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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

DH keeps banging on about getting rid of the bath.

127 replies

MrsMaxwell · 05/03/2018 18:16

Ok not a third world issue here.

Have a 4 bed house (4th bed is attic conversion with en suite shower room and toilet).

Have tiny main bathroom (Victorian house semi) where most of us shower none of us have baths on a regular basis.

OH gets quite worked up and anxious about stuff and the bathroom gets really steamed up we have tried various things to overcome this but OH is paranoid the ceiling is going to come down (the paint keeps peeling off).

He wants to get rid of the bath and I guess turn it into a wet room with the extractor directly above the shower.

I don’t have baths but I just think this is a really bad idea as it’s handy for washing things out by hand, will devalue the house and in the past I have had back problems (major surgery) where baths helped, and occasionally people (we have 3 kids living here and two have partners regularly staying and 3 step kids stay a lot) just want a bath.

OH reckons we’ll be here at least another 10 years (I do not) and I just feel especially from a resale POV this is a really shit idea?

OP posts:

Peanutbuttercups21 · 05/03/2018 19:18

Get a good extractor fan

No windows then I guess in the bathroom? (Only asking as I have had tenants who did not know opening a window regularly would get rid of steam)

AnyFucker · 05/03/2018 19:18

Keep the bath. Get rid of the husband.

SueGeneris · 05/03/2018 19:20

Is he doing all the right things to ventilate the bathroom after showering, e.g. open window or run extractor with door closed? The water has to go somewhere.

We had a plumber here who strongly recommended putting in the most powerful extractor you could find - most of the standard ones don't really do anything.

I am another who would not buy a house without a bath - not a family house.

hibbledibble · 05/03/2018 19:21

I agree regarding the resale issue.

A four bed house will be aimed at the family market. Families will generally only consider somewhere with a bath.

I would get a better extractor, or just leave the window open!

JamesBlonde1 · 05/03/2018 19:22

I have a bath every evening. Very lux bathroom. It’s my treat after a hard working day.

How do people bathe babies and children without a bath?

I wouldn’t buy a house without a bath either.

Slightlyperturbedowlagain · 05/03/2018 19:23

Ours improved immensely when we bought a decent dehumidifier and plugged it in on the landing (or a nearby bedroom with the door open would do). It cost about £200 I think so it’s probably worth a try, much cheaper than a bathroom refit and won’t devalue the house.

Niceandwarmandhot · 05/03/2018 19:24

Sorry if this has been asked, but would a bath fit in the upstairs one, so it would be used less frequently? Then your DP could have his wet room too.

endofthelinefinally · 05/03/2018 19:24

Just get a better extractor fan and open the window after having a bath.
It will be very difficult to sell a house without a bath.

TheFirstMrsDV · 05/03/2018 19:28

If your OH gets worked up about things I wouldn't recommend a wetroom.
IME they are bloody awful

I have more experience of them than most because we have one and I work with a lot of families who have them.

You would need to put in a very good extractor fan for a wetroom. As a decent one would probably solve your current issues it seems a bit OTT to rip the bath out.

We recently had to have our five year old wetroom gutted and replaced. It had disintegrated. I got a bath put in.

The biggest issue people I know have is damp, water getting where it shouldn't and rotting joists and water not draining away properly so it ends up in the hallway.

We have to have a wetroom. If we didn't, I wouldn't.

Petronius16 · 05/03/2018 19:28

Extractor fans need cleaning to be effective. Suggest getting a powerful one.

AnnieAnoniMouse · 05/03/2018 19:28

We replaced the bathroom completely four years ago. I really wanted to get rid of the bath so we could put in a much bigger shower, but in the end we didn’t because we thought we’d have to rent the house out or sell it (work contract may force a move) and it would put some people off renting/buying.

I certainly wouldn’t have done it when simply putting a better extractor in would have solved the issue.

Buy an extractor, once it’s installed leave it running for a couple of days and make everyone use the upstairs ensuite, the sand the ceiling & walls and put a decent waterproofing on the ceiling & walls and a good few coats of bathroom paint.

Just look at him like this 🙄 when he comes out with ridiculous comments about the steam being better contained in a separate shower.

DonttouchthatLarry · 05/03/2018 19:29

Our house only had a shower when we bought it - everything else about it and the location were perfect so we bought it anyway, and the first thing we did was redo the bathroom, including a bath.

I don't even like baths - I'll only have one on the odd occasion for soaking aching muscles but still like to have the option. I also prefer our over bath shower as there's more room (L shaped bath) than there was in the claustrophobic cubicle that was there before.

BackforGood · 05/03/2018 19:31

Keep the bath. Get rid of the husband

Another who wouldn't even look at a house with a wet room.
If a house had no bath, there would have to be a BIG drop in the price to allow for not only the cost of redoing the bathroom, but also the hassle of it. I wouldn't be without a bath for long.

Original poster

MrsMaxwell · 05/03/2018 19:31

No the upstairs would not fit a bath.

OP posts:

EustaciaPieface · 05/03/2018 19:31

We don’t have kids but I still love my bath! Have one a few nights a week to relax and unwind. Shower in the morning. We also had issues with the ceiling paint peeling and we don’t have a window to open. We eventually solved it by removing as much paint as possible and using Ronseal Anti Mould paint on the ceiling. It’s a horrible paint to apply but what a difference it has made!

londonrach · 05/03/2018 19:32

You need a bath if its a family house. If a flat with bedrooms maybe but huge no no on a family house. Put alot of buyers off and devalue the house. Tell dh to talk to estate agents about this. (Dh takes more baths than as it helps his muscles after sport).

specialsubject · 05/03/2018 19:33

Fix the extractor. Buy a window vac and vacuum up afterwards. Don't install a wet room,daft in the UK climate unless essential for disability.

lifechangesforever · 05/03/2018 19:35

I would never buy a house without a bath - it's one of the first things I look for! Nothing beats a steaming hot bubble bath, every night.

I could live without a shower though - not sure when the last time I used the home one was, only use them at the gym.

honeyroar · 05/03/2018 19:36

Id not want a house without a bath, even though I rarely have one. I don't even like a hotel room without a bath.

Another vote for a better extractor fan.

Marcipex · 05/03/2018 19:37

No bath would be a dealbreaker for us.

Original poster

MrsMaxwell · 05/03/2018 19:40

Yes DH can be a drama lama and keeps going on about the ceiling collapsing which makes me stop listening.

OP posts:

Cynara · 05/03/2018 19:41

When we were looking at houses we didn't consider any without a bath, and a 4 bed family home really does need one. You'll struggle to sell it otherwise.

viques · 05/03/2018 19:44

OP, ask your OH to borrow the following and then clean them.

a long haired cat with the runs.

a dog that has rolled enthusiastically on a long dead badger

a two year old child and its four year old sibling.

you would have to prise my bath, candles , bath oil and radio from my cold dead hands, and even then I would resist.

Bugjune · 05/03/2018 19:44

I refuse to even book a hotel room without a bath let alone a house.

blackteasplease · 05/03/2018 19:45

I wouldn't consider a house without a bath either.

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