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Need 3/4 bath in 4' x 10' space... HELP!

FrugalFarmhouse
12 years ago

I'm trying to put a bathroom into a long, narrow space with a doorway on one end. This is the only bathroom in a cabin, so it must have usable shower,toilet and sink. The cabin sleeps 8, so it's going to get a lot of use. Must be durable, functional, and cheap! Any suggestions are appreciated.

Comments (12)

  • kmcg
    12 years ago

    Big shower across the far end, short toilet in the middle (or wall mounted - anything that doesn't extend too far), shallow vanity or wall mount sink just inside the door. Best if you don't have an in-swing door. Our neighbors laid theirs out this way and it works well, even with only about 8 feet instead of your 10.

  • desertsteph
    12 years ago

    is there a window at the end? I'll assume the 4' wall...it would be good if a window for light and fresh air.

    and the door on the other 4' wall? would need to be as far to one side of it as possible.

    you could even put the toilet at the far end with the shower in the middle. you could get a 4'x maybe 30" shower there. measure the width of a tub area. people use tub/showers a lot and that width seems to be plenty.

    Then run the vanity from side of shower to wall next to door. you'll have to find a shallow vanity. hopefully one with some drawers in it.

    that'd give you 3' for width of toilet, 4' for shower and 3' for the vanity/sink area.minus the shower side walls of course.

    If there isn't room for a set in medicine cab/mirror, just put up a regular/flat mirror over sink, off set sink closer to the shower and put a surface medicine cab on the side wall of vanity (same as wall with door).

    Also, I've put up a shelf - about 4" deep under my over sink mirror. There's room on there for my hair brush/comb, a few hair clips, medicine bottle or 2, facing cleanser jar etc. you could run one the full length of the vanity.

    you could also put one of those over the toilet cabs in for more storage.

    for cheap check out the shower pkgs at somewhere like HD/lowe's.

    do put in a fan if there isn't one - you don't want moisture building up in there.

  • birdgardner
    12 years ago

    Here's a 48" x 34" shower kit from HD for $500. Put it at the far end. Could go with smaller. Do you have a window at that end?

    That leaves you 7 feet. Take another 36" for the toilet which is code IIRC. Look for a small toilet, round bowl not elongated. Toto Eco Supreme was smallest I could find for my small bathroom, it projects 28". The Kohler Rialto is smaller but gets bad reviews for flushing. The Toto flushes very reliably.

    Sink goes in the remaining 48".

    A pocket door or ceiling height barn door between toilet and sink lets people brush their teeth etc while someone is using toilet or shower, important if there are eight of you. Pocket door is best as far as sound privacy but takes up more space than barn door and partition.

    You can get by with an in-swinging door to the bath if your vanity is narrower than standard 21.

    IKEA has pictures in its catalog of small bathrooms, and inexpensive sinks, vanities and cabinets.

    Here is a link that might be useful: shower kit

  • jsmith123
    12 years ago

    what about a corner shower enclosure this will take up minimum space and also think about shower baths which are great to combine both shower and bathing in one package.I had to use a quadrant shower enclosure in my tiny bathroom and it works well.

    Here is a link that might be useful: quadrant shower enclosures

  • palimpsest
    12 years ago

    If you use a Toto wall hung toilet with an in-the-wall tank by Geberit or Toto, (Geberit makes one that fits in a 4-1/2" stud wall), it will extend into the room 21". That would leave you 27" in front of the toilet, which meets the minimum.

    Your other option would be to create wet room where the toilet and shower occupied the same space. The toilet could go on the back 4' wall (I would still do wall hung), and the whole floor under it and four feet in front of it could be a large shower floor. Then at the front of the bathroom could be a narrow wall hung sink.

    This could be carried out with a conventional shower pan but it would not be as convenient for in-the-night trips to the bathroom. A shower pan with a threshold in the front and in the back could be placed in the middle of the room and you would walk through the shower to get to the toilet at the back. A bit to think about walking through the bathroom but it would function.

    The problem is the door location. I am planning a second, 3/4 bath that is 7 x 3.5 that works only because the door is in the middle of the long wall, with toilet on one side of the door, shower on the other and narrow sink in the middle.
    It just barely meets the minimum of 24" in front of the toilet with a conventional shower pan, or could exceed it if I did a flush shower pan with trench drain.

  • dilettante_gw
    12 years ago

    I agree with everyone who suggested using a wall-hung toilet. You can get one with an elongated bowl that is less than 19" deep, which would give you plenty of space to meet code and to move around in. Also, a wall-hung toilet would make the bathroom easier to clean, an important consideration in a bathroom that will get a lot of use.

    You might also consider putting a corner toilet in the corner between the shower wall and the bathroom wall. If you built a small half-height wall against the corner, you could use a conventional toilet and gain a small shelf.

    Finally, (and just for the record) there is at least one standard toilet that is only 24" deep. However, the Amazon listing says that that it's currently unavailable. Even if it were, I wouldn't take a chance on it in your situation. If you didn't like it or if you ever needed to replace it, you might not be able to find another toilet to fit the space.

    Here is a link that might be useful: 24

  • dilettante_gw
    12 years ago

    P.S. I meant to also advise you to limit your choices to a dual flush if you're on a septic system, as you probably are.

  • suero
    12 years ago

    This will meet code:

  • dilettante_gw
    12 years ago

    Suero, FrugalFarmhouse said that the door would be at one end. I don't know whether he/she meant on the short or the long side though.

  • live_wire_oak
    12 years ago

    It won't work with the door on one end unless you do the wetroom combo shower/toilet like suggested. Not what you'd want from a vacation home, for sure! Who wants to get their feet wet just to use the toilet!

    The door needs to be in one of the long walls to get a layout that works. Or else it needs to be wider. I'd personally try to get one foot wider and maybe try for a linen closet accessed from a hall or other room to go along with the bath.

  • palimpsest
    12 years ago

    A wetroom design with a good trench style drain doesn't stay too wet too long, particularly if you have good ventilation --and maybe a heat lamp wouldn't hurt if they can be placed in wetrooms in the US.

    Getting feet wet isn't really the issue, in my experience, its getting socks wet. If you are barefoot a bathmat at the sink takes care of your feet on the way back out. Wet socks are annoying, and wet, dirty shoes could be annoying if they track. But wet feet, pretty easily taken care of.

    We don't wear shoes in the upstairs, but I do wear socks a Lot because my feet are often cold. That is why I am doing a conventional 3/4 in a small space rather than a wet room.