As a family bathroom, we needed to retain both bath and shower. So we designed the space as a partial wet room with hinged glass screen to protect the basin, wc and floor. Only the bath sits in the wet zone. The screen folds flat against the wall when not in use, making this small bathroom feel surprisingly spacious.
Underfloor heating
An electric heating mat not only provides warmth underfoot, it also helps to dry the floor after showering.
Fitting a wet room
Being on a suspended floor, the team screwed 18mm marine ply to the joists. This created a rigid box structure, imperative for porcelain floor tiles. With anti-fracture matting fitted to the ply and wet areas tanked, the shower tray sat in a recess with drain beneath.
The contractor tiled the floor seamlessly across the room. We had considered an edge drain, but this would have created a wedge-shaped trip hazard in the floor.
We chose a concealed valve design for the shower with all fittings hidden but accessible through the valve plate. The rain shower drenches from above while the handset is useful for washing hair and for cleaning the space.
Modern freestanding bath and suite
The freestanding bath is only 1500mm long but, because of its thin section, the internal length is the same as a standard 1700mm bath. It is also wider than usual, so there’s plenty of space. We chose wall-mounted taps and bathroom suite to ease maintenance.
Bathroom lighting
The room has flexible lighting on 2 circuits. A small LED light in the shower niche and a strip light above the WC provide low level lighting at night. Six recessed LED downlighters provide the main lighting.
The extractor unit is in the loft space, so is nice and quiet, and vents through a lead slate in the roof.
Transformation from bathroom to wet room
Select the first image below to follow the story from start to finish (in the third image you can see cables to downlighters and speakers for the kitchen below):
This family bathroom has been transformed in to a contemporary wet room – warm, practical and easy to keep clean.
