North Leeds Plumbing & Heating – Home Improvement and DIY Advice

Archive for the ‘Bathroom Design’ Category

For all-over body hygiene quickly executed, a shower unit is an invaluable addition to your bathroom furniture.  From transparent shower enclosures in any choice of size and custom built to fit your bathroom, to shower fittings incorporated over your bath, for those without the space for a separate shower, Aqualisa shower units come in many styles and sizes.

A simple box-like structure with a shower tray can fit into all but the smallest bathroom area, but those with bathrooms that are more specious may choose to have larger walk-in shower units, or even to install a wet room.  With the choice of jet-sprays, an outsize showerhead and the addition of durable wet walls, perhaps made from a marble finish, wet rooms fitted with wet room glass panels are the height of showering luxury.

Some people choose not to have a shower in their bathroom, even if it is neatly fitted above the bath.  Complete with a bath panel or shower curtains, a shower can be a very useful addition to your daily hygiene.  Relaxing in a long bath can be an opportunity to pamper you, and to soak in the lovely smells of essential oils, bath bombs or bubble bath to wash away the aches, pains and cares of the day.  However, when you are in a rush, and especially when you want to wake up from a night’s rest ready to meet the rigours of your working day, you cannot beat a session in a thorough, exhilarating shower.

Bathroom accessories not only offer functionality but also help to add style and luxury to your bathroom.  Mirrors, cabinets, soap dishes and towel rails are just a few of the many accessories available that will help you to improve your bathroom.  With so many designs available, you are sure to find bathroom accessories that suit your bathroom perfectly.

For extra luxury, heated towel rails are a great choice for the bathroom.  Towel rails are available in wide variety of designs and are not only essential but also look stylish and will help to enhance the overall look of you bathroom.  Heated towel rails are a particularly good choice for those wishing to create a cosier atmosphere in the bathroom.

To create a unique look for your bathroom, you may wish to consider opting for accessories that offer a more unusual design.  Ordinary accessories such as toothbrushes holders, soap dishes and event toilet brushes are now available in a wide variety of designs, including brass and chrome, which will help to add something unique and stylish to your bathroom.

Bathroom accessories do not just have to add functionality to your bathroom.  You can select accessories simply for decoration to improve the look of your bathroom.  Items such as decorative glass bottles, ornaments and bathroom plaques are great choices for those wishing to add something more interesting and creative to their bathroom.

Bathroom accessories are also ideal for those wishing to create different themes for their bathroom.  Unique accessories and accessories such as fish-shaped ornaments or rubber ducks help to create a fun theme for the bathroom and you can even consider adding your own pictures or designs for any themes that you have in mind.

Whatever design you are planning for your bathroom, you are sure to find accessories that will help you to complete your theme. There are many manufactures offering bathroom accessories such as Ideal Standard and Inda, so there is no limit on what you can achieve.

Bathroom taps come in a number of different styles.  Below are a few of the most popular.

Pillar Taps

Pillar taps are suitable for two-hole basins and baths.  Pillar taps consist of a pair of taps, one for hot water and the other for cold.  Simple to fit and inexpensive, they come with lever handles or traditional cross head handles.

Mixer Taps

A mixer tap is a single body tap that mixes cold and hot water together in the body of the tap.  There are two handles – one located on each side of the tap – which control the water flow, making temperature regulation simple.  Before installing a mixer tap, it is important to check the household water pressure, as relatively high pressure is required for them to perform well.

Dual Flow

A dual flow tap is the ideal solution when a mixer tap is desired but there is unequal pressure between the hot and cold water supplies.  This type of tap produces a single flow of water like a mixer tap, but separates the hot and cold within the body of the tap, avoiding problems caused by unequal pressure.

Monobloc

Monobloc taps are very neat as there is only a single lever which operates the hot and cold water flow through one mixer tap.  Their sleek appearance makes them well-suited to minimalist bathroom suite designs but, like standard mixer taps, they require the water pressure in the hot and cold supplies to be almost equal.

Shower Mixer

Perfect for family bathrooms, the shower mixer tap set comes with a mechanism for diverting the water supply to a showerhead fitting.  You can mount the showerhead over the mixer tap, telephone style, for a period appearance, or hang it on a wall over the bath.

It can be confusing choosing the right shower enclosure for your bathroom as there are so many choices available, and so many things to consider. 

If you have a small bathroom, the amount of space available will obviously be one of the deciding factors when it comes to what type of shower enclosure you choose.  Corner shower enclosures are perfect for smaller bathrooms as they maximise the use of space.  Quadrant enclosures also work well in smaller bathrooms; they feature curved screens which trim off the corner normally filled by a square shower cabin, freeing up valuable floor space which can be used for bathroom furniture.

If space is not an issue, walk-in shower enclosures are popular, and will add a touch of contemporary elegance to any bathroom.  This more spacious and luxurious option allows room for a separate drying area which can be decked or tiled accordingly to create a contrast.  By fitting curved or angled screens, the spray from the showerhead is efficiently contained.

If the bathroom is your sanctuary and you want a luxury spa experience, a steam cabin may be the answer.  Steam cabins have been gaining in popularity in recent years as they come down in price, and smaller sizes are now available which don’t require a huge amount of space in the bathroom.  Steam offers many benefits to our wellbeing such as boosting metabolism, improving circulation, and providing relief to those suffering from allergies and asthma.  The inhalation of steam opens up the airways and reduces congestion and inflammation.  Alternatively, you could just use the steam cabin at the end of a long day as a way to relax.

The style and colour of a bathroom depends on personal taste, but it is generally a good idea to steer clear of exotic colours or exaggerated shapes which could fall out of fashion in a short time, making replacement fittings difficult to find. A standard white suite will be far easier to get replacements for. It is not necessary to choose all the items from one manufacturer; complete suites are often promoted, but items can be bought separately.

Use a colour wheel to decide on the colours for the walls and floors. A white suite can make a bathroom feel cold or clinical, but introducing bold colours with paint, tiles, fabric or wallpaper can create a distinctive bathroom. It is also easier to change these than a bathroom suite. Whether paint or wallpaper is chosen it should be designed to cope with condensation and be easy to wipe clean.

Mirrors or mirror tiles can make a bathroom appear larger, but any mirror should be specially created for bathrooms as it must be able to cope with condensation.

If there is space consider adding an interesting piece of bathroom furniture such as a small upholstered chair. Pictures and indoor plants on shelves can also add an interesting feature and a number of plants thrive in steamy atmospheres.

Before purchasing a suite it is important to check that the units will not only fit into the bathroom, but also that they can be manoeuvred through the home as items may have to be moved around corners on the stairs or through awkward doors.

Choosing and furnishing a bathroom used to be a straightforward affair, with a limited range of basic bathroom suites and bathroom furniture to make a choice from.  Now, even a simple item like a sink can be found in a variety of forms and at a number of prices, as bathrooms become ever-more stylish spaces in the modern home.  Having access to so many choices is also easier than ever before, since it is now possible to buy all your bathroom furniture at the click of a button online.  But many people still prefer to select their purchases in a high street store or bathroom showroom where they can see and feel the quality of their bathroom suite items.

Since many modern homes now contain at least one bathroom as well as a separate shower room or cloakroom, there is more demand for sinks than ever before.  Families in particular like the comfort of knowing there will always be an easily accessible space for children or visitors to wash their hands.  Designs range from a small corner sink to a pedestal sink or countertop sink, and the materials are as varied as the styles.  Choose from classic ceramic to glass, resin and even stone to make an ultimate style statement.  Also popular are twin, or double, sinks that enable more than one person to brush their teeth or wash their hands at the same time, thus negating family arguments and promoting a more harmonious way of living.

Large bathrooms are not common in the UK with the average British bathroom offering around three square metres of space, but for homeowners who are fortunate enough to have a large bathroom the options are endless. It might seem that designing a large bathroom would be easy, however it does require some thought. A standard sized bathroom suite can look lost in a large bathroom so some care needs to go into the planning and layout.

Corner baths can be a good way of filling up the space. Alternatively a freestanding bath can make the bathroom look luxurious and add style; roll-top baths are a popular choice. Freestanding baths do not have to be fitted against a wall and as the pipe work can be hidden under the floor the bath can be made a central feature of the bathroom.

Bathroom storage is always important regardless of the size of the bathroom. In a small bathroom providing enough storage can be a problem, but with a large bathroom a homeowner has the space for a wide range of bathroom furniture and fitted units. Fitted units can also cover empty walls or even be used to create a feature.

A large bathroom means that the homeowner does not have to choose between fitting a bath or a shower as there should be room for both. With a separate shower the bigger the cubicle the better the shower, so a homeowner should always choose the largest luxury shower enclosure that will fit comfortably in the space provided.

There are many different types of shower on the market and when selecting it is important to take into account the whole bathroom environment as well as the available space and budget.

If a new bathroom is being installed it is worth consulting a professional bathroom designer or using a bathroom planner to check if there is enough room for a separate shower enclosure. Over-the-bath showers are popular but a shower cubicle will enhance the showering experience. Corner or Quadrant shower enclosures can maximise the space available.

It is often the case that there is simply not room for a separate enclosure unless the homeowner is willing to do without a bath. This can be an acceptable solution, but many UK home buyers expect a bathroom to include a bath and so it may be better to opt for a shower over the bath. Fitting a glass panel or one that folds away when not in use can create a feeling of more space.

If a homeowner has a large bathroom then wet rooms are the ultimate in luxury and they offer the freedom of choosing some of the most powerful showers on the market. They are not cheap so if budget is a constraining factor an alternative could be to create a wet room feel by choosing a transparent room divider with a plain glass shower panel that is sunk into the floor tiling.

Wet rooms are very popular on the continent and are considered stylish and very easy to keep clean.

Once you have decided between shower, bath or a combination of the two, the next step is to think about the finish.  Pre-built shower enclosures are very popular, easy to maintain and fit into a variety of spaces, but result in something of a bland look.  One way to make the space truly unique is to tile the surround.

Tiling is relatively cheap to accomplish yourself.  It only requires a handful of small tools, but you will need a tile cutter of some sort; powered versions can be rented quite cheaply.  It is quite possible to learn how to tile by checking out household improvement books from the library, using informative instructions online and by watching television programmes or videos on the subject. 

When shopping for bathroom suite tiles, buy more than you need, in order to allow for breakages and mistakes.  Consider the existing colour palate of your bathroom in general when choosing the tiles, especially if you have no immediate plans to update the rest of the room.  Also keep in mind the metallic finish of the shower or bath fixtures; by maintaining the same finish and style as the taps, it will help bring the two features together.  Ensure that functionality should always come first.  It is not impossible to use jet-black tiles, for example, but you may need to install additional lighting.  Keep in mind, when choosing bathroom tiles that you have the option of mixing different coloured and textured tiles. 

Shower and bath surrounds are easier to install and come in a variety of styles, but tiling makes the most sense if you want a completely custom finish.

If you have a spacious bathroom, there are many steps that you can take to improve it. A large amount of space gives you the freedom of transforming your bathroom into the perfect place to relax. Adding extra storage items such as bathroom cabinets will also help to create more space.

A spacious bathroom enables you to concentrate on improving the look of your bath or shower area. You can add a deep, spacious bath for extra luxury and comfort or a shower enclosure for enhanced privacy. Extra space also enables you to transform your bathroom into the perfect place to unwind by adding seating and cushions.

Larger bathrooms take longer to clean, so you may wish to add extra items that will help to keep your bathroom looking at its best. A stylish laundry basket will help to keep your bathroom looking clean and free of clutter and you may wish to consider installing an extractor fan to reduce the risk of mould or mildew. Adding blinds to your bathroom will help to keep it light and airy and will provide you with plenty of control over privacy and sunlight.

You can add accessories to your large bathroom to prevent it from looking too plain. Paintings, plants and vases are all attractive accessories that will help to keep your bathroom looking homely and inviting. You can also install lockable cabinets or add storage baskets to your bathroom to keep your bathroom products separate and the room looking organised.