Imagine a spa-like oasis with an open shower, spacious layout, luxurious finishes, and a contemporary design. The relaxing bathroom of your dreams is possible with a wet room: a flat, open, waterproof room with floor-to-ceiling tile, no steps and a shower with no threshold. The Hammer Design Build Remodel team can help bring your renovation vision to reality, but before you decide if a wet room is right for your home, read below to learn more about the differences between traditional bathrooms and wet rooms, the benefits of designing a wet room, and things to consider before moving forward.
What Makes Up a Wet Room?
A wet room combines your bathtub and shower into one space in your master bathroom, unlike in traditional bathrooms where you have a separate place for your bathtub and a separate place for your shower. Wet rooms are flat and open with no thresholds or entryways. The room can be designed to be entirely waterproof with tile from floor to ceiling and a floor drain. Bathrooms with or without wet rooms are excellent choices, but in this post, we will focus on the benefits of a wet room, as well as things to consider moving forward.
The Benefits of Wet Rooms
Beyond their growing popularity and luxurious appeal, wet rooms offer numerous amazing benefits including:
1. Design options and flexibility
If you look up “wet room”, you are bound to find an array of styles and layouts — some have monochromatic color schemes, others are modern, or rustic, etc. Like traditional bathrooms, the design possibilities are endless, and due to the open, spacious nature of the wet room, nearly any theme or style you can imagine is possible. Additionally, the floor-to-ceiling tile contributes to a high-end and cohesive design.
2. Easier to clean and maintain
Since wet rooms are entirely flat, water-friendly, and don’t have a separate area for showering, they tend to be easier to clean. Additionally, many wet rooms have wall-hung appliances and some can be designed without glass screens, which can be more difficult to clean. Another bonus of the flexible design is that you can customize your wet room to fit your needs, including how easy-to-clean you desire your wet room to be.
3. Great for small spaces
One of the best benefits of a wet room is the ability to turn a small bathroom into a large and spacious one. Look at the before and after photos of this Washington DC row home master bathroom that the Hammer team renovated. Though row home bathrooms in Washington DC tend to be smaller and sometimes cramped, wet rooms help to maximize space and give the appearance of a bigger area than it actually is.
4. Accessibility
Wet rooms are accommodating for every member of your family, no matter their age or mobility issues. The beauty of eliminating all steps and thresholds, and instead creating an entirely flat room, is that it provides accessibility so anyone in your family can move freely throughout the bathroom. Also, wet rooms can be installed on any floor of the home, so if anyone in your family is restricted to one level of the house, a wet room may be advantageous for them, as they won’t have to worry about any steps or divides. Though a wet room floored completely with tile may appear dangerous and slippery, if properly designed and cleaned, the tile installed has excellent grip and is extremely safe.
5. Waterproof
A completely waterproof bathroom means that there is no issue if water splashes out of the shower or bathtub, since it all is designed to collect in the floor drain. The water-friendly design also prevents water leakage from the shower area, preventing both wall and floor damage. They can also be quite cost effective, since if well taken care of, a wet room could last a lifetime.
Things to Consider Before Investing in a Wet Room
Though there are many benefits to installing a wet room, there are, of course, things you must consider before moving forward.
1. Storing items that you don’t want to get wet
Wet rooms are built so that the majority of the room is safe to get wet, but there are still some things you will prefer to remain dry. For example, towels, robes, and toilet paper. It is worth considering a private water closet, like the one the Hammer Design Build Remodel team installed in one of our recent whole home renovations. Keeping the toilet separate from the rest of the wet room, not only contributes to the luxurious look of the open shower space, but keeps your items safe and dry.
2. Expert design and plumbing are necessary
Wet rooms aren’t a renovation you should opt to complete yourself. To ensure your wet room is safe, cost effective, and built to last, an expert design build team is crucial. Not only are both the lighting and plumbing intricate, but wet rooms require completely waterproof tiled floors and walls, and the design necessitates a great deal of knowledge about materials. Some materials won’t be suitable for moisture, and it is important that the selection of materials and finishes considers this problem. If you are interested in renovating your bathroom to include a wet room, contact Hammer Design Build Remodel to guarantee your wet room meets all requirements and fulfils your wishes.
Why Install a Wet Room?
- If you want to maximize small bathroom space: The open layout of a wet room is a great choice for those looking to make their small row home bathroom appear larger.
- If you want a bathroom that is incredibly convenient: Wet rooms are easier to clean and maintain, and they are easier for those with mobility issues to access.
- If you want a spa-like bathroom that is both contemporary and luxurious: Wet rooms are gaining popularity and are becoming a staple in luxury home design. They not only appear clean and classy, but they also allow for design flexibility, meaning you can turn your bathroom into the oasis you have always wanted it to be.
If you are feeling inspired to turn your traditional bathroom into a wet room, click here to request a consultation with the Hammer Design Build Remodel team.