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Original poster

Only having a shower for children

44 replies

Kiffy92 · 17/07/2022 18:53

Hi,

Me and my partner are currently buying a new house and we will renovate the bathroom.
My partner wants to remove the bath and replace it with a shower. I am concerned that if we have children we will regret not having a bath. Please could you advise if it is possible/ recommended to only have a shower?

OP posts:

GeriSignfeld · 18/07/2022 04:36

For the life of me am puzzled why people would remove a bathtub

Personally feel it decreases the home's value

Am always disappointed when see a listing for a lovely house but no bath!

Hatsoff5 · 18/07/2022 04:50

I prefer a bath for the kids and myself. It's utterly bliss having a relaxing bath.

sst1234 · 18/07/2022 07:56

Don’t get this made up rule that you need a bath of you have small kids. It’s a British thing. Everywhere else in the world, people don’t obsess about this non-problem. A shower will wash your child as well, if not better since they actually get washed rather sitting in their own bathwater peeing.

Calmdown14 · 18/07/2022 08:04

We don't have a bath. It doesn't bother me and it meant we could get rid of the massive and expensive hot water tank (all electric as no gas here so probably doesn't apply to you).

I have a silicone folding bath with little legs that I fill in the shower. My five year-old is still using it and been going strong nine plus years now.

But would I actively remove a bath? I think only if the bathroom is very small and a shower would better suit the space or if it allows something else to work better like removing a tank.
If I had a combi boiler I'd have made different choices

blithefool · 18/07/2022 08:12

We had to fight our builders to get them to put a bath in a very awkward spot (and the tiling was very difficult too ) but honestly so glad we did. So so nice to have the option

mydogisthebest · 18/07/2022 08:15

Arthursmom · 17/07/2022 20:07

You need a bath with a small child. Many toddlers are scared of showers.

Lots of other countries don't have baths and people obviously manage fine even with children

KangarooKenny · 18/07/2022 08:16

I wouldn’t buy a house without a bath, or the space to put a bath in.

Chocoqueen · 18/07/2022 08:18

I'd say keep it, I love having a bath and it's so easy with DD. Also worth thinking about when you come to resell, if it's marketed as a family home some people will discount it if it doesn't have a bath - we definitely did.

mydogisthebest · 18/07/2022 08:20

GeriSignfeld · 18/07/2022 04:36

For the life of me am puzzled why people would remove a bathtub

Personally feel it decreases the home's value

Am always disappointed when see a listing for a lovely house but no bath!

Because a lot of people don't like baths. I hate them and so does DH. Have not had one for over 20 years.

They waste a lot of water, can take ages to fill and sitting in a bath is so boring. A nice shower feels much cleaner than sitting in a bath, uses far less water (unless you take ages in it), makes you feel more energised.

Among my family and friends I only know 1 person who still has baths.

We didn't actually remove a bath as when we bought our house it only had a shower but it was a small one and DH has put in a large walk in shower which we both love. I think it looks much nicer too than a bathroom with a bath in

popapoppadum · 18/07/2022 08:47

We have a 1 and 3 year old and have never had a bath. We used a baby bath when they were little (which they both still fit in so sometimes it gets used still) and then moved to showers. They never had an issue with it and happily play with their 'bath' toys at the bottom of the shower. I've noticed they are much more confident with water on their face than others their age so there's a plus I suppose. But they do love a good 'big bath' when they go to other people's houses!

LadyEloise1 · 18/07/2022 13:56

Why not get a P shaped bath ?
It gives more space for a shower and you have a bath.
We have one and it's great.

Cattenberg · 19/07/2022 08:55

My four-year-old was terrified of showers until recently. We had to rinse her hair with a jug and could only consider holiday accommodation which had a bath, which was a bit of a pain.

SafelySoftly · 19/07/2022 09:13

We’ve just moved house and not having a bath was a big no no..

RedWingBoots · 19/07/2022 09:19

If you have young children having a bath gives you options. Some small children are actually tall so stop fitting in baby baths at 2 years old. (Yes really!) If they aren't good walkers by then it will be difficult to give them a shower.

yaboreme · 19/07/2022 09:20

@LadyEloise1 this is exactly what we did! Best of both

FrustatedAgain · 19/07/2022 14:06

Like many have said you'd manage without and get used to it. A bath however is a great activity and can buy you half an hour of them being contained and playing, this is can be precious. I've resorted to the bath during the middle of the day many a time especially in lockdown when they're bored.

HouseInTheHills · 19/07/2022 14:20

We only have showers, we got rid of the baths. When they were babies we just used bath supports/seats and used the moveable shower head on them. When they were too big for that, they’d just sit in the shower until they were old enough to just shower standing up. We have big walk in showers though that are very open with no trays, just fully tiled floors so it was easy.

DappledThings · 19/07/2022 19:54

Bath time is an activity as well as just for cleaning. Of course you don't need one but they are a big bonus I wouldn't be without.

Metalandtea · 21/07/2022 00:03

We are a no bath household with kids and it’s absolutely fine- in fact it’s very easy and I’ve found it safer as there isn’t the risk of the kids slipping that there would be with getting in and out of a bath. You can make it fun with rubber ducks and tubs to fill and pour as you would with a bath so there is no missing out.

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