My wife and I are working on an extensive house remodel. We bought a 1400 sq. ft. home in a probate auction. We are planning on adding about 1000 more feet. We have two boys and a girl so we want separate baths for them. We want a big kitchen and family room since we spend a lot of time at home. In other words, we are packing the 2400′ pretty tight.
The current plan has a master bath with a tub and a shower. We could create a walk in closet for the master if we eliminated the tub. My wife says the tub is not negotiable. I point out that her parents don’t have a tub in their bath, my parents don’t have a tub in their bath and in our previous home we had a tub but she never used it. I think a tub is something that appeals to people (all of the model homes around here have huge jacuzzi tubs in the master bath) but is actually rarely used and that a walk in closet, which would be used everyday, is a more valuable thing to have.
She counters that not having a tub would affect resale.
Why not just go bigger? We tried that but it was just too expensive, we had to trim it down. Why not get a tub shower combo? We both want a large shower, me because I will never use the tub and I want a big shower, and she does admit that most days she will use the shower and not the tub.
So, my questions are
Does a house need a tub?
Does the lack of a tub affect resale?
And, if you do have a tub, how much do you really use it?
Replies
So, my questions are
Does a house need a tub?
Does the lack of a tub affect resale?
And, if you do have a tub, how much do you really use it?
My answer is, does AK need a wife?
She says you need a tub.
You want to tell her unknown strangers on the net say no tub necessary?
Good luck.
Joe H
Joe, she agreed to ask her friends those questions. Since Breaktime is the closest approximation I have to friends I came here...
Then, no, you don't need a bath tub.
Does it effect the resale? All those model homes are saying "YES!" Does it really, who knows?
It's the illusion of a romantic soak with the missus in one of those giant tubs.
Or maybe a traveling Supermodel in need of a scrub knocking on your door.
Guess the marketing people think it's worth the square footage or they wouldn't be there.
Or, maybe they are aiming at the fat people market.
No tub in my master bath, but there is a tub in the second bath.
Joe H
When we built our house, we designed the kids bath to have a bathtub (they are little and do like baths). But our masterbath we designed on the small side (choosing to use the space elsewhere) and instead of a bathtub we built a tiled double shower. It takes up about the same space as a tub but allows for much more comfortable showering. Both of us prefer showers over baths and so decided one bathtub in the house was enough. We have never regreted it!
A recent survey of whirlpool tub use revealed that these tubs are used an average of 3 times. Note that that's not 3 times a month or 3 times a year, but 3 times EVER. They're just too much of a pain (slow filling, hard to clean, etc) for most (busy) people to deal with.
As to whether you need a regular tub, probably you should check with the BI to make sure that one isn't required by local code (or local BI "tradition"). Also, not having a regular tub may reduce resale value somewhat, though probably not all that much. (A big whirlpool may or may not improve resale, depending on whether the word gets around on that 3-a-year thing.)
Of course, what SWIMBO demands, SWIMBO gets.
(An alternative might be to put in the closet, but also rough in plumbing so that a future owner can replace it with a tub if they wish. It will take some extra design effort, of course, and might not be the best layout for the closet, but it's worth a thought.)
>> SWIMBO
Googled for this, couldn't find anything illuminating. What does the I stand for?
Actually it is just SWMBO but is pronounced SWIMBO.
She Who Must Be Obeyed. i.e. WifeDave - Total Newby from Hiram GA
I thought it was:
"She who inevitably must be obeyed"What would you say to a beer Normie?Daddy wuvs you.
Never heard it that way, but sounds good.Dave - Total Newby from Hiram GA
>> SWIMBO
> Googled for this, couldn't find anything illuminating. What does the
> I stand for?
Sorry, I injected an extra I. SWMBO
I remodeled my only bath and put in only a shower. I have back problems and find it very hard to step over the sides of a tub sometimes. No code against it as far as I know. Resale value? They want to cut the price because the walls are painted white. They want to cut the price because the walls are NOT painted white. Doesn't matter.
"Does a house need a tub?
Does the lack of a tub affect resale?
And, if you do have a tub, how much do you really use it?"
Yes, a house needs at least one tub if you have a family. Uses for a tub other than a bath? How about, washing the dog, filling the mop bucket, searching for leaks in a bicycle tube, washing the bedspread that's too darn big for the machine when you don't have enough time for the laundromat...well I can come up with others if you really want.
Yes, the lack of a tub affects resale, see the paragraph above. However, if you put in a curbless shower and make the rest of the house ADA friendly you could open up a different market that doesn't care about tubs. Lack of a tub not only affects resale value, but who even looks at the house, or your ability to sell it at all. The appraisal on my house showed 1 bath because one of the bathrooms has a tub and the other a shower. If you don't have a tub in the house at all, I'd say that you could show up with 0 baths! However, the master bath does not need a tub as long as there is one somewhere in the house.
We use our tub pretty much every day. My daughter is 2 and afraid of the shower. Plus we have better tub toys than shower toys. Besides, when she gets in the tub she frequently turns into a mermaid, a transmogrification that apparently only works when immersed.
All that said, it's your house you should like it. I don't think you WILL like it if your wife is unhappy though.
Go with the shower. If you ever sell the house, the new owners are going to redo the bathroom anyway. They always do. Let them put in their own tub. It's your house now.
You have a tub in the kids bathroom, right? That should cover it.
I'm kinda like the others that say you ought to pay attention to your Wife. She may not be right, but she's still your Wife. How many years do you want to be hearing: "If you'd only let me put that tub in like I wanted to...".
Is there any way you could combine bathrooms to gain more space? Do the kids REALLY have to have separate bathrooms? Or could they maybe live with a "Jack-and-Jill" arrangement, and share some fixtures?
Maybe you could give in on this as a compromise, and in return ask her to give in on some other issue that comes up?
I personally think the big hot tubs are a complete waste. But they seem to be popular selling points around here too. Don't really know why.
How's a beer sound Norm?
I dunno. I usually finish them before they get a word in.
Thanks for the replies. There will be a tub in the girl's bath, a shower in the boys. This isn't approaching a crisis. We're just having a friendly disagreement so far...If it comes down to which one of us gets their wish, there will be a tub in the master; I know when to concede.
If i read your post correctly you will have 3 baths after the remodel. A boys, girls, and master. Ive done several master bath additions with only a shower for space reasons. Personally I see no reason for any tubs but for resale purposes there should be at least one regular tub in the house. You seem to have that covered with the childrens bath. You can spend the extra money on a nice large shower with a full enclosure, and I guarantee that closet will get much more use than the tub.
"if you do have a tub, how much do you really use it"
Once a week, whether I need it or not <G>
my 2 cents ...
yes ... a no bath house will affect resale .. because you are limiting the amount of purchasers ... some people can't live w/o a bath .. so they'd skip your offering.
as someone else has pointed out ... we too have a little kid ... and showers ain't happening .. but long swims in the tub do ... we'd not buy a hous eat this point w/o a tub.
That said .... if it were my money to spend ... I'd put a shower/tub combo in each of the kids bathrooms .... so now ya have 3 full bathrooms ...
and I'd lay out a nice big custom sized shower in the adult master bath ... with as many spray heads as the plumber will install ... and at least one seat ... hopefully two or more.
Now .. all buyers ... except myself will be happy ..
as yes ... about once a month ... my back is just killing me and I take about an hour long soak so I can make it to the chiropractor in the morning.
So my next bath will not only have a tub ... but one of those whirlpool tubs no one ever fess' up to using. Even use the in laws when they're outta town ....
I could probably be talked into a hot tub right outside the master "suite" on it's own private balcony .....
I say get the tub/shower combo for the kids ... as a major part of my work year is subbing tile ... and I do my own showers ....so I get in lotsa jobs where the kids bath is being converted into a "shower only" deal ... and if I get back inside those jobs ... those shower only rooma are always the worst taken care of .... something about no tub makes kids think even more that towels belong wet and on the floor ... right outside the shower doors. Usually water all over the floor too ....
Jeff
Buck Construction Pittsburgh,PA
Artistry in Carpentry
Does each child really need their own bath? Would that give you some room to add to the master bath?
I agree with the comments on tubs being useful for utilitarian reasons, though I'd much prefer a utility tub in the basement/mud room for that type of thing.
For us, no tub would definitely affect us considering the house, since the wife takes baths 4 times a week or so and the 2-year old still prefers the bath.
One option which I've seen in both a B&B and a remodelled, but smaller house, was to put the tub (usually a clawfoot) direcly in the bedroom itself. Sort of a wet chaise lounge. ;o)
when I started building my house 1100 sq feet, the county told me it had to be a three bedroom with two baths. Both bathroom had to have tubs, all room must have walk in closet. They said it was for resale, what they did not say it was for property tax value. Oh the house could not be CMU (block).
So I got to thinking and my boss told me to build it how I wanted the hell with resale it will change in twenty years anyway. So I have a two bedroom two bath with only one tub, and small closet in the other bedroom. But a hugh living room.
Forget about resale, plan on dying in the house, build it your way.
A house does need a bath for resale. A full bath has a shower and a tub. You would have to advertise your home as having a 3/4 bath instead of a full bath. Most builders get around it by installing bath/shower combos. IMO
Darkworksite4:
Gancho agarrador izquierdo americano pasado que la bandera antes de usted sale
[QUOTE]
A house does need a bath for resale. A full bath has a shower and a tub. You would have to advertise your home as having a 3/4 bath instead of a full bath. Most builders get around it by installing bath/shower combos. IMO
In our neck of the woods, any bathroom, even a half-bath, counts as a "bath" (no fractions) when you advertise. It depends on local practice.
Thats great but here no way. Im not 100% sure but I think the UPC list a full bath as having a shower, tub, tiolet and sink. But Im gonna have to check. Wheres wet head warrior whenn ya need him...
Well I checked all I could find was a shower or bath.. But I could od sworn it requires both oh well
Darkworksite4:
Gancho agarrador izquierdo americano pasado que la bandera antes de usted sale
Edited 2/25/2004 9:49:02 PM ET by RonT
Forget about resale, plan on dying in the house, build it your way.
AMEN brother!
Carry it another 2 generations even ??
Forget about resale, plan on dying in the house, build it your way.
Last night, was one of the grandkid's (3 YO) night to sleep over, as I carried him up the stairs to bed, he said, "I really like this house Grandpa, did you build it" I told him me an' Grandma did, as he lay his head on my shoulder I told him he could have it when he got married if he wanted.
Grandma told me after he went to sleep, " I told you that if you build another house you are going to do it by yourself" -- I don't think so, I'll have a few energetic grandkids to help build at least 4 more!
Good thing DW does not read this board.
Bath tub - 30"x 60" = 12.5 sf
House - 2400 sf
Bathtub is 0.52% of the house
A little perspective on the concept of running out of space might help
A little perspective is always helpful. Maybe you can enlarge your own, as ours was enlarged, by considering the following concepts:
A bathtub does not just take up the space that contains it, it also needs space for entrance and exit.
The placement of a separate tub in a bathroom changes the whole layout of what is inside as well as where the door can be placed, which can alter the space beside it.
The elimination of something relatively small with its associated water supply, drain and exterior space requirements can radically change how and where walls and walkways can be placed.
If you are building with plans to sell in the near future, then yes you need a tub some where in the house. with no plans to sell, build it with no shower either if you want.