Any ideas how to add a bathroom upstairs in this house?

[user1471530109]

Hi all,

I know you love a challenge and I've seen some great ideas on here. But I'm stuck in how to add a bathroom upstairs and retain 3 bedrooms-even by extending.

Large back garden. Shallow front garden (car depth) and I think it would be impossible to extend to front? I've lived in the house for a couple of years and renovated the old bathroom and knocked through the loo. Kitchen it new but unfinished.

The main bug bear is the downstairs bathroom right by the front door. It's the only thing the DC and I dislike about the house. It's on the snug side but it's only the three of us and the location and plot are amazing. I'd love to extend. But struggling to see how the layout would work. I also would struggle to afford anything flash-something to aim for.

Many thanks

If I could add a window to side (above conservatory) on bedroom 1 that would work really well zaffa.

There is a huge garden out back. Well biggest garden I've ever had.

Another vote for converting the cupboards on the landing and coming out from the landing window.
Consider a sliding door or a bifold on it if necessary to give a bit more space.
Look for space saving bathroom suites there are some very clever corner loos and shower cubicles available.
We put an en-suite in an extended bedroom which is the width of a square shower cubicle and got a narrow sink to go in there.

Were you thinking electric shower ? Where is your boiler ? Depending on where it is the hot water and cold water pipe will have to be run up there and it may take time to get hot. The drainage might be a bit tricky but you have an outside wall but you might need to lay some additional drains outside.
Alternatively could you shave some width off bedroom 2, front to back - move the door to the left and split the window in that room. Could you pinch a bit of space from bedroom 1 ? Running water and drainage would be easier and it would retain space on your landing but it might be harder to fit the shower, loo and sink into a the space .

alternatively (probably expensive), 2 storey extension out the back, turn stairs around. bedroom 1 & bathroon on the right, bedroom 2 & 3 on left. by moving the stairs you should be able to get the width for bedroom 3 and use a window on the front

Oooh turning the stairs is a good idea! You would be doing a double story extension so you could have a large kitchen diner living space out the back too and a separate sitting room downstairs.

What's on either side of the house?
How close are neighbours? Thinking side windows

10 ft, two storey extension across the whole back of the house. Knock this into the kitchen at the bottom to make a fab family room. Bed 2 just becomes 10 ft deeper. Corridor at door when bed 1 door is at the moment with bathroom on the right of that with window overlooking the side. Bed 1 is remainder of this room plus the new extension. Possibility for en suite too.

Moving the stairs! Wow, that's an out the box idea. Is that expensive?
Boiler is in cupboard at top of stairs btw. Potential drains all round property. I've already had some moved to move sink in new kitchen.

I'm just off out for a few hrs but looking forward to returning to your ideas. Thank you all so much!

I was also thinking move stair into existing bathroom, with a turn so it comes out at existing small bedroom door then current cupboard over stair well is a door into bathroom and the old landing is new small bedroom. Works in my head!

Even a 6ft wide extension works. You'd get a small en-suite around 6ft square and a small bedroom around 6ft x 9.5ft.

If you want to keep the pipes where they are I would move the front door and turn the stairs in a corner stair. You will have to lose a bit of the big bedroom, but then you can move the bathroom and stairs to your small bedroom. I drew it out on a floorpan for you.

No idea how much it would cost, but its the only option I can personally see without moving the soil pipes. Then again moving the soil pipes might be the cheaper option and then you can look at a bathroom where the cupboards are, but it looks like it would be quite a small bathroom.

Would this work?

Get rid of the downstairs bathroom (keep the loo) and move the stairs to old downstairs bathroom.

It would create a narrow bathroom but one you should be able to squeeze a shower, loo, basin and bath into, and avoid having to get water and waste to the other side of the house.

You could add a sun pipe if you can’t get a window in.

Actual, on second though, if your going to change the stairs I would turn it slightly as well so that you get some extra storage on your landing.

Move the stairs so there's a turn in them, coming up towards the left hand bedroom. Move that bedroom door so it's facing the stairs and have the door to the bathroom at a right angle to the bedroom door. Cupboards become bathroom.

I like @dany174 posted suggestion! That would be ideal.

@user1471530109 Will adjustments like that cost a lot?

OMG you are all amazing! Thank you so much! You've honestly made my day. I'm now going to sit daydreaming all evening about these suggestions. I also love that you've not had to out a massive expensive extension on....so possibly I can actually afford to do it before the DC move out . I live the idea about moving the stairs and now off to Google if that's a feasible option and how much it costs. for all of you!

You have a number of options.
Do you have a budget ?
How flexible is that budget and do you have an absolute upper limit.
The less structural changes the cheaper it will be.
How will you be financing it?

So a 2 storey extension will be the most expensive but will give you most return if it also gives you extra space elsewhere etc that you want or need but it’s a lot of costs for just the bathroom if you don’t want or need the extra space down stairs too.
Costs would include all the building and fixtures costs plus carpets decorating etc. If you get a builders quote - add 20% for unforeseen costs.
Also moving / turning the stairs this might be tricky depending on how your joists and floors run, if there are pipes or wiring that need moving, your supporting walls etc. You would have to budget for decorating and carpets,
Converting the cupboards and rearranging walls and doors to the bedroom would probably be the cheapest to do and wouldn’t involve any structural changes but space saving bathroom suites are more expensive than standard suites.

Make main bedroom the same length of bedroom that is at the top of the stairs ,By building a wall then extend the hall space into the main bedroom so u can get a new bedroom door to main bedroom , immediately after the new bedroom door another door into the now separate space, so not exactly an en-suite but right next to the main room and accessible to all people in the house . Tight but doable

I am so pleasantly surprised by everyone's thoughts on this. I'm so glad I posted!

Cooltalkin that's kind of what the plan is currently. But I really don't think I'd get more than a toilet and tiny basin in. I could maybe remove the chimney breast? The main bedroom is actually v small once a bed and wardrobe is in (admittedly a king-size and a 3m wide floor to ceiling wardrobe ). I can't even fit bedside tables in.

I have an ex who actually did all the bathroom and kitchen fitting for me (I paid!) that I could ask for advice. I'd asked him for ideas but the layout had stumped him! But he maybe able to give me an idea of cost etc.

Budget- I haven't got one yet. I'm about to remortgage again as my current deal runs out in September. So I was toying with the idea of extending the amount of cover any work. I'd for in my head a £60k extension which was completely out of the question. I'm guessing any of these options would be a fraction of that? I'd also very much like to extend the kitchen into the lean-to to make a dining area as currently the table is in the sitting room and it's a bit of a squeeze.

I appreciate I may not get much if a return on selling. But I'm planning on staying minimum 10 years and can honestly see me staying forever unless I meet someone.

A probably stupid question. Is the waste water from bath, shower, sink etc flow into same drain as toilet?

If so, the waste water from current bathroom flows out front of house. So potentially, putting a new soil stack in from corner (left) of house wouldn't be as problematic as first thought. I've measured it, and it would be a v tiny bathroom of roughly 180cm x 180cm. This would be placed were cupboards are at top of current stairs and just turning the stairs at top. Would surely be the cheapest option?

The toilet waste is separate I understand / the soil pipe is significantly bigger. Shower etc waste runs through separate, much smaller pipes which I think are actually much easier to install. We once viewed a house with an en suite shower but no loo because the soil pipe couldn't be installed (main bathroom at back of house and en suite was at front and the toilet soil pipe couldn't run under floor boards, whereas I think a shower can)

Don't consider a mascerator toilet though! Whilst the waste pipe is then the same size as shower waste it never ends well - we had one in a flat we rented and it was just awful!

Oh just reread your question! You didn't ask about the pipes at all - sorry! I think it does, yes

180cm sq bathroom is perfectly doable-sounds like a very affordable solution?