# Forum Home Renovation Bathrooms  How much space/clearance is needed around a toilet?  Making addition to the bathroom

## dayle_bct

Hi there 
I am renovating/redesigning my bathroom.  Currently it has a shower over bath, long vanity and a linen press - the toilet is on the back porch - typical post-war home. 
I would like to add a toilet to the bathroom.  The linen is about 700mm wide and I was hoping to install the toilet in this position but I'm not sure how much clearance I need around the toilet?   Are there regulations on that sort of thing?  The current bath is quite long so if needed I can choose a shorter bath as that is getting replaced too. 
Thanks so much
Dayle

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## Oldsaltoz

900 mm seems to be the minimum in Qld.

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## juan

I do not know what regulations allow but if permissible 700mm may be functional depending on what is either side. I have a bath one side and a vanity the other and allowed exactly 800mm.  Definitely could have got by with 700mm.  http://www.renovateforum.com/f205/ba...project-51887/

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## dayle_bct

Thanks again for your advice Oldsaltoz.  Is that regulation/code minimum or more of a comfortable/functional minimum? 
Juan, the toilet position is next to the end of the bath and the wall so from a comfort factor, it will only the be wall side that could feel tight if I left it at 700mm

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## Danny

> The current bath is quite long so if needed I can choose a shorter bath as that is getting replaced too.  
> Dayle

  Do you really need the bath? Fitting a modern shower with clear glass would free up space, make the room look bigger and possibly add value to the property. 
Just a thought.

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## ringtail

> Do you really need the bath? Fitting a modern shower with clear glass would free up space, make the room look bigger and possibly add value to the property. 
> Just a thought.

  
x 2 . Ditch the bath.

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## dayle_bct

...hmmm, must admit that I hadn't even thought about ditching the bath! 
You don't think families are always looking for a bath in a property (this the main bathroom, not ensuite too). 
And as for "modern shower with clear glass" - tiled floor, screenless shower??  Is that what you had thought? 
Cheers
Dayle

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## r3nov8or

IMHO a home without a bath is limiting its market, especially if you are in a 'family' suburb. But if you never use it, have no reason to think you will, and you will be there for along time, maybe it can go. 
Buyers are more likely to say "Uh oh, no bath" than "Hooray, no bath!!"

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## ringtail

Just this morning Ive been pulling waterlogged VJ sheets (mdf) off a hallway wall. Guess whats on the other side. Yep, yet another crap leaking bath. Mind you, its not the baths fault rather dodgy installation of screen,sheet,tile and sealant. But, this is the norm for shower over bath installations that Ive seen and had to rectify so buying a house with a bath or shower over bath would give me shivvers, putting a bath in from scratch not so bad as at least you could do it right. No house that I own will ever have a bath. Wash the kids in kids bath that sits in the shower then piss it off as soon the kid can have a shower. ( can you tell I'm not a parent ? )

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## dayle_bct

hehe!  Thanks ringtail.  Could've sworn you were a doting parent! 
I'm probably leaning towards keeping the bath... As I will essentially be starting from scratch (all fittings and wall sheeting going - it's asbestos) - what steps should I be taking to make sure that it doesn't turn into a leaky bath? 
From my basic understanding - I'd need to make sure the correct waterproof sheeting is used, then siliconed joints and waterproofing... then does it come down to the plumbing itself... is that where the leaks usually come from? 
Cheers

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## Danny

> And as for "modern shower with clear glass" - tiled floor, screenless shower??  Is that what you had thought?  
> Dayle

  I (and probably many others) like the frameless modern look and having the shower above the bath looks dated IMHO. It is just something to consider and needs to be balanced with your own needs and intended duration of residency.  
It sounds like you have just the one toilet. If this is the case, then resale and overall appeal might be tempered if buyers realise that someone taking a (long) bath would deny access to the toilet. As such, the luxury of a long bath might be frowned upon and the bath considered superfluous to needs. 
I am assuming here that at some stage you will have plans for the back porch that do not include the old toilet.

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## Middoes

This is just going to confuse you more but I wouldn't buy a house with a shower bath as I always seem to be lazy and not lift my legs and hit the side of the bath with my shins getting into it and i always hear of people hurting themselves falling over.
But for resale wise a bath does help..
Saying that the money not spent on a bath and on better products might also pay off. 
Good luck

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## ringtail

> hehe!  Thanks ringtail.  Could've sworn you were a doting parent! 
> I'm probably leaning towards keeping the bath... As I will essentially be starting from scratch (all fittings and wall sheeting going - it's asbestos) - what steps should I be taking to make sure that it doesn't turn into a leaky bath? 
> From my basic understanding - I'd need to make sure the correct waterproof sheeting is used, then siliconed joints and waterproofing... then does it come down to the plumbing itself... is that where the leaks usually come from? 
> Cheers

  
Nah no kids (yet ??) but 2 dogs. They have a wash in one of the showers in winter so I can use hot water on them but otherwise its cold tank water for them. Re the bath leaks, some come from the plumbing but most come from bad workmanship upon installation. There is a strict proceedure that should (must) be followed relating to recessing into the studs, bringing the sheeting down over the lip of the bath just the right amount and using the correct sealant in the right quantity. It takes time to do it neatly and properly and most couldn't be bothered taking the time. 
x 2 on the shower bath step thing. Bloody dangerous I reckon.

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## r3nov8or

I said earlier you should keep the bath, and we had our only shower over the bath for a long time but always intended to have a walk-in shower in a new ensuite (which we have these days). If there are sports people in the house a walk in shower is a must to help cope with leg injuries. If this will always be the only shower you might opt for a 'hip bath' with shower over. somewhere for the toddlers to splash around but not suitable for adults (like my rectangle deep spa shell)

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## gpkennedy

I believe that this pic is what r3nov8or is suggesting.
1200mm x 800mm with a lip about 430mm high.

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## cam_jim

> IMHO a home without a bath is limiting its market, especially if you are in a 'family' suburb. But if you never use it, have no reason to think you will, and you will be there for along time, maybe it can go. 
> Buyers are more likely to say "Uh oh, no bath" than "Hooray, no bath!!"

  As this is your main bathroom I have to agree with r3nov8or. If you have kids or grandkids you need a bath. Impossible to bath a kid under 3 in a shower. Almost impossible until they get to 5.

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## ringtail

5 ?? they should out mowing the lawn by 5  :Biggrin:  :Biggrin:

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## juan

> Juan, the toilet position is next to the end of the bath and the wall so from a comfort factor, it will only the be wall side that could feel tight if I left it at 700mm

  I believe you could get by comfortably with 700mm.  Sat on ours and imagined taking 50mm of each side and no problem - Mind you we are not big folk. For me if it came to a decision between no bath or a toilet with 700mm space I would definitely go for having a bath. We do not use it a lot but could not live in a house without one and think it would reduce resale value if you did not have one.

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## stevoh741

I had a bath in my last house, used it once in 5 yrs. As for 700mm wide dumper? depends how FAT you are.

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## Danny

I replaced the old duck blue bath with a nice shiny white one when renovating about 12 years ago. 
It has never been used as a bath.

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## physix

i have 2 both being in spaces of 700 mm wide.. they are fine but i am a small guy

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## Pulse

Mine is about 600, but opens up at 45 degrees about halfway along the pan, ie sits next to a shower in the adjoining bathroom. There is plenty of elbow room, although the roll is hung off the angled wall. 
Cheers pulse

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## chalkyt

Might as well put in my two bob's worth based on my current experience since I am just in the process of replacing a small shower bath with a "proper bath" as part of a second bathroom reno. (Well actually it is the "main" bathroom that only ever gets used when we have grandkids or other visitors in winter). We get by just fine with a shower, vanity and toilet in our en-suite. The original setup had the main bathroom space divided into two rooms. A toilet 900 wide and the shower/bath + vanity in a "room" 900 wide. All the space was taken up with doors! The wall is now gone so we have a bathroom space 2400 x 1800. 
The 900x900 shower bath was next to useless since you could only access it from the front and had to get through a triple sliding glass screen. We took the decision to replace it with a "proper" bath with a clear class partial screen, mainly for potential resale value some time in the vague far distant future. Now the fun part... trying to find a bath that is the right size to fit under the existing bath taps. 40,000 baths on the market but only one or two that will do the job in terms of width and height! This is especially so since the bath taps are behind a tiled wall and are only 500 above the floor, and of course the existing waste is in the wrong spot so I need enough space under the bath to fit a plumbdinger or something like that. So, consider all that stuff before tossing out the shower. If you have space for a bath and a shower, that is the go, unfortunately we don't. 
Had to "rebuild" two bathrooms in our old B&B because of dodgy (non existent) waterproofing so am very wary of potential leaks. This is a great excuse to buy a multi-tool so that I can check out studs under the existing villaboard and tiles. Shock... horror, the only "waterproofing" I can find is plastic angles behind the wall sheets in the corners, so removing tiles and proper waterproofing now becomes part of the never ending bathroom reno. 
Do you (or we) need a bath... not really, but not having a bath somewhere in the place somehow doesn't seem right. Any helpful hints on retrofitting the bath and getting good showerproofing will be welcome. Also any views on cement vs foam to support fibreglass/acrylic baths are also welcome (yes, I know the code wants cement, but the old fibreglass shower/bath had cement plus about 20mm of expanding foam, which seems to be an O.K. idea)

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