Author Topic: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?  (Read 2639 times)

pnw_guy

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How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« on: November 13, 2021, 10:40:49 AM »
My family and I have a single family home that we bought that has good aspects and bad aspects. The one bad aspect that we don't like is a less than ideal layout. For example, the bathroom on the main floor (the only bathroom on that floor) is so small that we can't open the door all of the way without hitting the toilet. It's hard to describe the whole layout, but there's no obvious way to make it bigger without completely reconfiguring the whole floorplan of the floor. It's just an old house with a bunch of quirks that aren't great but it was what we could afford at the time.

The question is what to do about an it. Should try and do a major remodel? And if so, what would be the first steps to see if a better arrangement is possible? Or should we just buy a different house. Would probably need a house that costs $250K more that our house to get something appreciably better that is already fixed up etc with a good floorplan. We can afford more now but maybe we should also quit being too picky since our house cost about $750K in the first place.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

PMJL34

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #1 on: November 13, 2021, 11:14:21 AM »
I think we need more concrete examples. A door hitting a toilet is not a reason for me to move and spend 250K.

You can change the in swing to out swing or install pocket doors for a lot less than 250k. Is it a half bath or full bath? I'm 99% certain the bathroom can be gutted and remodeled to be more efficient.  That certainly won't cost 250k either.

Best of luck!

pnw_guy

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #2 on: November 13, 2021, 11:38:07 AM »
I think we need more concrete examples. A door hitting a toilet is not a reason for me to move and spend 250K.

You can change the in swing to out swing or install pocket doors for a lot less than 250k. Is it a half bath or full bath? I'm 99% certain the bathroom can be gutted and remodeled to be more efficient.  That certainly won't cost 250k either.

Best of luck!

No problem. My original post was a little vague.

I can make the bathroom issue more concrete. This is a very old house where they made a little addition to provide indoor plumbing (I think). There isn't anymore room to expand but the bathroom is a full bath crammed into a room that is 8 ft × 5.5 ft. Even if we completely gutted the bathroom and started from scratch, is there a way to make things work in such a small space? Taking all design ideas!

A pocket door is a good idea.

Villanelle

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #3 on: November 13, 2021, 11:53:30 AM »
Normally, I'd lean toward just buying a new house. But with your numbers, I'd probably look into a remodel, or even just an addition.  If you would actually "need" to spend $250k more on the new house (plus fees and expenses associated with selling and buying), that same money could buy you a LOT of remodel.  For even half that, you can likely just do a large addition, including a bathroom spacious enough for several doors to open!

I'd call around to residential architects and see what it would cost for them to do a walk through and give you basic ideas and approximate plans.

(Really what I'd likely do is put in a pocket door and call it a day, plus whatever minor tweaks you can do to whatever the other issues are.)

It sounds like maybe there are a few things that bother you, but then the budget for a new house improves on more than just those few things, because $250k is a huge difference.  So you might also reassess.  If you can buy a house that is fairly comparable to yours but with a slightly better lay out so solve the problems that bother you most, it seems like that's probably doable for WAY less than $250k.

lhamo

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #4 on: November 13, 2021, 12:43:32 PM »
Does it have to be a full bath?  Lots of options for 3/4 bath layouts within that kind of space, depending on where the door is.  Pocket or barn doors also give you more space if you have the walls for it.

https://www.roomsketcher.com/blog/10-small-bathroom-ideas-that-work/

If you really need a tub on that floor, you might be able to fit a deep japanese style tub in more easily than a standard tub, but those can get $$$$.

https://www.hgtv.com/design/rooms/bathrooms/small-bathtubs-ideas-and-options

More importantly, are you now planning to keep the house for awhile?  In this market I would probably only bother with a remodel if I was going to stay and get the benefit for several years.  Otherwise let the buyer deal with the hassle and mess

pnw_guy

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #5 on: November 13, 2021, 01:25:40 PM »
Does it have to be a full bath?  Lots of options for 3/4 bath layouts within that kind of space, depending on where the door is.  Pocket or barn doors also give you more space if you have the walls for it.

https://www.roomsketcher.com/blog/10-small-bathroom-ideas-that-work/

If you really need a tub on that floor, you might be able to fit a deep japanese style tub in more easily than a standard tub, but those can get $$$$.

https://www.hgtv.com/design/rooms/bathrooms/small-bathtubs-ideas-and-options

More importantly, are you now planning to keep the house for awhile?  In this market I would probably only bother with a remodel if I was going to stay and get the benefit for several years.  Otherwise let the buyer deal with the hassle and mess

My feeling is that it should be a full bath because it's the only bathroom on the main floor of the house. I definitely am interested in the pocket door solution, though I'll need to check whether it will work with our walls.

Our plans currently are to live in Seattle for at least the next 8 years. We'll be FIRE after that point and could stay longer, but staying in Seattle is somewhat of an insurance policy for us because I work in tech and staying in this tech hub is nice in case things go south with my job. However, now we've made the decision to stick around we're trying to figure out whether it makes more sense to fix up our current house or move into a house that we like for the long term.

lhamo

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #6 on: November 13, 2021, 06:20:04 PM »
Full bath is not necessarily a great thing for a main floor -- if that part of your house is otherwise wheelchair accessible (with a ramp, if needed) a large shower is often better than a bath.

Are you planning to do the work yourself or hire it out?  If the latter, start talking with some contractors about bids and scheduling, etc.  Good ones are booked up months in advance, typically.  Might help you make the decision.

Sibley

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #7 on: November 13, 2021, 09:07:22 PM »
I'm confused why you think you have to have a full bath on the main floor. Unless your definition of main floor is different from mine.

My main floor is the living room, kitchen, dining room, a bedroom, and a half bath. My 2nd floor is 2 bedrooms, a room too small to be called a bedroom, and a full bath. Having a shower on the first floor would be nice at times because there is a bedroom right there, but most of the time a toilet and sink is perfectly adequate. I did consider if I could get a shower stall in, but I would have to remodel extensively in order to fit it and it simply doesn't make sense. My decision might change if my lifestyle did, but at that point it would probably make more sense to move rather than cut up a bedroom and reroute a bunch of plumbing in order to get a shower.

Also remember that no house is going to be perfect. Even if you built a house that you consider to be perfect, all it takes is time for your needs to change and the house is no longer perfect.

calimom

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #8 on: November 13, 2021, 09:28:08 PM »
I'm confused why you think you have to have a full bath on the main floor. Unless your definition of main floor is different from mine.

My main floor is the living room, kitchen, dining room, a bedroom, and a half bath. My 2nd floor is 2 bedrooms, a room too small to be called a bedroom, and a full bath. Having a shower on the first floor would be nice at times because there is a bedroom right there, but most of the time a toilet and sink is perfectly adequate. I did consider if I could get a shower stall in, but I would have to remodel extensively in order to fit it and it simply doesn't make sense. My decision might change if my lifestyle did, but at that point it would probably make more sense to move rather than cut up a bedroom and reroute a bunch of plumbing in order to get a shower.

Also remember that no house is going to be perfect. Even if you built a house that you consider to be perfect, all it takes is time for your needs to change and the house is no longer perfect.

Pretty much this. Why do you need a full bath on a floor with no bedrooms? It's understandable the door hitting the toilet is annoying, and if there's an affordable fix, go for it. But selling/moving/adding a full bath seems pretty extreme.

Zamboni

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #9 on: November 13, 2021, 09:35:15 PM »
You are making me want to go measure my full bath . . . it is pretty small, but very functional! I'll post that as a follow up later.

How long have you lived in this home? Lots of teeny tiny bathrooms in Europe and on boats. I bet you can find a good solution if the bathroom is the only problem. But your post makes me think there might be other layout issues . . .

rosarugosa

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #10 on: November 14, 2021, 05:23:49 AM »
Our one and only bathroom is a full bath on the first floor of our quirky old New England cottage, and the room is only 5' x 5.5'. Obviously the door swings outward.  I understand the desire for a full bath on the main floor for aging in place purposes or if someone sustains an injury affecting mobility.

Papa bear

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #11 on: November 14, 2021, 05:47:54 AM »
I think we need more concrete examples. A door hitting a toilet is not a reason for me to move and spend 250K.

You can change the in swing to out swing or install pocket doors for a lot less than 250k. Is it a half bath or full bath? I'm 99% certain the bathroom can be gutted and remodeled to be more efficient.  That certainly won't cost 250k either.

Best of luck!

No problem. My original post was a little vague.

I can make the bathroom issue more concrete. This is a very old house where they made a little addition to provide indoor plumbing (I think). There isn't anymore room to expand but the bathroom is a full bath crammed into a room that is 8 ft × 5.5 ft. Even if we completely gutted the bathroom and started from scratch, is there a way to make things work in such a small space? Taking all design ideas!

A pocket door is a good idea.
8 x 5.5 is plenty of room for a bathroom.  That can accommodate a 60” tub, 30” vanity, and plenty of room for a toilet.  I have maybe 15 bathrooms that size between my house and rentals. 

And why the “full bath” instead of “3/4?”  A full being a bathtub, a 3/4 being a shower?  Do you actually need a bathtub on your main floor?

Can draw out your layout?  We can reconfigure pretty easily here.  Also, what is underneath the bath? Basement? Crawl space? How accessible is the plumbing? 


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former player

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #12 on: November 14, 2021, 07:03:34 AM »
If it's a wood frame house then it could be very easy to reconfigure the space - it's one big advantage US wood frame construction has over the more typical brick or stone house here in the UK where remodelling often means serious structural work.

If you draw us out a plan of the house you will get lots of people pitching in with ideas - crowdsource your solution!

Zamboni

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #13 on: November 14, 2021, 07:50:58 AM »
My largest full bathroom is 5.5 x 8.5 at its widest, and there is a jut in one corner that makes it smaller than that for part of the room. It has a nice cabinet with sink and two large drawers underneath of it, a toilet, full-sized tub, and window, and the door swings inward and doesn't hit anything. It's actually a perfectly efficient bathroom layout . . . but my home was built by an architect as his personal residence, so that's not a surprise.

I'm going to third the suggestion for crowdsourcing this. The bathroom reno seems doable and probably would make you much happier staying in your home for the next 5+ years.

What else about the home is weird?

Kwill

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #14 on: November 14, 2021, 09:23:43 AM »
You inspired me to go measure my only bathroom. It's 5'6" by 6'2" at the widest, and like Zamboni's, it has a jut in one corner that makes that bit smaller. There's also one wall that has an awkward low shelf along it where there is a pipe running through behind the tiles.  It has a corner toilet with a triangular tank that is designed for a small space, and it also has a rounded triangular shower that again is designed for the corner of a small bathroom. The sink is also small. It's basically fine. There's no trouble opening the door because the toilet is at an angle in the corner.

If the main problem is that the door hits the toilet, then it seems like replacing either the door or the toilet with something designed for a small space seems like a much easier and cheaper solution than paying $250,000 extra for a different house.

pnw_guy

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #15 on: November 14, 2021, 10:23:03 AM »
Thanks all for the helpful responses and the offer to crowdsource a solution. Let's do it!

I've attached a very rough sketch of the bathroom and surrounding area in the house. I apologize in advance - I'm horrible at drawing and this is the best I can do!

A couple of things to note. First, having the door open outwards is probably a bad idea. It opens into a high traffic area connecting the kitchen to living room, so I think the potential of hitting things or people is quite high. I could imagine that a door that swings outwards could work well in other areas, but this isn't probably one of them. Another thing is that there's no room for a barn door on the external wall to the bathroom (there's a closet in the way on one side and the kitchen is on the other). Looking forward to any solutions that anyone can provide!

A couple of other comments about the bathroom home in terms of what else we don't like:
- We want a full bath on the main floor because that's where our bedrooms also are. The house is two stories, but it's on a hill and the bottom story is an unfinished basement. While this space has lots of potential in the future and we're thinking of eventually putting a master bath down there (it has plenty of ceiling height and room), for right now it would be nice to have a full bath where I and my family lives.
- The house is generally dated, so it's going to take money to fix up. The $250K more homes I've seen have already been updated, which is a bonus on top of a better layout. It's also eventually going to need new siding etc.
- We also don't like that the (now) master bedroom is right off the kitchen. Feels like there should be a buffer to us but maybe that's just a personal preference.
- It's on a main street. Only 2 lanes at 35 MPH (supposedly), but if we had to do it again we would elect for someplace with less road noise. This isn't such a biggie though.

Hope all this extra info helps!

sonofsven

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #16 on: November 14, 2021, 10:35:10 AM »
Seems like the door swing is wrong.

pnw_guy

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #17 on: November 14, 2021, 10:38:12 AM »
Seems like the door swing is wrong.

Even if reversed, I still think it would hit the existing toilet.

Another thing that's weird: this bathroom is right by the main living area. Kind of weird to hear house guests using the bathroom but maybe I'm the strange one.

AerynLee

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #18 on: November 14, 2021, 10:58:48 AM »
In my last house, the only bathroom was 5x9 so almost the exact dimensions you show and I felt like it was a very standard sized and laid out bathroom. The only difference between that one and yours is that the vanity and toilet were switched, and the door opened the other way (towards the empty wall, not the vanity/toilet), with makes the most sense to me anyway. Bathroom doors are only 30-36" so there's still another 24"+ for the vanity if it's positioned correctly.

Now, you don't seem to love the house in general. Which I get*. But the bathroom layout itself is a relatively easy fix. Switch the vanity and toilet, reverse the door swing (which may also need moved over the the blank wall which isn't nothing, but isn't thousands of dollars), and maybe move the light switches.

*My last house had the bathroom right off the dining room, in the middle of the house. The house itself was in a somewhat busy, border-line sketchy, residential area and just a block off a main street through town. It was great for the time, cheap and very close to our jobs so we were able to save up a ton of money in the 5 years we lived there. But long-term it wasn't right for us so we sold it and moved last year.

Zamboni

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #19 on: November 14, 2021, 11:08:40 AM »
Well done with the drawing!

Is that outdoors on the other side of the kitchen? Does the bathroom jut out the side of the house?

pnw_guy

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #20 on: November 14, 2021, 11:12:52 AM »
In my last house, the only bathroom was 5x9 so almost the exact dimensions you show and I felt like it was a very standard sized and laid out bathroom. The only difference between that one and yours is that the vanity and toilet were switched, and the door opened the other way (towards the empty wall, not the vanity/toilet), with makes the most sense to me anyway. Bathroom doors are only 30-36" so there's still another 24"+ for the vanity if it's positioned correctly.

Now, you don't seem to love the house in general. Which I get*. But the bathroom layout itself is a relatively easy fix. Switch the vanity and toilet, reverse the door swing (which may also need moved over the the blank wall which isn't nothing, but isn't thousands of dollars), and maybe move the light switches.

*My last house had the bathroom right off the dining room, in the middle of the house. The house itself was in a somewhat busy, border-line sketchy, residential area and just a block off a main street through town. It was great for the time, cheap and very close to our jobs so we were able to save up a ton of money in the 5 years we lived there. But long-term it wasn't right for us so we sold it and moved last year.

Thank you for the advice and perspective!

One thing I've kicked around is just installing a fan that comes on automatically in the bathroom to give people some noise that makes things feel more private.

pnw_guy

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #21 on: November 14, 2021, 11:18:06 AM »
Well done with the drawing!

Is that outdoors on the other side of the kitchen? Does the bathroom jut out the side of the house?

Yes, exactly. It juts out but unfortunately there's not room to expand further on our small city lot.

former player

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #22 on: November 14, 2021, 11:26:59 AM »
How about moving the toilet where the vanity is and moving the vanity opposite to it?  Having the toilet away from the door will help with the noise.

lhamo

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #23 on: November 14, 2021, 11:32:29 AM »
Well done with the drawing!

Is that outdoors on the other side of the kitchen? Does the bathroom jut out the side of the house?

Yes, exactly. It juts out but unfortunately there's not room to expand further on our small city lot.

Any chance you could make the jutting out bit overlap on both sides with both the bedroom and the kitchen -- extending horizontally rather than further out from the house?  If you could squeeze in a powder room on the kitchen side and make the other side a master bath you would probably more than regain the cost of the remodel in a resale.

AerynLee

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #24 on: November 14, 2021, 11:38:38 AM »
In my last house, the only bathroom was 5x9 so almost the exact dimensions you show and I felt like it was a very standard sized and laid out bathroom. The only difference between that one and yours is that the vanity and toilet were switched, and the door opened the other way (towards the empty wall, not the vanity/toilet), with makes the most sense to me anyway. Bathroom doors are only 30-36" so there's still another 24"+ for the vanity if it's positioned correctly.

Now, you don't seem to love the house in general. Which I get*. But the bathroom layout itself is a relatively easy fix. Switch the vanity and toilet, reverse the door swing (which may also need moved over the the blank wall which isn't nothing, but isn't thousands of dollars), and maybe move the light switches.

*My last house had the bathroom right off the dining room, in the middle of the house. The house itself was in a somewhat busy, border-line sketchy, residential area and just a block off a main street through town. It was great for the time, cheap and very close to our jobs so we were able to save up a ton of money in the 5 years we lived there. But long-term it wasn't right for us so we sold it and moved last year.

Thank you for the advice and perspective!

One thing I've kicked around is just installing a fan that comes on automatically in the bathroom to give people some noise that makes things feel more private.
If there isn't already a fan in there than you definitely want to install one. And putting it on the same switch as the light is an easy thing to do

PMJL34

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #25 on: November 14, 2021, 12:00:42 PM »
your bathroom dimensions are perfectly normal. expanding the bathroom is not wise.

switch the door swing from left to right. there are toilets that only come out 24 inches or less. install one of those and your door will open without issues.

It's more involved, but switching toilet and vanity would be nice. adding a venting fan is a must. get a cheap one so it's noisy and will block out the unwanted sounds.

regarding your busy street and master bedroom off of the kitchen is not something you will be able to change. Learn to deal with it or move.

it's hard to tell if you really dislike the house and if fixing the bathroom will make you feel any better. I encourage you take a deep dive into this because life is short and 7+ years more in this home is a long time. like others have said, no home is perfect. your siding is fine.

Best of luck!


Villanelle

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #26 on: November 14, 2021, 03:05:51 PM »
So the $250k+ house option is not only a better layout.  It's fancier, more "updated" finishes and features, so you aren't comparing apples to apples.  Do you really want those updates?  To the tune of $200k? 

I'd have someone come out to see if a pocket door is an option, and then put in a good fan, and one not designed to run especially quietly.  .  That solves the problem and likely costs in the low 4 figures, or less. 

Also, you kind of glossed over the unfinished basement.  You can likely put in a bedroom and primary bath down there for waaaay less than the $250k you are looking to spend on a bigger house, and you would be increasing your home value as well, especially if it is actually coded as a bathroom (which usually involves proper egress, among other things). 

 Since clearly you can live with the house as-is for a little while longer, doing so while someone finished the basement with your owner's suite would be no real issue.  That, plus a pocket door for that bathroom, and everything except the street problem is solved, and for far less than moving to a house that costs $250k more. 

Papa bear

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #27 on: November 14, 2021, 06:43:12 PM »
Just had to chime in to agree with other posters.  This is an easy one. Change your door swing, and if the plumbing is easily accessible, switch the toilet and vanity. 

Just changing the door swing without moving the toilet, you could always frame a smaller door if it was still causing problems.   

For noise, get a solid core door, and keep the gaps to an absolutely minimum. 

There.  We just saved you 248,500. 


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rosarugosa

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #28 on: November 15, 2021, 05:11:57 AM »
I have one possible suggestion concerning the door swing issue, that I haven't seen mentioned, but I'm not sure how well I can describe it.  It's something we've seen done at a favorite hotel and is rather clever.  The bathroom door swings out and it is also the closet door, i.e. only one door for both openings, so when the bathroom door is closed, the closet is open. 

affordablehousing

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #29 on: November 15, 2021, 10:08:32 AM »
I would gut the bathroom, put in a neo-angle shower, wall hung toilet next to the shower, and then a wider vanity with more storage closest to the door. Turn it into a pocket door as others suggested. Resist a barn door as those will go out of style in exactly 12 months, and do little to block noise. You don't need a tub for a mainly guest bath, and more storage in a guest and occasional bath is always best for extra cleaning supplies and stuff like that. Old quirky homes are the best.

If you really want to do it well, and not just rely on a bunch of us hacks on a web forum for bored upper middle class people, hire an architect. Space design is what they do well, for an in-the-big-scheme low price.

theoverlook

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #30 on: November 15, 2021, 11:23:45 AM »
One way to make room for a pocket door but allow for space for wiring and switches and such is to use a 2x4 pocket door frame but frame the wall out with 2x6s. Then where the pocket door frame is, you fur that out with 2x2s and then run your wiring or supply plumbing in that space, using shallow electrical boxes. It's a bit miserable to work in those boxes but at least you can then fit what you need on that wall.

We have a pocket door on our ensuite bathroom, and though it has its downsides, it's way better than dealing with having a swinging door taking up a ton of room. I've considered adding a half bath to our laundry room and if we did, I would use a pocket door no doubt. The door being out of the way when open is awesome.

Paper Chaser

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #31 on: November 15, 2021, 11:48:36 AM »
I would gut the bathroom, put in a neo-angle shower, wall hung toilet next to the shower, and then a wider vanity with more storage closest to the door. Turn it into a pocket door as others suggested. Resist a barn door as those will go out of style in exactly 12 months, and do little to block noise. You don't need a tub for a mainly guest bath, and more storage in a guest and occasional bath is always best for extra cleaning supplies and stuff like that. Old quirky homes are the best.

If you really want to do it well, and not just rely on a bunch of us hacks on a web forum for bored upper middle class people, hire an architect. Space design is what they do well, for an in-the-big-scheme low price.

IF you're going to the extent of gutting it, there's a lot that can be done to isolate the sounds in the bathroom. Switch the toilet and the vanity for sure. A normal vanity depth is about 21", so that would make a big difference alone in the functionality of the room. For noise: Fill the joist bays with roxul or blown cellulose insulation. Use 5/8" thick drywall. If you really want to go whole hog, then mass loaded vinyl under the drywall will kill noise very effectively.That will give everybody more privacy with a more natural and usable layout, and you can upgrade the fixtures and finishes at the same time (seems like you want nicer finishes anyway based on the types of new homes you're considering).

The cheapest and easiest option without going to that extent is to simply change the swing of the door. You've got 5.5ft of wall. That's 66". A 36" door is pretty wide for a bathroom, and would leave you 30" for the toilet (You'd probably want to subtract another 3" or so for door trim between the door hinges and the wall opposite the toilet). A 32" width is still ADA compliant and would give your 4 more inches to work with. Round toilets don't extend as far into the room as elongated toilets do, so simply switching the shape of the toilet may also gain you some space too.

Papa bear

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #32 on: November 15, 2021, 02:14:10 PM »
I would gut the bathroom, put in a neo-angle shower, wall hung toilet next to the shower, and then a wider vanity with more storage closest to the door. Turn it into a pocket door as others suggested. Resist a barn door as those will go out of style in exactly 12 months, and do little to block noise. You don't need a tub for a mainly guest bath, and more storage in a guest and occasional bath is always best for extra cleaning supplies and stuff like that. Old quirky homes are the best.

If you really want to do it well, and not just rely on a bunch of us hacks on a web forum for bored upper middle class people, hire an architect. Space design is what they do well, for an in-the-big-scheme low price.
An architect for a bathroom? You made of money??  This ain’t rocket surgery here.

Now, you want a redesign of your entire floor, with calcs on beams and plans to pass along to a contractor? Then sure, go ahead with an architect.  But if this is just a bathroom, a competent contractor could easily lay this out. 


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sparkytheop

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #33 on: November 15, 2021, 02:17:14 PM »
A couple cheaper solutions, if the drawing is off some (which it is, unless you have a 5' wide door).

Shorter toilet that doesn't stick out so far.  May or may not be possible.  Pair this with a door that swings from the right (facing the bathroom from outside), instead of the left (how it's drawn now).  This would work if there is wall next to the toilet and it's not all door there.

Remove current door and replace with an accordion door.  Doesn't look like there is enough wall room for a pocket door.

Move location of door from the current wall to the wall that goes to the kitchen.  Yeah, it can be weird to have the door from the kitchen, but it would save a lot of money over buying a house, and if there is no wiring/pluming in that wall, it will probably be cheaper than rearranging the layout.

Dicey

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #34 on: November 27, 2021, 01:03:44 PM »
How wide is the existing door? A combination of narrower door, reversing the swing and a shorter toilet might do the trick. Sometimes it's just a game of inches.

Car Jack

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #35 on: November 27, 2021, 01:43:13 PM »
Compared to my house, yours is totally normal.  How is mine weird?  Well, we had an architect looking the inside over with an upcoming addition planned.  As we were in what's now our master bedroom, he stopped and said: "I'm lost.  How do I get back to the kitchen".

In addition, my father in law's house has a bathroom with your exact setup.  Toilet hitting door and all.  His solution is easy, if he wanted to make it not hit the toilet.  Instead of having the door open into the bathroom, remove the entire door frame and reverse it so the door now opens away from the bathroom.  If you're a DIY person, this is a sweat equity, 10 nail, zero cost solution.

Come to think of it, we have a 4x6 half bath with a corner toilet that the door hits and it's only open half way.  Like 45 degrees.  Enough to get in but not enough to even see to toilet.  So that's not all that unusual.  Thinking more, we have a downstairs full bath where the door opens out.  If it opened in, it would swing to hit the toilet.

monarda

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #36 on: November 27, 2021, 03:33:02 PM »
Your bathroom is exactly like one of ours. 
Ours has the opposite door swing, and a round, NOT elongated toilet.
Our 28" door opens into the bathroom and clears the front of the toilet by 2"

We are probably going to replace the toilet soon (it's old), and while we're at it, maybe the tile flooring, too.
We'll be shopping for toilets whose bowls stick out a minimum distance from the wall.
« Last Edit: November 27, 2021, 03:39:04 PM by monarda »

Villanelle

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #37 on: November 27, 2021, 04:57:18 PM »
What about a tankless toilet?  I'm not super familiar with them, but it seems like they have a smaller footprint.  Not the cheapest solution, but far cheaper than a new house, if it works in your space.

Dicey

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #38 on: November 27, 2021, 06:46:18 PM »
What about a tankless toilet?  I'm not super familiar with them, but it seems like they have a smaller footprint.  Not the cheapest solution, but far cheaper than a new house, if it works in your space.
Last I looked into them, you have to open the wall behind it and shore up the wall substantially to carry the weight. Probably not easy or cost effective in an older home.

Villanelle

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #39 on: November 28, 2021, 01:10:29 PM »
What about a tankless toilet?  I'm not super familiar with them, but it seems like they have a smaller footprint.  Not the cheapest solution, but far cheaper than a new house, if it works in your space.
Last I looked into them, you have to open the wall behind it and shore up the wall substantially to carry the weight. Probably not easy or cost effective in an older home.

No doubt it is more involved and more expensive than a regular toilet, but if the alternative is moving or a major remodel, it still might win. 

hooplady

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #40 on: November 28, 2021, 07:26:08 PM »
Can you perhaps move the commode to be on the other wall, facing the sink? It will require more plumbing and it's hard to tell if this will leave enough room to comfortably access all the fixtures, but it's surely better than a whole new house.
« Last Edit: November 29, 2021, 07:35:40 AM by hooplady »

Fishindude

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #41 on: November 29, 2021, 11:36:49 AM »
You need to first do a to scale floor plan of the entire existing floor, 11x17 graph paper is great for this.
Then run copies and start red-lining on the copies to see what kind of a better layout you can come up with.

If this is outside of your wheelhouse, there are many individuals that could do this for you at fairly minimal expense.
No need to get an expensive architect involved, find a person that understands the basics of architectural drawing.   Pretty easy stuff.

yachi

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #42 on: November 29, 2021, 01:06:11 PM »
You need to first do a to scale floor plan of the entire existing floor, 11x17 graph paper is great for this.
Then run copies and start red-lining on the copies to see what kind of a better layout you can come up with.

If this is outside of your wheelhouse, there are many individuals that could do this for you at fairly minimal expense.
No need to get an expensive architect involved, find a person that understands the basics of architectural drawing.   Pretty easy stuff.

This would help.  It looks like you have a hallway separating the bedroom from the kitchen.  You can vastly improve the layout of an old house by incorporating hallways into adjacent rooms. 

Looking at your sketch: you can move the door into the kitchen away from the bathroom and incorporate the closet into the bathroom, basically extending the bathroom into the hallway to gain a ton of extra space.

Dicey

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #43 on: November 30, 2021, 09:02:23 AM »
Can you perhaps move the commode to be on the other wall, facing the sink? It will require more plumbing and it's hard to tell if this will leave enough room to comfortably access all the fixtures, but it's surely better than a whole new house.
Funny, @PMG just did a budget friendly remodel to get rid of this layout. Batsignal sent.

Dicey

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Re: How to improve weird layout? Or buy another house?
« Reply #44 on: November 30, 2021, 09:08:20 AM »
You need to first do a to scale floor plan of the entire existing floor, 11x17 graph paper is great for this.
Then run copies and start red-lining on the copies to see what kind of a better layout you can come up with.

If this is outside of your wheelhouse, there are many individuals that could do this for you at fairly minimal expense.
No need to get an expensive architect involved, find a person that understands the basics of architectural drawing.   Pretty easy stuff.

This would help.  It looks like you have a hallway separating the bedroom from the kitchen.  You can vastly improve the layout of an old house by incorporating hallways into adjacent rooms. 

Looking at your sketch: you can move the door into the kitchen away from the bathroom and incorporate the closet into the bathroom, basically extending the bathroom into the hallway to gain a ton of extra space.
If that sketch is reasonably to scale, I see two problems with moving the door into the kitchen, besides...gross. 1. Everyone's assuming the kitchen wall is blank, which it probably isn't.  2. Since the bathroom is an addition, the perpendicular kitchen wall is probably an exterior wall and probably not cost effective to disturb.