Would you convert this bedroom into a bathroom?

[EcclefechanTart]

We are considering making an offer on a house. It has this layout upstairs, with another bedroom in the loft, but no extra bathroom.

We would want a bath, but the bathroom is currently too small to fit one in, so we are considering if the rear bedroom (bedroom 3 on plan) could be converted ? But then we would lose all or part of the bedroom which would be a pain.

It's a 4-bed house (even though it's advertised as a 6-bed - they've counted the two downstairs rooms as bedrooms too!)

Would you extend this bathroom, and if so, how?

[BYOSnowman]

What is the downstairs layout?

[EcclefechanTart]

Like this! Another tiny shower room, but still no bath.

[Artandco]

Yes I would knock it through to the cure net shower room to make a nice large bathroom

[Artandco]

• current

[BYOSnowman]

What's the communal room? I assume it used to be let out?

One option is to put bathroom in communal room, utility in bathroom and have kitchen

Could you fit a bath in the upstairs bathroom behind the door? And then have a separate toilet eating into bed 4 and give bed 3 back the shower space?

How many bedrooms do you need?

[Parietal]

if you don't need all the bedrooms, then fine. you could make a really big cupboard too which is very useful for linen, towels, and general stuff.

[BYOSnowman]

Bed 3 seems too small to be of much use so I would do a separate toilet where current one is with a sink (so reduce current bath but retain a separate room) and then a family bathroom in the rest

[BYOSnowman]

As you have the plumbing you could have a small utility room where the bathroom is - always nice to do the washing on the same floor it is created and needs to be put away!!

[Quodlibet]

It looks like the bathroom has been carved out of bedroom 3 in the first place. Bedroom 3 is such an awkward shape it's not really useable as a proper bedroom IMO. It would probably feel much nicer to reinstate the room to its original proportions.

You would then end up with a dual-aspect bathroom, which might be a waste of light/need some thinking about privacy. But personally I think it's good to have a big bathroom - people are always trying to squeeze a bathroom into the smallest possible space but really it's nice to have somewhere you can comfortably bath the kids / hang washing to dry etc. Actually thinking about it you could probably site washing machine in the bigger bathroom and free up some kitchen space.

[EcclefechanTart]

Hmmm....interesting ideas that I hadn't thought of - thank you!

If we converted the communal room , we would then have a downstairs main bathroom, which I'm not sure if I'm keen on. I will think about that though.

The communal room is a small living room - it has been an HMO (hence "6 bedrooms").

I think the idea about cutting off part of bed 4 and putting the loo there is a very good idea. Not sure if a bath would fit behind the door but it might fit with its end in the current shower cubicle. Of course, we wouldn't be able to give bed 3 back the shower space then though.

[EcclefechanTart]

We need 4 beds, btw - forgot to say!

[BYOSnowman]

How many beds do you need?

[BYOSnowman]

Xpost! Is the fourth a guest bed?

[EcclefechanTart]

At the moment, a guest bed-cum-office, but in the future possibly another DC's room.

[BYOSnowman]

As in you have 3 kids and when they are older you'd like them to have a room each or you have 2 and planning a third and don't want them to share?

If the former, I would make a lovely family bathroom and laundry room in bed 3 and have communal room as bed 4

[bilbodog]

How about using bedroom 2 as the 4th bedroom/study and turn bedroom 3 into a bathroom, leaving the shower room as us. I would then knock through the kitchen to the communal room to give a large kitchen/dining room leaving the front room as the sitting room?

[EcclefechanTart]

The latter - we're planning for a future DC, and if this is a long-term home then at some point they wouldn't want to share.

Lots to think about! Thanks so much for all suggestions.

[EcclefechanTart]

Wouldn't it be odd with a bedroom between kitchen and living room? I can't quite imagine it.

[BYOSnowman]

Put bedroom in communal room and leave the two beds downstairs as a big living space.

Or put bathroom downstairs of you want all 4 rooms together (I would rather two shared the big front room though and had nice family space upstairs)

Any chances of doing a loft conversion so you could fit two single rooms up there? Not necessarily now but in the future

[lalalonglegs]

I've seen people slice a section off the front bedroom and turn that into an additional bathroom (so bedroom 5 would be the same width as bedroom 4 and there would be a bathroom to the right of bedroom 5. You'd set it back slightly so you'd have a tiny extra bit of landing and, if you were to walk towards that area, a door to your right to take you into bedroom 5 and a door straight ahead to the new bathroom). It all depends on whether the plumbing will allow it though.

[TheCraicDealer]

I'd make the communal room the main family bathroom and then make the current bathroom a utility room and keep upstairs as is. I wouldn't want to have a young family and have three bedrooms over three floors.

[EcclefechanTart]

Not sure about the plumbing for moving bathroom to front - would have to check. Thanks for all the ideas (most of which hadn't occurred to me). I'm leaning towards idea of extending bathroom into bedroom 4 on plan - think it was BYOSnowman who suggested it upthread.

Anyway, it seems clear that something could be done, so I am happy to put an offer in. :)

[PrimalLass]

I would move the bathroom into the bedroom, but keep the old bathroom as a study, or dressing room. I wouldn't knock them together.

[PrimalLass]

But can I also jump in and say that in our house now and the last one the 'bathroom with a bath' has been downstairs. It is great for bathing the kids.

[PrimalLass]

So I have changed my mind. I'd make the Communal room a big bathroom, the downstairs shower room a utilty, the upstairs shower room smaller if poss, and reclaim the square bit for Bedroom 3. Then the front downstairs bedrooms could be a lounge. I'd move the door to Bedroom 2 towards the front door, then knock down the wall to make a large kitchen/diner.