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Property/DIY

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Shower/bath or just a shower with no bath

27 replies

mumma24 · 03/06/2026 05:38

We’re in the process of buying a fairly modern 4 bed house which has an en-suite shower room to the main bedroom and a quite small family bathroom. My question is
Do we replace the bathroom with an overhead shower/bath or take the bath out altogether and replace with just a shower.
i do like to have a bath once a week but can do without. We will be 4 adults living here but im thinking of resell in the future where families of young children would want a bath. What would you do?

OP posts:
PinkPerpetue · 03/06/2026 05:45

I’d go for both as couldn’t live without either

kiwiflan · 03/06/2026 05:47

I would never buy a house without a bath, I’d go for both.

AImportantMermaid · 03/06/2026 05:54

When we last had our bathroom redone (13 years ago) we put in a small enclosure shower and a separate bath. The bath has been used about 4 times in total. We’re remodelling next year and are getting rid of the bath and installing a big walk in shower. We’re going to be here for a long time so aren’t worried about installing a bath in order to sell.

vagnotwhatitwas · 03/06/2026 05:55

Keep the bath, with overhead shower. Best of both worlds and you retain your resale value.

RaraRachael · 03/06/2026 06:07

Got rid of my bath for a large shower enclosure and never regretted it

Dizzierblonde · 03/06/2026 06:40

If you have a weekly bath, that's frequent enough that you'd end up missing one if it was taken out. Like a pp, I almost never had one, so converted our only bathroom to a shower room and don't regret it. However, I suspect you might. You have a shower room already, so keep a family bathroom with a bath.

swapsicles · 03/06/2026 06:42

It does depend on how big your bathroom is. I replaced my shower cubicle for a shower over bath and it makes the room look bigger and brighter and not dominated by the cubicle. I used the bath more when DD was younger but not so much now.

TheRealMagic · 03/06/2026 06:45

Assuming you're planning to live there for the foreseeable - not forever, but also no date in mind for moving - then I would have the house you want, not the one you think future buyers might want.

Our bath broke about a year ago and we haven't yet replaced it - I would have thought I'd miss it but I don't at all.

TheyGrewUp · 03/06/2026 06:46

Personally, I would always want a bath. So bath/shower for me.

moleeye · 03/06/2026 06:47

We have a bath and a separate walk in shower. I wish we’d never put a bath in, no-one uses it. It was used for a short while whilst the children were little (7&11) but it hasn’t been used for at least 3 years.

Wish I’d put in double sinks!

DidYeAye16 · 03/06/2026 06:51

We have just had to decide this. Ours is being done on the 22nd and we all voted for walk in shower no bath. No one ever uses the bath and I hate cleaning it as my teen daughter makes it rank with fake tan and purple shampoo up the sides after every shower.

Gunz · 03/06/2026 07:42

First job I am getting done on the house I am purchasing is to take out the bath and put in a walk in shower. The house I sold had a family bathroom - bath and shower and a ensuite had a shower. When my children were at home they always used the shower in the ensuite.

greendish · 03/06/2026 07:43

I’m buying at the moment and am surprised how many houses there are with only a shower. It’s a dealbreaker for me as I much prefer a bath. I think I’m in the minority though.

Chemenger · 03/06/2026 07:47

If you have a bath once a week I would keep a bath. We replaced ours with a walk in shower but literally nobody had ever had a bath in the three years we’ve been here.

PermanentTemporary · 03/06/2026 07:51

I won’t do without a bath so would keep it personally, but I would definitely have the house that works for you rather than future purchasers. We have done some really complex works to have a separate walk-in shower as well as our bathtub, and it’s fantastic. The shower over the bath wasn’t great.

I was prepared to have a small sitting immersion bath rather than a full length one, could that work to allow you a separate shower too if you want to keep it? We had a good bathroom designer and have ended up with a full length one though.

piscofrisco · 03/06/2026 09:27

I had a small bathroom and took the bath out. Never missed it, but I guess if I had little kids I might have.

SamAylward · 03/06/2026 11:09

We have a shower and no bath. Never regretted it.

RandomMess · 03/06/2026 11:38

If you are planning to be there a decade do what you would like for you.

Plan it so that installing a bath/removing the shower element would be straightforward and not costly.

You can get walk in showers that are the footprint of a bath so I would go for one of those.

Gonnagetgoingreturnsagain · 03/06/2026 12:13

I’ve got a bath with overhead shower but getting bathroom redone next year and I’ve got space for a standalone shower cubicle too which I’ll get in addition to a bath. My ex bf got rid of his bath for a wet room and now really misses his bath.

HoldMyWine · 03/06/2026 12:23

I am about to remove my bath and replace with a walk in shower. I haven’t used my bath in years.

GenerousGardener · 03/06/2026 12:41

Got rid of our bath fifteen years ago. Haven’t missed it once.

RobertBobsee · 03/06/2026 12:54

I wish we had got rid of the bath and put in a massive shower and storage. It is the main bathroom that the children share. We have an electric shower over the bath mainly because if we needed a hot shower at any time we didn't have to worry about heating the water tank which only gets heated once a day. Dh and I have the en-suite which has a pumped digital mixer shower.

parachutegirl · 03/06/2026 13:02

I’d have both - I only use the bath in the winter but I think if you ever sell to a family with younger kids, yes they’ll want a bath.

Unexpectedlysinglemum · 03/06/2026 13:04

I’m shopping for a new home and not considering any without a bath

Cherriesandapples1 · 03/06/2026 13:17

If you would genuinely use the bath frequently get a bath with overhead shower, if not just get a shower. There are some people who wouldn't consider a house without a bath and people who wouldn't want a bath. I've switched to a large walk in shower nearly 10 years ago and haven't regretted it since. I don't worry about it affecting my house value because the reality is, if someone was that interested in the house but wanted a bath they could replace the shower enclosure with a bath for £2k or something. Get what works for you, not everyone else