Downstairs bathroom remodel

When we purchased our house over 7 years ago now, as it was a very old house it did not have a down stairs toilet but it did have a good sized cloakroom.   One of the items top of my last was a downstairs toilet for many reason including future proofing for our needs as we get older, to enable the kids grandparents to visit and also for sheer handiness for young kids.

I naively thought it was more straightforward than it would be. There is a lot to consider including the applicable rules and regulations pertaining to your local area. While I a no expert in this area when I can do is bring some tips and advise based on my own experience in this area.

Research

Doing adequate research before you begin cannot be underestimated.  For example check out local experts in your area, by way of reference shower remodel in Houston experts can be easily located.  Pay a visit to local display showroom, which admittedly can be a lot more difficult during the current pandemic. Another very useful piece of advice we got was to talk to our neighbours to see if any of them had completed a similar remodel. Those for us was so useful as we could go and see the size of the completed project and see the pitfalls from their perspective.

Cost 

This sounds a little cliched but it can cost as much or as little as you want depending on how much you know your specification and are willing to compromise often on functionality versus aesthetics. What shocked me most when we commenced our research was that the entire project could be brought in completed for approx $2,500.  I was genuinely shocked, my expectations were closer to $10,000. However what we did do was we increased the spend to increase the spec and hopefully prolong the bathroom functionality.

Ventilation 

You will thank me later!! Good ventilation when retro fitting a bathroom cannot be underestimated. If you think when your main bathroom was fitted this was considered from the outset however for retrofit this is most certainly the after thought.  Poor ventilation can lead to the presence of mould which can prove hugely detrimental to health.  From our experience and talking to our contractor we erred on the side of more ventilation, not just for the obvious and essential health reason but because with a hallway toilet no guest wants to be greeted with lingering odours from your downstairs toilet.

Statement room

What we decided to do with our downstairs bathroom is make it a feature! The rest of our house is quite minimalist and neutral, except the downstairs toilet!! We went for totally out there wall paper and finishes and it really has had the desired impact and really becomes a talking point.  Can highly recommend, especially at the moment you can source really cool wallpapers and paints with most shops allowing you to take samples to try in your own space. I would really recommend using this room to let your personality shine!!!

Note: This is a collaborative post.