In recent years, many apartment owners during renovations make redevelopment and combine a toilet with a bathroom. This choice can be explained by many reasons, first of all, by the desire to save usable space by combining space and demolishing the partition.
Sometimes, when redeveloping an apartment, it is possible to include some part of the corridor in a new room. A well-thought-out design of a combined bathroom, in addition to all the required plumbing fixtures, allows you to place, for example, a washing machine or a boiler, and in general, it is more rational to organize the layout of the room.
Combining a bathroom
Most of the "Khrushchev" apartments built in the Soviet era had their own combined bathroom 4 sq. m area, which in the context of a total shortage of housing was considered a luxury, despitesuch small sizes. In more modern standard buildings, the arrangement of a separate bathroom has become the norm, but the bathroom and toilet rooms were still designed in minimal sizes, limiting the possibilities for their comfortable arrangement. For a while, this suited everyone. But in recent years, for owners of standard apartments, a bathroom combined with a bathroom has often become a more preferable option for redevelopment of premises for personal hygiene, despite the fact that using a combined bathroom is still less convenient than a separate one.
In addition to the additional space that can be rationally used, there are other positive aspects of combining a bathroom, for example, saving finishing materials and money by eliminating the partition.
Resolving legal issues
Before embarking on the independent development of the project, it is necessary to resolve some legal issues. The biggest difficulty is obtaining permission for redevelopment and the conclusion of a special examination confirming that the wall to be demolished is not a load-bearing structure. Before the execution of these documents, it is not worth considering the future design of the combined bathroom and proceeding to combine the premises.
Independent project development is excluded if load-bearing structures are affected during redevelopment, general house communications are changed, plumbing equipment with increased energy andwater consumption. The project in this case must be carried out by an organization that has the appropriate licenses.
If the bathroom is small…
It is impossible to turn a modest design of a small combined bathroom into a design of a beautiful and comfortable bathroom without overcoming the main stumbling block - the limit of usable area. This problem is solved by installing compact plumbing, designed specifically for small spaces and taking up less space than conventional devices. Cantilevered sinks and toilets, as well as showers, also save space. It is advisable to make hidden piping, then the interior of the combined bathroom looks more attractive. Using existing installation systems, all hygienic appliances can be easily installed in the new location according to the redevelopment project.
Space-saving shower enclosures
Installing a compact shower cabin instead of a bathtub is the most popular solution for a small space. This idea is especially good for those who have to take into account every centimeter of free space in order to more rationally place all the necessary plumbing fixtures.
From the point of view of saving space in the design of a combined bathroom, a corner shower cubicle fits best. Now there are many options for such cabins, both simple, consisting only of a pallet and a door, and multifunctional, with hydromassage and other comfort amenities. However, in a small space usuallymanages to fit only the most modest booth.
When equipping a shower area, many choose a deep tray, which under certain circumstances can play the role of a mini-bath, while others do without a tray at all. In the latter case, the base of the shower cabin and the rest of the floor in the room are laid out with the same material, which allows you to visually enlarge the space. Such a decision will make even the design of the combined bathroom in the "Khrushchev" - the notorious legacy of Soviet times, more modern and aesthetic.
Zoning combined bathrooms
The design of the combined bathroom provides for the delimitation of the zones of the toilet and the bathroom, and this can be done by an architectural or visual method. In the first case, this is done using a podium device, a multi-level ceiling, decorative niches, partitions or other techniques adapted in the interests of design.
Visual zoning method is more mobile and less expensive. If desired, you can always replace boring delimiting elements, the role of which is played by easily relocatable objects: high racks with a large number of drawers or shelves, decorative screens, moisture-loving plants, and the like. A good effect is given by color differentiation, in which individual zones are emphasized by accessories and finishing materials of a certain color. You can enhance the visual impression with the help of light and decorative lighting elements.
Basic finishing requirements
To finishing materials in a combined bathroomthere are increased requirements, so they must have special properties:
- reliable degree of moisture resistance;
- resistance to acid-base environments;
- easy care;
- environmentally friendly;
- resistant to mold and mildew;
- corrosion resistance and durability;
- resistant to temperature extremes.
Wall and ceiling materials
The choice among a large number of finishing methods and modern materials that can be used in a bathroom is limited only by its parameters. Ceramic tiles, the material that is most often used for finishing hygienic rooms with high humidity, have the full necessary properties. In addition, high-quality mosaics, natural stone, agglomerates, wood treated with special compounds and coated with waterproof varnish are used in combined bathrooms. A new material is actively invading this list - patterned bohemian glass tiles.
The easiest way of all types of ceiling finishes is to paint with moisture-resistant latex, acrylic or silicone-based paint. It is possible to glue the ceiling surface with glass fiber, polystyrene foam tiles and other moisture-resistant materials. Suspended and stretch ceilings are widely used. Their design allows you not to waste time and money on leveling the base, and in the resulting free space you can hide somecommunications. For finishing the ceiling in small bathrooms, plastic is considered the most practical material. With a sufficient area of the combined room, it is possible to install a ceiling of mirrors or stained-glass windows.
Flooring in a combined bathroom should be not only beautiful, but also practical. The most comfortable will be a non-slip floor made of moisture-resistant, pleasant to the touch and attractive material.
Conclusion
As a result of combining a typical bathroom and toilet, a more spacious combined bathroom is obtained, which is not at all difficult to turn into a comfortable hygienic room. Of course, you will have to spend time developing the design and thinking through the details of the layout, choosing beautiful plumbing fixtures and furnishings, carefully considering every little thing. And then, after the repair is completed, the bathroom will change so much that no one will be able to recognize the former boring standard rooms for hygiene procedures.
