I’m unsure what to do with the master bathroom in our house. The layout of the entire master suite is kinda weird and there’s lots of wasted space in the bathroom - there’s a 90s jacuzzi tub, Double vanity, and an awkwardly big shower that’s really a waste because the shower head only covers one corner/side of the shower.
I’m debating on getting rid of the jacuzzi tub and installing a large, spa-like walk-in shower with 2 shower heads and creating an awesome walk in closet in the space instead, but that means getting rid of the tub entirely. Or I could somehow manage a small soaking tub instead.
How important is a tub in the master for you? I have never been a fan of a tub, but I know some love it. FWIW, there’s 2 other bathrooms with tubs in the house. Also, this isn’t our forever home and we anticipate moving in about 2-3 years, so I’m trying to appeal to the masses.
I much prefer a larger shower to a tub. I’ve seen people point out that people with young kids might want/need a tub so as long as there is one elsewhere I think you’re good to just do a shower.
I almost never use my tub, so I wouldn’t miss it at all. I’d much rather have the shower that you’re describing! The only caveat would be to make sure there’s some kind of tub in the house in case you go to sell at some point.
Post by lemoncupcake on May 28, 2020 18:49:52 GMT -5
What other closet space do you have today?
If I had to choose between a big shower and a small shower/separate tub, I'd choose a big shower. But that's not the choice you're making since you already have a big shower and a separate tub. In that case where the bathroom is big and can accommodate a nice tub, I would be pretty disappointed to not have a tub and would go through the expense of adding one.
Post by sofamonkey on May 28, 2020 18:49:55 GMT -5
I like having a tub to soak in. It doesn’t have to be fancy and jetted. Just a large enough tub to be comfortable in. But if that’s not important to you, no need to keep one!
lemoncupcake, there’s a decent sized walk-in closet now, but to be honest, it’s kinda tight with both MH’s and my clothes in it. My thoughts are to create a separate his/hers closet, making the current closet kind of a small dressing area for “her” and the current shower stall will be “his”.
I think it's fine to get rid of it, given that you have other bath tubs in the house. DH loves baths, and a house without a tub would be a dealbreaker, but one with a tub somewhere but not in the master (which is what our current house has) is only a minor drawback for him.
Post by sandandsea on May 28, 2020 19:04:06 GMT -5
We had a 90s jacuzzi and small shower and took them both out in favor of a double shower. It’s amazing and so convenient. We never used the tub and aren’t bath people so it’s perfect for us.
FWIW our young kids love the double shower and showering at the same time.
Post by imojoebunny on May 28, 2020 19:16:46 GMT -5
I really hate the giant shower, and the tub in our master bath, which is a modern claw foot sort, takes up tons of space, and I use it like 2X a year. It is a clothes hanging rack for clothes that cannot be dried in the dryer, and that is is. I had a fully enclosed stream shower in my last house that was about 4X4, if not smaller, and I liked it much, much better than the 4X6' or 7" we have now that has open glass walls at the top. Our previous bathroom took about about 1/2 the square footage of our current one, and was much more functional, with my DH's vanity on one end, and mine on the other. We, also, have 3 large windows in our bathroom, which are utterly useless vs. one in our previous bath, which though, also, useless, at least had a frosted window, so you got light, but not an over-shared view. I do like a toilet room in a master, and I would put that 1st and foremost as an important feature. As long as you have a tub in another bath, or a tub shower combo, I don't think the master bath "vanity" tub is a selling point loss. If I could design my house again, I would have ditched the tub, put in a smaller steam shower, that is fully enclosed, and given the saved space to the loft we have upstairs for a closet for all the stuff that comes with life, that you often need. The loft that has the kids Tv, a sofa, and their built in desk, which is only like 9X12, but so damn functional.
I voted to get rid of the tub without hesitation. When we redo our main bathroom, we're probably going to get rid of the basic built-in tub in favor of an awesome walk-in shower. I've never used a tub in my adult life and would rather have something more functional that can fit both of us if needed/wanted. Our other bathroom has a stall shower so this would leave our house without a tub, but I don't really care. We don't have kids and know friends who bathed their kids in a shower with no issue, so that can be a future homeowner's decision. While I live here I'd prefer the house function for me.
How important is a tub in the master for you? I have never been a fan of a tub, but I know some love it. FWIW, there’s 2 other bathrooms with tubs in the house. Also, this isn’t our forever home and we anticipate moving in about 2-3 years, so I’m trying to appeal to the masses.
Then I think you're fine to just have a shower in the master. For resale I think you need at least one tub for kids/pets, but any beyond that are optional.
My house doesn't have a master bath at all; we have 1.5 bath in total with a 54" tub in the full bath (pics in the other thread). It's a little too short even for me to use as a tub, but it checks the kid/pet box. Even though we don't have an adult-size tub, we're planning a future addition for a master bedroom with en suite 3/4 bath (shower only/no tub), so we'll still be at only the one tub.
Post by dancingirl21 on May 28, 2020 20:23:17 GMT -5
If you were staying I’d say do what you want. But since you are planning to move soon, I’d look at similar recently sold properties. In our area and in comparable houses, having both a decent shower space and a tub are pretty standard in the master. I do use our tub pretty frequently and it was something I did really want. We have a jacuzzi tub and I would be equally happy with just a soaker.
We had that debate in our previous house. Our realtor friend told us that if we had at least another tub in the house, then go for it!. People usually look (when buying houses) for at least 1 tub, for the kids, or themselves. But they did not care to trade it for a spa-like shower. =) I would say, go for it if it pleases you that way =)
lemoncupcake, there’s a decent sized walk-in closet now, but to be honest, it’s kinda tight with both MH’s and my clothes in it. My thoughts are to create a separate his/hers closet, making the current closet kind of a small dressing area for “her” and the current shower stall will be “his”.
I really think you need to not think at it as a nice shower vs tub, it’s dressing room vs tub. I have to think in that case that more people might want a tub.
If you’re renovating anyway, there’s likely a way to add a second shower head to your existing shower area that you say is already large.
I don't care about baths in the slightest. We had a big steam shower in our first house and it was fantastic. We'll never get that back in this house, but I am looking forward to getting rid of our tub and turning it into a walk in shower, even if it is small.
Keep *a* tub somewhere in the house. No tub was a deal breaker on a few houses for me. I was pregnant while house hunting and didn't want to bathe kids with only a shower option.
Does your design mean putting the closet in the bathroom? I've seen a few designs like that and it always makes me afraid of ending up with a damp, moldy clothes closet. Ick. Bathing areas that are part of either closets or bedrooms bother me.
We are about to start a reno on our bath as there is a leak in the shower pan. We have a huge jacuzzi tub with tile surround(approx. 12 feet). We are going to take that out and do a soaker tub. Our shower is large but we are adding a bench to add about a foot to it. I really need more closet space but putting next to the shower instead of the tub doesnt seem like a good idea/look instead of the soaker tub. We do not use the tub really at all.
We remodeled our master bath about 5 years ago. gutted it, ripped out the whirlpool tub and tile "deck", and put in a soaking tub instead. Our shower is a little bigger than a standard stall shower, but we reconfigured it and removed all the crazy sprayers (there were 6 mounted on the wall to spray horizontally), and now have a shower with a fixed head and removable head. We put in a built-in linen and towel cabinet where the whirlpool was, and moved the tub to the other wall to use the space better (also have a 90's house with an absurdly large bathroom, so were trying to make the most of the space). We moved one wall a little to make the flow better, and have a door into the master walk-in closet now.
For us, a soaking tub in the master is a must, we use it all the time (at least once a week). I wouldn't consider buying a house without it.
Post by arehopsveggies on May 29, 2020 10:35:49 GMT -5
I’ve never had a tub in my master.
In my old house, pre kids, I was fine using the hall bathroom. Now I’m just always too exhausted thinking about moving toys, cleaning the bathroom because small boys are gross, and then taking my “relaxing” bath. So I just don’t.
When we redo our master I'm taking out our tub and expanding the shower) creating a linen closet in the space. We currently don't have one in the bathroom.
We have a tub in the hall bath, but we also plan on staying here forever so I don't really care about resale value.
We removed our 4th bedroom a few years ago and turned it into a second floor laundry and a second master walk in, so that would hurt us worse I think.
If we re-do our master bath (someday, I hope!) we will take out the giant corner tub and likely just do a bigger shower. We NEVER use the tub. The kids like it, but I have never personally used it once. If you have room, do both. If you don't, and you don't use the tub, then definitely just a bigger shower!
We put IN a tub in a different bathroom b/c i do think you should have at least one in the house. We needed a tub for the kids and didn't want them always having to come use the master bath. It was totally worth doing as we had little kids at the time and even now I still have two bath-takers. Once in a while we still let them go in the big tub for fun. Come to think of it, I should do this soon again with my youngest before they are too big!