You can never have too many toilets! It’s an old adage that my grandmother used to say whenever we were staying on a campsite, hotel or simply visiting somewhere that requires public convenience. The roots of this probably come from the fact that she had to share one privy with half a dozen siblings plus her mum and dad when growing up as a child in Cornwall.
When first viewing our prospective new home, when it was still two tumbling down flats, I immediately clocked the fact that we could have a downstairs loo, one in the family bathroom and an en-suite in the new loft conversion. We were initially going to put the ground floor WC at the back of the house off the kitchen where the plumbing was in already. It wasn’t until Sarah Miles, Colwick, Nottingham branch manager came round, that the idea of putting it in the porch to the upstairs flat was first mooted.
The space is very small, a princely 900mm square but she suggested using a concealed cistern with a wall hung pan and basin. Such as the ones offered by Geberit and stocked by Jewson. It was a great solution but a little out of our budget. A cheaper alternative was a corner toilet that will slot into the most confined of spaces. We went for this option which meant that we were now able to use the room off the kitchen as a utility room which was a far more agreeable idea.
In the family bathroom we used a Roca toilet and sink with a big square bath that also couples as a shower. Because we have high water pressure in the area, and with the hot supply coming straight off a combination boiler, we didn’t need to install a pump.
In fact the water pressure is so good we also get good flow in the en-suite in the attic. This bathroom required a bit more ingenuity as we had to position it under the eves off the main living space. The shower tray was put down first and the stud walling was built around it to create the room. We then had a custom made shower door made to take in the pitch of the roof. The result is a surprisingly
spacious area with a good sized Roca toilet and a wall hanging basin. To finish things off we mirrored one wall to give the room an even greater feeling of space.
The staff at Jewson have a real knowledge of how to make a bathroom come to life and were on hand to offer both practical and technical advice with guidance on which products would work best for any particular area. My grandmother would have loved this house!
