10 Simple ways to make a small bathroom feel bigger – Tip #9

This NKBA award winning small bath is such a common size and common configuration, we in the industry have a name for it!  We call it what it often is:  “A 5 by 7″ or “5 by 8″.  Typically, when we first see this bathroom, the 60″ wide space that now houses the walk in shower in this photo is a 5′ bathtub.  One of the easiest ways to visually enlarge a bathroom of this type is to remove the tub and convert the space into a shower.  What does this accomplish?  Well, quite a number of things.

First, the small “wall” that was formed by the front of the tub is gone, thereby opening up the floor, as if it expands an additional 3′ back to the wall.  Next, if the tub had a shower curtain that is now replaced by beautiful clear glass doors, we get a full view of that additional 3 feet (into a pretty shower!)  Finally, the space inside the shower is now a LOT bigger, just by virtue of losing all that wasted space taken up by the tub walls, rails and corners.

Voila!  An instantly larger feeling bathroom without actually demolishing any walls or breaking the bank.

There are other benefits in terms of helping folks with any kind of mobility issues which make it unsafe or awkward to step over the tub to take a shower.

A tub-to-shower conversion – if you don’t really use your bath tub anyway, it’s worth considering, I think!