Most families want to have two to three bathrooms in their house to avoid the issue of waiting. But the limited floor space can be a challenge. Still, it doesn’t mean you don’t have an option. Creative thinking and a bit of visualization can solve your concern. For example, you can still have some room left for a half bath. If you don’t believe it, check the area under the staircase. It can look too small for something like this, but you can easily convert it into a working half bath with proper design and layout. Some homeowners encourage this idea to increase their property value, while others want to add this for their visitors or guests.
If you host guests frequently, you may also like this arrangement. As such, this type of facility ensures privacy and comfort for both parties. Hence, it can make sense to build one in your house. Here are a few suggestions to help you create a half bath in your home.
Size of the half bathroom
It will not be a spacious room. Any 3 to 4 feet wide and 6 to 8 feet long area can be enough for this. A smaller space than this can be problematic, though. It will hamper smooth movement in and out of the bathroom. Similarly, building a large half bath will waste money and effort because much of the floor space remains unused.
Plumbing
Regardless of the size, a bathroom would need drainage and running water. If you have budget constraints, it will be better to find a location where water and sewer connections are within easy reach. Or, it will be even more fantastic if the half bath could share a wall with the existing full bathroom. The houses with basements or piers can have plumbing lines under the main floor. But something resting on a slab foundation will need an extensive plumbing job. It can shoot up your project’s cost. Hence, it is essential to focus on existing plumbing connections and use them to install a sink or any other fixture.
Since powder rooms don’t witness much traffic, you can select appealing fixtures hassle-free. Think of a perfect sink for a half bath, for example.
Ventilation and electrical connections
Every bathroom must either have a working window or an exhaust fan. If you live in an older house, you have to be extra careful about these things. Also, electrical outlets have to meet specific codes for users’ safety and security. If you are not sure how a ventilation fan looks, you can check half bath designs online. You would get some clue about matching the fan and light also.
Soundproofing or insulation
You would want to make sure your bathroom has sufficient sound insulation. It is more critical for half baths, which mainly exist close to dining or living areas. You wouldn’t want to embarrass guests with the sounds going on inside it. Water pipes, drainage, and vents with a suitable sound-absorbing material wrapped around them can achieve this for a cost-effective price. But this should precede the bathroom wall job.
Privacy
Nobody likes to get noticed when they enter or exit the bathroom. They prefer a bit of secrecy in this matter. So keep this factor in mind when you construct a half bath in your house. Its location should prevent direct sightings from the closest areas, such as the living room. Or, you can cover it in a way that the visitor remains oblivious to others. With room dividers and screens, you can achieve this comfortably. Or, you can deck up the adjacent rooms cleverly so that guests don’t get a direct view of the bathroom.
Corner spaces
Finding room for storage in a small bath can be a challenge. Still, the markets are full of options for every type of home renovation needs. Hence, you don’t have to worry. You can look for sleek medicine cabinet designs that quickly settle down in a 90-degree corner smoothly. It may solve your storage needs and not eat into much space too. For stylish options, you can explore something with a mirror, glass shelves, and beautiful lighting. Although the cabinet size has to be according to the space available in your half bathroom, you can consider something with 40 inches height and 20 inches width for its adequate accommodation capacity and attractive appearance.
Layouts
Under the stairs, garage, or a dormer attic can be the best locations. The preference should be the stairs, though. It is just that you have to work on the headroom and ventilation a bit. The ceiling height should be at least five feet from the top of the toilet seat. You can also check the local code to understand the criteria. Vanity and sink should get the tallest wall space because hand pumps and other things will go there. If you think the garage room is perfect for this, you can go ahead with it. But again, the design has to be clean. Many garage bathrooms face the issue of banging doors due to the poor layout. You can avoid this by exploring your options well. For example, a sliding pocket door in this space can be the best solution.
As with the gabled dormer, you can experiment with the bathroom idea, provided ceiling height is seven feet, and walls are five feet tall and five to six feet wide. Some attics can accommodate full bathrooms also.
Any home improvement project can be both exciting and overwhelming. The budget, time, and energy you spend on it make it a valuable experience. But you can feel satisfied and happy only when you achieve almost everything as per your planning. Any minor defect or design error can ruin your mood. That’s why it is critical you hire an experienced contractor for the job. While it is good to save as much amount as possible, you must avoid the temptation to settle for cheap labor at the cost of skills, experience, and expertise. The result can prove more costly otherwise.
