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Designer Bathrooms?

You've almost certainly noticed that designer bathrooms, along with designer kitchens, designer dresses, sunglasses, and everything else designer, have been “the rage” over the last few years. Although as a bathroom fitter working in and around Nottingham, I'm still sometimes left working out exactly what a designer bathroom is!

Most of the bathrooms I fit look extremely nice when they are finished. Especially if my customers will let me steer them away from some of the obvious pitfalls and traps of bathroom layout. Most of the rooms I fit would pass as designer bathrooms if that means they look elegant and stylish, as well as being a functional place to have a wash or shower. Unfortunately some of my customers are determined to go their own way (which is fair enough - it's their house after all) disregarding my suggestions, and far from ending up with dream designer bathrooms, end up with a “dogs breakfast” of suite and fittings.

Quite often the problem is trying to achieve the designer look in a bathroom which is simply not big enough to take the huge shower tray, or free-standing bath to name but two examples. Ideas for designer bathrooms seen in magazines or grand hotels often don't work in a three-bed semi-detached house in West Bridgford. There simply isn't room, the room is the wrong shape, or the plumbing isn't up to it – without spending thousands of pounds on re-plumbing half the house.

If you're thinking of a designer bathroom – whatever that phrase means to you, I urge you to exercise a little caution. Over the years I've done a fair amount of rectification work where the best intentioned efforts to fit top-of-the-range baths, basins, toilet and showers have resulted in serious problems. I've had to attend to

shower trays that don't drain because they are fitted straight to the floor and the drainage runs uphill.
complex shower valves that leak because fitting them is way beyond the understanding of the average plumber more used to central heating pipes and radiators.
leaking toilets where the cistern has been buried under marble tiles – looks nice, but valves can't be maintained without destroying hundreds of pounds worth of marble

and many more.

If you want to have something special, something with designer style, fitted, make sure you use a bathroom fitter (like me) and not an everyday plumber. It will possibly cost more but you won't be left with a half finished room when the plumber walks away because it is just too difficult! Yes, it has happened. There are, of course, some plumbers/gas fitters who can jump between fitting boilers and fitting bathrooms, but they are few and far between.

My suggestion is always be aware of the limitations of the space available and be realistic about what can be achieved. It's much better to fit a suite that is in proportion and is suited to the space, rather than try and shoe-horn in designer fittings and be disappointed with the result.