When designing a new bathroom, selecting a new bathroom suite or contemplating a full-scale renovation from top to bottom, there’s an especially common mistake that many people make.
Much like having eyes bigger than your belly when opting for the 20 chicken nugget “share“ box at McDonald’s, it can be all too tempting to pick out the perfect fixtures and fittings before properly measuring up.
After all, it’s really the most fun part of the upgrade process. And certainly more so than gauging your exact bathroom size, which can prove a touch daunting for some.
But fools rush in, and slow and steady wins the race. So we’re on hand to explain some key tips to accurately measure up your bathroom space…
Laying the foundations for your dream bathroom
Prior to properly planning out your dream bathroom, you should first take into account the general shape of the room – this will be crucial with regards to what type of suite you can fit.
You’ll have to consider if the room incorporates a simple or awkward shape, and whether or not the height of the ceiling fluctuates in different sections. If it does, you’ll need to measure the ‘areas of anomaly’ separately from the others.
The most striking example of this kind will be in bathrooms that feature alcoves of a significant size.
If part of your bathroom suite masterplan involves fitting a component, or at least some of it, in the gap, you’ll need to measure the alcove down to the inch to avoid any installation problems. And then dance if you wanna dance…
Recording measurements for your bathroom suite
It’s certainly advisable to sketch out an outline of your complete bathroom area before starting to record measurements.
In doing so, you provide yourself with a reference point for each and every part of the room – extremely useful if you run into any complications, or even if you’re just second-guessing yourself.
You don’t need to be any kind of Picasso, a basic drawing is fine. Just be sure to include doors and windows in the picture – and make a note of whether they swing outward or inward.
Judging from countless customer feedback, and in particular, a blue-air filled personal experience, that last point is more important than you might imagine!
There’s no real way to avoid a full-scale bathroom renovation setting you back a significant chunk of cash, so it goes without saying you’ll want perfect results.
And in order to achieve the most accurate measurements possible before sourcing the perfect shower bath or walk in shower, vanity unit, freestanding baths or any other fixture, you should measure in millimetres.
At this point, you can get to work with your trusty tape measure, extending it across the length of all bathroom walls, and recording the size of each as you move along.
Then, repeat the process, this time marking the distance between the floor and the ceiling. Don’t forget to take alternate measurements where required, if the ceiling is at a different height in any part of the bathroom.
If you prefer, you can enlist professional help, or learn the ropes around some more advanced software to draw up 3D bathroom views, as opposed to a more simplistic floor plan such as this before making your dream bathroom vision a reality.
Of course, in any case, the extra expense of such a service will need to be factored in.
Plotting your bathroom layout
After you’ve recorded all the measurements you need, you can start to plot your bathroom layout, accounting for any components you’ll prospectively add to the space.
To begin with, you should plan around the biggest and bulkiest fixtures and fittings, like the toilet and basin, shower enclosure or freestanding baths.
You’ll be able to check the dimensions of your chosen products via the product description or specifications as listed on the website, if shopping online. If you are shopping physically in store, you’ll likely find a spec table with the relevant information as well.
For the likes of lengthy shower enclosures or long vertical vanity units, it is imperative you note down accurate floor-to-ceiling measurements right down to the millimetre to prevent any trouble in terms of installation and beyond.
In an ideal world, your toilet and sink will be positioned nearby to each other, supported by the same wall.
Pay close attention to the location of the doors and windows, ensuring that all fixtures and fittings have a comfortable amount of room to stop the space seeming or feeling constricted.
Typically, the likes of shower enclosures will be fitted in a corner of the bathroom, whilst where the bathtub goes will largely depend on which type of design you decide to go for.
Freestanding bathtubs, for instance, can make for a striking bathroom focal point, so are a prime candidate to be centrally positioned, if space allows for it.
If not, and you need to populate a smaller space with a small bathroom suite, fear not. There’s all sorts of different sized bathtubs available in a variety of designs. So it shouldn’t be too difficult a task to source a more diminutive style to fit in an alternative area of the room.
Furthermore, there’s all sorts of other lesser sized bathroom components designed specifically to enhance a compact bathroom. These include wall hung basins and vanity units, as well as short-projection toilets and much more.
However, you must err on the side of caution if you are considering investing in wall-mounted components. The weight of such products can often be deceptive, so make sure you know exactly what strain they will cause on surroundings, and vitally, whether your walls are of sufficient strength to support them.
The simple keys for measuring for a bathroom suite
So in reality, it’s hardly cloak and daggers stuff – that’s really all there is to it.
The simple keys to measuring for a bathroom suite involve measuring up at least a couple of times, just to be certain your calculations are correct, before investing in any new bathroom fittings or fixtures. Oh, and applying some good old common sense.
Hopefully, this article has provided the perfect foundations for the start of your bathroom renovation journey, and you can now set about trawling through bathroom suite buying guides to identify the perfect items to upgrade your space.
If you would like any further help or information surrounding bathroom suites though, or have any other bathroom thoughts or queries, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us. You can leave any ideas in the comments section below, or contact us via Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
John has a background in sports journalism, and lists content writing amongst his primary passions. He provides expert bathroom trends commentary and analysis, as well as offering meticulously researched answers to the most frequently asked bathroom posers.
