by qualified electricians to meet part P of the building regulations.

[hayleyj]

Hi.
I agree with the previous answers, it's not a good idea to take a bath out of a family sized house if you ever consider selling in the future as it will restrict your buyers.
I work in a bathroom showroom and there are plenty of 'P' shaped shower baths where you have extra room one end to stand in to shower. One good make on the market is a company called 'Adamsez' they make a solid acrylic shower bath called 'Mezza' in a couple of different lengths. Another good one is the 'Bette Ocean', which is steel and is rectangular with an internal area dedicated for showering.
Hope this helps!x

[Gyvybe]

Thanks to everyone for the feedback and especially Hayleyj for suggesting the product - we've already looked that up online, and 'P' shape does seem to be an excellent option for us.

We will definitely keep the toilet as a separate room, as it's rather spacious and has it's own window. One joined space with two windows on two different walls would have made it very difficult to arrange things around anyway.

So thanks again - your help is highly valued.

[karelat1]

i have just moved house, because the last house i was in
(beautiful big 1900 house) did NOT have a bath. also moved for other resons too. but i am a shower person normally, but did miss the choice of having a bath, but hey guess what, moved house to a real real nice place. with a bath and shower, and still nit had a bath - lol. but the choice is there