This article shows how ukbathroomguru added an en-suite to an existing bedroom in Shadwell, Leeds.

en-suite-leeds

Introduction

This is a case study which shows how we can add an en suite to your bedroom in about 2 weeks for around £7K (in this instance) with everything taken care of from start to finish:

  1. Free site survey to assess feasibility of plans
  2. Free itemised, written quotation & plans for submission to the council as required
  3. Installing the en suite, which consisted of the following trades:
    • Building work – taking down solid walls & relocating the bedroom door to suit the new layout
    • Joinery – for building new stud walls, hanging doors & fitting skirting / architrave etc
    • Plastering
    • Painting
    • Plumbing
    • Wall & floor tiling
    • Roofing – for fitting the sun tube
    • Electrics (lighting, electric towel radiator & extractor fan in this example)
    • PLUS – liaising with building control throughout the process to ensure everything gets signed off

Essentially, everything you need from start to finish, all starting with a free site survey.

Permission

building notice

To add an en suite you shouldn’t need to apply for planning permission but you should apply for building regulations approval from the local council. This will ensure that any new electrical wiring, windows, ventilation or drainage all comply with building regulations (though many electricians self certify their work).

At the end of the work you will be issued with a completion certificate which you may need when you come to sell your house.

Feasibility

The existing plumbing & the space available will be the main factors in determining whether you can have an en-suite, but there are other factors such as lighting and ventilation that should also be considered.

Plumbing factors:

1. Running hot & cold supply pipework to the shower, toilet & basin etc
In this example, hot and cold pipes had to be run from the hall:

picking-up-hot-cold-pipework-for-a-new-en-suite

2. Running waste water away from the toilet, shower, basin etc to the drains outside the house.
This is often THE biggest stumbling block as waste water needs to run downhill (in a fairly straight line) to the nearest soil stack which is normally on the outside of the house.

Pipe runs need to be planned WAY in advance of commencing the work, and is something we can advise you on during our free site survey.

planning-drainage-runs

In this instance, the existing external drainage pipework was located on the opposite side of the house which made the job slightly tricky…

external-cast-iron-soil-pipe-to-be-replaced

We had to replace the cast iron soil vent pipe to make all the necessary new connections……

new-en-suite-drainage

……and then run the new drainage pipe underneith the floorboards below the house bathroom & hallway to the new en suite:

running-waste-pipework-under-floor-to-a-remote-en-suite

3. PS As we elected to install an electric radiator there was no need to run / extend central heating pipework.

Space factors:

charlie-plan

You can only add an en-suite if you have space, and this example is approximately 1m x 2.6m, which is plenty – especially as the door open outwards. (A pocket door that slides into the wall is an alternative when space is limited but is more costly to install).

The minimum space required for an en suite consisting of a shower enclosure, basin and toilet is approximately 0.8m x 1.8m. Please see here for a small en suite example.

In this plan we chose to add a storage cupboard for linen:

storage-cupboard

……and also a high level storage area in the en suite itself over the toilet.

en-suite-high-level-storage

Light factors:
As en suites often do not have an existing window, lighting needs to be considered at the outset to ensure the room does not feel small & dingy. In this example, we chose to add a Velux sun tube.

suntube-in-en-suite

Details of the process can be see at the end of this article.

A timed extractor fan was fitted to this en suite (over the shower) to combat any problems that could arise due to excess humidity.

Value

5% is the amount the addition of a well-designed en suite could add to a property according to Nationwide Building Society. This equates to £10,00 on a £200,000 house – significantly more than the cost of installation.

Therefore, adding an en suite could be a worthwhile investment in the long run as well as making your life better during your tenure of the property.

Case study (a few more progress pics)

The space:

space-for-en-suite

The plan:
charlie-plan

We removed the old water tank and blockwork walls prior to relocating the bedroom door:

demolition

We relocated the bedroom doorway:

relocated-bedroom-doorway

We removed the two existing door frames off the hall (1 into a storage cupboard below the water tank, the other into the bedroom) and inserted lintels into the brickwork to support the wall above.

PS One doorway was then boarded over (as the new en suite would subsume the old cupboard) and the bedroom door was moved across to suit the new layout.

relocating-the-bedroom-doorway

When finished:

relocated-doorway-for-en-suite

We ran pipework to & from the new en suite:

wc-waste-pipe-for-new-en-suite

We built timber studwork for the en suite, with a new suspended ceiling to ensure a level ceiling.

building-timber-studwork-for-en-suite

We insulated & double boarded the en suite walls with low DB plasterboard (for sound insulation) once all the electrical cabling had been installed. You can see the en suite doorframe (centrally) and the storage cupboard doorframe to the left.

insulating-double-boarding-en-suite-walls

We used an old spare door to ensure the en suite door matched the rest of the doors in the house:

en-suite-with-doors-fitted

Here you can see the storage cupboard behind the en suite coming together with custom made MDF shelves, finished with satin paint to match the doors etc.

storage-cupboard-with-custom-shelves-fitted

We fitted a large, wall to wall non slip shower tray:

shower-tray-installed

Matching the original skirting & architrave was tricky as nowhere sells it anymore so we saved as much as we could….

original-skirting-architrave-to-be-kept-refitted

We skimmed all the new studwork etc:

new-en-suite-plastered

We prepared & tiled the floor with wood effect porcelain tiles:

wood-effect-floor-tiling

We installed the toilet, electric towel radiator & tiled upstands:

en-suite-wc-installation

We painted the en suite externally with emulsion & internally with a specialist anti-mould bathroom paint.

en-suite-painting-2nd-fix-electrics

Above you can also see how light & fan isolating switches, sockets & radiator timers have been fitted, and the custom matched Victorian skirting and architrave is being fitted.

Completing the storage area behind the en suite……

boxed-in-drainage-vent

…..with a neat access hatch to inspect / rod the drainage run should the need arise.

rodding-point-access-hatch-for-en-suite

We fitted a sun tube that would allow natural light into this en suite from the roof above:

suntube-in-en-suite

By making a hole in the roof & in the bathroom ceiling……

sun-tube-hole-in-ceiling

suntube-hole-in-roof

….then essentially linking them together with the sun tube:

suntube-in-loft-for-new-en-suite

natural-daylight-in-a-landlocked-en-suite

Sun tubes can be fitted for between £500-£900 depending on location, and distance from the roof etc.

The Finished En Suite

Shower enclosure & shower

En suite pivot door to shower

En suite mixer shower

raised shower tray with tiled upstand

View from the bedroom

complete en suite addition

WC & Basin

completed wood effect porcelain floor tiling

en suite WC & electric radiator

En suite Leeds

en suite WC & wall hung basin

Storage Area above the Loo

en suite storage

Summary

2 weeks, £7K, project managed en suite installation in Leeds from start to finish with all the bits in between taken care of:

  • No having to find a builder, plumber, then a tiler, a separate electrician and joiner, oh and also a plasterer / painter…..
  • No having to manage & communicate with all these trades to bring your plan to fruition.
  • Ability to pick suite items from a local showroom (for personal choice without overwhelm)

Anything else?

If you have any questions or thoughts about this article or any others, please feel free to contact me or leave a comment.

Chris