New bathroom - should we knock a wall through?

[Igglybuff]

Hi, I live in a flat conversion in an old victorian house. Our bathroom and toilet are seperate (it's the original position before conversion if that makes sense).

Anyway, we want to replace the bathroom suite and knock the adjoining wall through to make one big room but I'm worried that the wall might be a supporting wall. I think it'll cost loads to get a surveyor out to check - should I get this done anyway? How much will it cost?

Also roughly how much time would it take to gut a bathroom and replace everything (including windows)? Our neighbours have been having theirs done for a couple of months now (!) which seems ridiculous - bit that has a lot to do with getting parts etc.

Also how do you cope without a bathroom? We don't have another. We could stay with our inlaws but I really don't want to do that.

Thanks!

I think you can tell from the original floorboards, usually. They either run parallel to, or at right angle to, supporting walls. Can't remember which though.
That was helpful, wasn't it?

You need to get an architect/builder out to tell you whether you can knock the wall through or not.

Why do you want to do this, by the way?

My parents had two bathrooms replaced last winter - each took a week of so for the basics to be done, but they had bought all the stuff and were storing it in the conservatory before starting the works.

i would get a surveyor. yes it will cost, but not as much as it will if you take down a supporting wall!!!

Anna has a point asking, you know. Am trying to sell a Victorian terrace at the moment, and it is surprising how many people are charmed by the fact that we've kept the front and back receptions as two separate rooms, rather than knocking through as most people seem to do. I think people who like period houses are going more and more for authentic use rather than 90s style spaces. I dunno.

I would much prefer to keep them seperate especially with children in the house!

I hate loos in bathrooms - I wouldn't have mine in the bathroom unless it was totally unavoidable.

it depends if there are handwashing facilities in the room with the loo, a bit grim if not

There is no basin in the toilet... I have thought about getting a basin in there but it's quite narrow so not sure.

We want to knock the wall through because the toilet is in a long narrow room so the area where the existing door is could be used for a stand alone shower. Also the existing bathroom is quite small.

I agree about knocking walls through in general - we're keeping the rest of the walls up as prefer seperate rooms!