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What I dislike are gigantic bathrooms. One of the bathrooms in the country is enormous, and the master bath in the city is enormous.

I love larger bathrooms. I need to be able to spin around with my arms fully extended.

I hate show curtains and I have not seen nice glass sliding-doors for the tub combo yet.

BTW, older people may see higher risk in tripping because they need to straddle the higher edge of the tub.

Because it looks like an apartment or worse.... a hotel room?

I'll have to agree with SFWoman though, some of the master baths we've seen on open houses and listings are just ridiculous. It's not like bathrooms were not expensive enough already? All of that glitzy chrome and tile will not be new forever. Oh and that "jetted" tub? It's waiting for your darkest hour to betray you! You'll be lucky to get 3 years out of them.

I am envisioning future master baths to have one tub, two separate shower stalls and two separate water closets. I rather have one fewer bedroom.

I have never use the tub as a guest. So the guest bathroom can just have a shower stall.

I think shower stalls should be at large as a tub in terms of footprint though.

Shower tub combos may be efficient, but they compromise both with the bath and the shower aspects. The bath is never big enough, and the shower is never wide enough. Plus, those sliding door things are horrible. Might as well be showering in a phone booth. For families though, a bathtub is essential for the kids.

All of that glitzy chrome and tile will not be new forever. Oh and that “jetted” tub? It’s waiting for your darkest hour to betray you! You’ll be lucky to get 3 years out of them.

Simplicity is the key. I hate tiles. If possible, stones are very nice.

I do not need a jetted tub. Perhaps just a deep soaking tub for meditation.

I think tubs should be designed to overflow gracefully. There should be drains around the tub.

For families though, a bathtub is essential for the kids.

Solution: portable plastic tubs!

Cheapest way to get nice hotel baths: Las Vegas!

For under $200 you have:

* large tub
* large glass shower stall
* double vanity
* separate water closet
* MARBLE

DinOR Says:

I’ll have to agree with SFWoman though, some of the master baths we’ve seen on open houses and listings are just ridiculous. It’s not like bathrooms were not expensive enough already? All of that glitzy chrome and tile will not be new forever. Oh and that “jetted” tub? It’s waiting for your darkest hour to betray you! You’ll be lucky to get 3 years out of them.

That's so true. It seems de rigeur in McMansions to have a "bathroom suite" in the master BR. Probably has to do with 2 things: the need to feel like you live in a manse for the rich and famous, and the conventional wisdom that bathroom (and kitchen) remodels are what get you the best return for the investment.

We had a jet tub in our Boston condo (yes, we thought it would be great when we first bought the place), and let me tell you - it was a useless POS. No matter how high-end they are, they are too noisy for an indoor space, they splash everywhere, and they add maintenance.

I still think that his-and-her baths have utility and will find their way into mainstrean housing.

Nice sliding glass showers are a pain to clean, esp. if you have hard water.

Nice sliding glass showers are a pain to clean, esp. if you have hard water.

That cannot be avoided. Even shower stalls have glass. I just hate shower curtains.

There's nothing like a long hot bath.....{sigh}. Unfortunately, in the 6 years I've been in this country, I can count the number of long, hot baths I've had on the fingers of...well...two fingers, actually.

Maybe its an English thing, but showers are a relatively new addition to many bathrooms over there - the 80's have a lot to asnwer for, and not just in the music world. Nothing like a bath to energise you, after a dreary day (all 6 hours of it) in December..

Why is iy that 99.99% of all US baths are 4 foot long?

The husband is partial to a bath on the weekends to relax and catch up with magazine reading (water wrinkled 'New Scientist' or 'The Economist' anyone?). Its quite pitiful to watch him concertina his lanky 6' 4" body into a bathtub made for a Little Person. Although he's found some novel ways of bending his legs in directions that god didn't really intend...

I say a bathroom with a proper bath, and a bathroom with a decent shower.

And, yes, what is the point of a bathroom that you need rollerskates to cross.

Or, more absurdly, a double sink? Who ever uses both sinks at the same time?

Due to The Other Half's enourmous reach - being well over 6 ft and having a reach of 6' 6" - its too dangerous to be standing beside him getting ready in the morning. With two bathrooms, each of you can use one simultaneously and can avoid injury.

Double sink is useful because you can use one to defrost frozen peas.

With Kniep Bath juniper oil or something.

I do not take baths without yellow rubber ducks. :)

BTW, bath salts are essential.

A shower curtain would get around the hard water problem, and frosted glass would dramatically reduce the problem.

I do wish the tubs were about 1 foot deeper and a foot longer. I don't mind if it was more narrow, if that helps water efficiency. The generic bathtub is useless for anybody over 10 years old.

Double sinks are pointless unless 2 people are going to brush their teeth at the same time. Otherwise, the extra counter space would be much more useful than the extra sink.

A shower curtain would get around the hard water problem, and frosted glass would dramatically reduce the problem.

I like my view of the bathroom when I am showering though. ;)

Double sinks are pointless unless 2 people are going to brush their teeth at the same time.

True. An his-and-her bath will take care of this problem.

Double sinks in the bathroom, or the kitchen? (very different use cases) At $place[-2], the tub combo was nice and wide. I've only seen a 4-foot tub in Europe, and those are scary. So, my shower peeve is narrow tubs. I don't mind curtains/doors, but I will say that marble or similar shower stalls are /very/ nice in terms of keeping clean. Grout between tiles is just asking for trouble.

Peeves: counters built for short people. If I want to set something on the countertop, I shouldn't have to bend down. (I come from a family that mounted their towel/robe hooks at 6', and the front-door peephole almost as high.)

Yes, shower curtains are probably not an optimal solution for you.

So, my shower peeve is narrow tubs. I don’t mind curtains/doors, but I will say that marble or similar shower stalls are /very/ nice in terms of keeping clean. Grout between tiles is just asking for trouble.

Very true. Marble baths are as important as granite countertops.

Kitchens should have 3 sinks, two combined for vegetable and dish washing, and a free standing one for drinking water/second person. And every laundry room should have a large utility sink.

Kitchens should have 3 sinks, two combined for vegetable and dish washing, and a free standing one for drinking water/second person. And every laundry room should have a large utility sink.

I agree. I also want a dedicated pasta cooker with automatic water drainage.

Why do you need a sink for the laundry room?

I also want a separate cat bathroom with ultra-quiet high-power ventilation and pet doors. The cats are taking over an entire human bathroom right now.

I grew up in a house with 4 bedrooms, a humongous basement, probably 600sqft of wrap around porch, a little den-thingy, a converted screened-in-porch-like connector rumpus room between house & garage, a generous yard....

...and one teeny tiny little disgusting bathroom.

As a necessity, the children learned to all "utilize" the bathroom simultaneously.

I hate tub/shower combos, although they're fine for bathrooms in the house I don't ever need to shower or bathe in. Perhaps they are of use for children, until they're old enough to shower themselves. But guests certainly won't use them. Who uses a strange tub? I grew up in a fairly dirty environment and even I think that's kind of gross.

No thank you; I'll take a bathroom the size of a Berlin Hotel Interconti room, and a separate watercloset for the toilet to boot.

Interesting digression: This is no exaggeration. I had a good friend in school who was a pig-farmer. Regular family. Nothing weird. Except they had a "modern outhouse". Not like the wooden thing with a moon in the door. More like a porta-pod looking thing built on top of a septic tank. I used to hate staying over night with him (but still did because we got to go shooting with his dad on Saturdays).

Why do you need a sink for the laundry room?

These sinks come in quite handy during the younger childhood years.

Who uses a strange tub?

Exactly. I do not even want to use my rented tub.

…and one teeny tiny little disgusting bathroom.

Why....

These sinks come in quite handy during the younger childhood years.

I see... perhaps they are useful against Marinara Prime?

-Prime
+Sauce

I WISH I had a shower-tub combo. The little house I’m renting just has a shower stall even though there would be room in the bathroom for a shower/tub combo (there’s a big empty space next to the sink).

I would prefer a shower stall over a shower/tub combo.

Big utility sinks are generally useful for washing large objects, laundry, filling large buckets, etc. They're also good for washing dirty gardening hands.

DinOR Says:

I have a buddy that worked at FiberFab that made the gel coated shells and he told me there were so many moving parts it’s like they were made to fail! In a hotel room? Hubba hubba! (Just not in MY house please).

As long as the tub is heart-shaped and in a hotel in Reno, Vegas, or Niagara Falls. Seriously though, I really hate the pre-molded shower-tub combos where the entire stall/shower/bath is one huge piece of fiberglass or plastic or whatever.

I really hate the pre-molded shower-tub combos where the entire stall/shower/bath is one huge piece of fiberglass or plastic or whatever.

Who doesn't?

I would not mind a pre-molded one made of Corian though. Still, I prefer marble/granite/sandstone/etc.

I never use the hotel tub. As I result, I prefer hotels with separate shower stalls. However, they usually cost too much outside Las Vegas. :(

we wash dogs and cats in them

Can you teach me how to wash a cat without getting scratched?

My youngest just had a climbing class at Mission Cliffs. Have any of you done that? It’s really fun. If I ever lose my mind and buy a McMansion I am going to make sure my masterbath has a two story climbing wall in it.

Climbing can be dangerous. I tried riding a horse once and almost got killed. Perhaps I am just not the outdoor type.

I like all stone bathrooms and saunas

All stone saunas? Will the stone crack because of the heat/humidity?

Perhaps I should become a bathroom designer. Perhaps in the future we will all live in bathrooms with sleeping alcoves.

On the other hand, it would be nice to have a bathroom that can be cleaned by hosing it down with water.

Personally, I prefer a shower stall with a glass screen - a shower in a tub is dangerous - I once slipped and knocked my chest against the edge of the tub.

Exactly.

Best option of course, is a G-shaped stall - no doors, simple, ventilated and effective.

With glass? I will probably bump into it. How about a shower stall so large that doors are not required.

Don’t really understand the bathroom fetish in McMansions though.

I don't think many McMansions have really nice bathrooms though. People still prefer nice kitchens. Many "luxury" bathrooms only have marble on one or two walls.

We never use our frozen peas for eating…they are for black eyes and sprains and such!

They are not too bad in a puree. Fresh peas are of course much better.

I have an unwavering belief that all men pee in the shower

Huh? 8-O Another reason for his-and-her baths.

LILLL Says:

I have an unwavering belief that all men pee in the shower…so no way am I sitting in that thing…no matter how much I clean it!(As I am the only female in this house.)
Eeewww!

Pee is sterile (generally speaking), so technically there's nothing grody about it other than the fact that it's pee.

SF Woman,
Why do you wash your cat? We've never washed ours, and he's outdoors. Cats are immaculately clean creatures as it is and they clean themselves. However, I've always wondered - their tongues must be filthy. Maybe we just need to rinse their tongues once in a while.

Why do you wash your cat? We’ve never washed ours, and he’s outdoors.

I washed my cat before and she hated me for a week. The cat hospital was able to do it nicely though. Strange.