This homeowner contacted Roadrunner because they needed their guest bathroom remodeled to be more accessible to accommodate their elderly mother who lives with them.
We took a look at the bathroom and could tell right away what the issues were. The bathroom was a common design that was split into two small rooms; 1 for the vanity area and 1 for the toilet and shower. The purpose of a split bathroom is to offer more functionality for two people using the space on a regular basis. Because only one person uses this bathroom, a better layout was to combine both rooms and make it a one person bathroom.
It’s a struggle for an elderly person to get through the doorway to the toilet and shower area, and once in that small room it was an even bigger struggle to maneuver her walker so she could use the facilities. To solve this problem, we took out the wall between the two rooms and moved the toilet away from the shower, and enlarged the shower to open up the space and make it easier to maneuver.
The vanity had two sinks with very little counter space, and only one sink was needed, so we replaced the two sink vanity and countertop with a one sink layout to free up space for the new design. In addition to the poor sink layout, the vanity cabinet itself did not make it easy to store, access, and keep things organized. We replaced the old vanity with little storage space with a vanity that has drawers to access bathroom tools with ease.
The biggest issue in this guest bathroom was the bathtub. As many already know, a bathtub is the least accessible area for many elderly homeowners. As we age it is more and more difficult to step over and into a bathtub, not to mention the high possibility of slipping. Most of our customers hire us to replace their bathtubs with large showers they can easily step in and out of. Anything we can do to reduce the possibility of injury is very important.
We pulled out the old bathtub and replaced it with a beautiful large walk-in shower. The shower is now large enough to fit a bathing chair to make showering easier. They decided to save money by having Grantex panels installed instead of tile. Not only does this expand a bathroom remodeling budget, it is a low-maintenance and long-lasting surface for showers.
Another area where we were able to save the homeowner money, was the flooring. They had tile leftover from their recent flooring upgrade and we used extra tile they kept to repair the bathroom floor and make it look seamless.
This project is a perfect example of our work in creating a more accessible bathroom. As our older generations live longer, it’s important to take these accommodations into consideration when remodeling your bathroom. If you’re looking to remodel your bathroom to make it accessible for members of your household, please give us a call and we will discuss your options. We offer free consultations and look forward to hearing about your upcoming remodeling project!
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