Bathrooms can be one of the toughest rooms in the house to get right. We spend a good amount of time in the bathroom over the course of our lives, and having a comfortable place to freshen up, do our business, and get ready in the morning or unwind at night is important. Too often bathrooms wind up being too small and cramped, lack a window or proper ventilation, or don’t have functional storage, all of which can make your morning or evening routine more of a hassle. It’s no surprise then, that bathroom remodeling tends to be one of the most common jobs requested. In 2015, bathroom remodeling jobs accounted for a little over 80% of all requests. If you’re thinking about undertaking a bathroom remodeling, you’re probably looking at bathroom ideas and trying to gather ideas for what you want your ideal bathroom to look like. Let us help you!
What Are Some Things to Keep In Mind?
So you have a million bathroom ideas and no way of narrowing them down. You want the pros in on a bathroom remodeling job. You don’t want to start tearing up floors and removing appliances before really understanding what you want and what you have to work with already. Talking to an expert will help you make smart choices and can help save you money by working with what you have.
Of course, one of the biggest remodels is adding more space to your bathroom. Though it can take a bit longer, take heart. Bathroom additions usually offer you a return on investment of almost 87%.
Another big item that many designers might recommend is looking into making your bathroom more energy efficient. You may end up updating your plumbing, which can help reduce leaks. Around 10% of homes have leaks that end up wasting 90 gallons of water (or more!) every single day. Fixing this type of leak can save you as much as 10% on your water bills. Houzz released a survey that showed that over 90% of participants wanted to install energy efficient toilets during their bathroom remodels and following up with a water-saving shower head is another great way to conserve resources and reduce costs.
What are Some Bathroom Ideas That Might Work For Me?
This depends on what kind of look you’re going after. Do you want a more modern bathroom? Consider a glass shower enclosure with sleek stainless steel or chrome fixtures. Looking at a more vintage bathroom design? Antique bathroom fixtures might fit perfectly into that vintage bathroom decor plan you’ve got drawn up.
However, opting for a tile floor is always a smart choice. Tile floors are easy to clean, excellent at withstanding water, and available in an array of colors and designs. Make sure that your wiring is up to date, so that you have enough power for all those new electrical gadgets that are found in 21st-century homes — the electric razor or toothbrush, the flatiron, curler, blow dryer, the device of your choice for music, etc.
Storage is key. Are you short? Make sure you can reach everything and build in convenient little cubbies or niches for toiletries or extra supplies. Do you want a low-maintenance bathroom or can you dedicate more time to caring for it? That choice will determine many of your material choices — natural stone, for example, is fussy, whereas laminate is as low-maintenance as you can get.
Keep lighting in mind too — if you don’t have a window in your bathroom, but your bathroom faces an outside wall, consider seeing if you can get some natural light in with a new window (and this can also be helpful for ventilation). Do you want brighter vanity lighting or will overhead lighting do?
Any bathroom remodel will involve a huge amount of planning, but with the help of a designer and experienced contractor, your bathroom ideas can turn into reality.