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Property/DIY

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Original poster

Should I bother getting an ensuite or manage with one bathroom for four people?

98 replies

Soihaveagoat · 08/04/2022 17:39

We are in a nice three bed semi. We have two kids aged 14 and 6. The house has one bathroom with a bath, shower and toilet and a separate room with a toilet and sink only.

At the moment we have an informal bathroom rota on my work days. I go in first then husband then teen son. Six yr old doesn't shower on a morning just has a bath on a night a few times a week.

Our bedroom is large so we thought we could add an ensuite to it thinking that it will get tight for bathroom use when the youngest starts wanting a shower on a morning as well as the rest of us. Had a few quotes for a nice bathroom with obviously a stud wall built, fully tiled, black fittings for around £4500.

My husband says this is a waste of money. We already have two toilets and we will manage the shower situation. Eldest isn't planning to go to uni so we are not expecting him to move out at 18.

Does anyone have any experience of living as a family of four who all need showers on a morning? I grew up with three bathrooms between five of us so I've never had to think of this before.

OP posts:

HollowTalk · 09/04/2022 09:28

Do you have any elderly or disabled visitors who'd need a downstairs loo?

Dinoteeth · 09/04/2022 09:30

Op I wouldn't loose the downstairs loo for an ensuit. You don't really want visitors going upstairs to the loo.
Also if someone it injured, on crutches or anything you'd really regret not having that downstairs loo that's part of the logic behind the disability acts that made all new properties have a loo on every floor, so people who become disabled permanently or temporary don't have issues with accessing the toilet.

Could you add storage space in your porch?
Ensuit is a nice to have especially when you have multiple adults in the house.

MaidenSpeech · 09/04/2022 09:32

You'll manage if that's what you have to do - if I had the money, I'd do the ensuite. Teens spend a lot of time in the bathroom!

HollowTalk · 09/04/2022 09:34

If you have a big bedroom, could you also have a built in cupboard made alongside the en suite, where you could store towels and a vacuum cleaner? That would be a lot cheaper than getting rid of the downstairs toilet - also, when it comes to selling in the future a lot of families will choose a house with a downstairs toilet if they have young children.

liveforsummer · 09/04/2022 09:40

@Dinoteeth

Op I wouldn't loose the downstairs loo for an ensuit. You don't really want visitors going upstairs to the loo. Also if someone it injured, on crutches or anything you'd really regret not having that downstairs loo that's part of the logic behind the disability acts that made all new properties have a loo on every floor, so people who become disabled permanently or temporary don't have issues with accessing the toilet.

Could you add storage space in your porch?
Ensuit is a nice to have especially when you have multiple adults in the house.

You can't even enter my home without ascending a fairly steep flight of stairs. I'm not sure where that stands in a disability act? It has however never posed a problem so I wouldn't think to make it a consideration. So people really put hypothetical guests over what works best for their needs as a family unit?

Nothappyatwork · 09/04/2022 09:41

PigletJohn

Nothappyatwork
I plan to turn the downstairs toilet into a shower room is that an option ?
two WCs are vital for a house that contains more than one person.

Apologies I meant we keep in the toilet as well as basically installing a shower in to the downstairs WC

Iamnotin · 09/04/2022 09:49

Sounds fantastic - you're getting an ensuite and a storage room and much more relaxed mornings and you can afford it!

We had one bathroom between family of 4 growing up - the endless waiting for a wee as my brother showered with what smelt like a whole bottle of Lynx. It's not fun and it's not character building.

Dinoteeth · 09/04/2022 10:00

How old is your house? The disability act came in around 2003, so stairs needed to be able accommodate a staircase lift.

Depends how often you have visitors including kids friends and kids out playing, or adults working in the garden, washing cars etc
The downstairs loo avoid people trailing muck upstairs.

Our house is always untidy, "somebody is popping in we better tidy up", which really means downstairs gets tidied and upstairs remains a riot.

ShowOfHands · 09/04/2022 10:08

I am having a toilet put in downstairs to suit guests @liveforsummer

It will benefit us of course because an extra toilet will undoubtedly be useful but the main driver is guests. I have a friend who is disabled, a disabled parent, and dh and I both have grandparents in their 80s/90s. They can all manage stairs but they're not easy at all and mean their visits are never too long as they prefer not to negotiate our steep stairs.

I don't think I like en suites in general. I hate them in hotel rooms. The bath/shower is okay but a toilet a couple of metres from where I'm sleeping is really not my idea of pleasant living accommodation. I get that they're the norm nowadays though.

ButtockUp · 09/04/2022 10:19

We opted against an en-suite as we preferred a larger bedroom.
We have one family bathroom and a downstairs toilet.
We have two children and we managed.

RandomMess · 09/04/2022 11:38

Depending on your layout I would still try keep the separate loo and have your main bathroom luxurious without a loo and have storage in there instead? So nice to know no one is going no to take a shit just before you want a bath!!

Danceandyouwillfeelbetter · 09/04/2022 11:43

We have a bathroom and shower room upstairs but no downstairs loo - I hate not having a downstairs loo - I hate visitors going upstairs.

LindaEllen · 09/04/2022 11:55

I lived for 27 years in a house with 4 people and just one bathroom (not even a second toilet) and it was absolutely fine. You already have a second toilet, and while another full bathroom would be nice, you really don't need it. The toilets aren't the issue, and you'll get into a routine of managing when each of you has a bath/shower. If you have the money it's nice to have, but if it's at all a stretch I'd say it doesn't really matter that much.

EasterDecorations · 09/04/2022 12:01

One bathroom and no other toilet, two adults and two teens (18 and 16) and its absolutely fine, we just work around each other.

If you have the space and can afford it I'd do the ensuite though.

EasterDecorations · 09/04/2022 12:02

Having said that, I'd prefer a second family bathroom to an ensuite, I'm not a fan of them.

whimsicalwillow · 09/04/2022 13:10

If you've got the room and the money it's a no brainer.
Having said that we never found it a problem bringing up our family and same for my parents bringing us up to. The difference is you have a choice, we didn't!

Original poster

Soihaveagoat · 09/04/2022 17:31

We've lived here ten years and the only time I've wished we had a downstairs toilet was when the kids were potty training but we're well past that stage now so I don't want to take up space with one downstairs.

The only viable place for one downstairs is in the cellar and then you have the issue of sewage going upwards which never ends well 😉

I think we will go for it. The idea of building storage into our bedroom is a good one though. I like that idea. We actually had more storage in our little terraced home than this one as we have no under the stairs cupboard and I miss it so badly. We do have a loft but that's a pain for easy access.

OP posts:

Shudacudawuda · 09/04/2022 18:01

I would not consider an en suite, I dislike them due to proximity and noises and smells and it’s just a no from me.

I feel the same, but I've never met anyone else who does, everyone seems to love en suites. I find them a bit icky, I've always assumed I'm a bit odd!

RandomMess · 09/04/2022 18:40

Would it be easier to make the separate loo big enough to include a shower by extending into the room next to it?

2 bathrooms is definitely an asset and has advantages over an ensuite. I walk in shower is nicer than one over the bath.

Do you have a floor plan for your upstairs?

Original poster

Soihaveagoat · 09/04/2022 21:44

@RandomMess

Would it be easier to make the separate loo big enough to include a shower by extending into the room next to it?

2 bathrooms is definitely an asset and has advantages over an ensuite. I walk in shower is nicer than one over the bath.

Do you have a floor plan for your upstairs?

That's not possible as it is next to a supporting wall and the other side is over the staircase.

I don't have a floor plan as we knocked down the walls after it was bought so it's not the same as then.

OP posts:

Frazzled2207 · 09/04/2022 21:48

Until recently we he this. Now moved and have an ensuite bur it def feels like a bonus not a necessity

Husband grew up in a family of five and one bathroom and they all lived there happily well into adulthood (3 sons)

Sunnytwobridges · 09/04/2022 21:51

Definitely do it. I can’t imagine sharing and having to juggle/schedule time to shower. but like a pp said it seems too cheap. Make sure they are legit.

HomeprideSaucy · 09/04/2022 21:54

We have one bathroom and no separate toilet for 3/4 of us. No space for an en-suite or a downstairs loo either; we manage because we have to. Fortunately DP doesn't mind getting up very easily to beat the rush, and I don't start work until 10am so tend to wait until everyone else had gone. If we were all having to be out the house by 8am it would be more of a problem.

Silversprinkles · 09/04/2022 21:55

@CiderWithLizzie

That seems incredibly cheap and I would definitely do it! We added an ensuite to our bedroom and extended the family bathroom at the same time and it cost more like £25k

Fucking hell @CiderWithLizzie was it plastered in gold leaf and diamonds?

CiderWithLizzie · 10/04/2022 00:19

@Silversprinkles - I wish it was! We couldn’t get many builders to quote for the job, so ended up using a builder who did a very good and reasonable job on our extension. I suppose it affected the landing, bathroom (made bigger and new suite including walk in shower), our bedroom and the new en-suite. Lots of tiling, plastering, decorating and new carpets. It did rather add up though

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