All work completed by ukbathroomguru.com

We recently added an en suite to a house in Roundhay, Leeds.

The plan

potential en suite location

We intended to add an en suite into the corner of this customers master bedroom.

en suite plan
We planned to build a new stud wall with a chamfered corner to define the space, which would contain a toilet & basin.

(This chamfered corner would make the en suite look less imposing and box like when viewed from the bedroom).

rear of en suite

However, we also intended to make use of the space beyond the bedroom wall (as a shower enclosure) by knocking through into an adjacent bedrooms’ cupboard.

All of this required careful planning and we advised the customer of our plans during our free site survey, during which time we measured up the room and looked at the current plumbing & drainage facilities which would affect the layout / positioning of the new en suite.

We also looked at the boiler / hot water system and fuse box to make sure everything would work correctly when installed and that all work would comply with building regulations.

We drew up and submitted plans to building control on the customers behalf so they could relax, knowing that they would have all necessary certification should they ever come to sell their house.

The work

Once the plans were agreed, tiles and suite items were chosen and a start date was set, work could begin….

en suite studwork

Here you can see how we knocked through into the bedroom beyond by removing some of the brick wall.

You can also see the skeleton structure of the new walls of the en suite.

lowered ceiling in shower

You can see how we had to drop the ceiling height (to the laser line) in the shower enclosure slightly due to the stairs coming up over this space, though this wasn’t too crucial as the ceiling height was above average in the rest of the room.

en suite pipework

We had to install pipework under the floor to take hot & cold water to the en suite, as well as drainage pipework to take water away from the shower, basin & toilet.

Again, this had to be carefully planned at the outset as this en suite was not in an easy position to run pipework, fan ducts and cables etc.

PS Please see here for another awkwardly positioned en suite location.

drainage before & after

We made all new drainage connections outside whilst tidying up the rest of the drainage installation.

boarded out en suite

Walls were insulated and boarded ready for plastering once all cables and pipework was installed.

tiny en suite

Walls were plastered and painted and 2nd fix joinery was carried out (fitting doors, skirting, architrave etc).

We matched in the paint to the rest of the customers bedroom and sourced a similar style door and door furniture.

We also relocated and upgraded the radiator on the bedroom wall to suit the new layout.

alcove storage

To make use of the dead space between the bedroom chimney breast and the en suite, we chose to add some custom built storage.

This would contain shelving and would also hide the (unsightly but necessary) soil vent pipe.

petite en suite

This is the view when entering the en suite.

The door opens out into the bedroom to maximise internal space.

basin vanity unit with large mirror

The design features a small yet functional basin vanity unit with a large custom cut mirror above it.

This, combined with three LED spotlights serves to make this small en suite nice and bright, despite not having a source of natural light.

boxing in pipework

The cabinet under the basin would provide some storage for bits and bobs, but this was limited by the necessary pipework required for the drainage.

We did the best we could to hide the pipework, whilst keeping it accessible for future service.

en suite toilet

Opposite the basin was a close coupled toilet.

We also added an electric towel radiator on the wall, operated by a simple timer.

A short projection toilet was chosen to suit the small footprint of the room and the radiator was sited a bit higher than usual to ensure that users did not burn their knees on it when sat on the loo!

Sourcing (and then positioning) suite items such as toilets and basins in small en suites like this is a very important task, as it can make the difference between a room that works and one that doesn’t.

You can see that the floor has been tiled and up-stands have been fitted rather than skirting boards.

power shower

A power shower was fitted to boost the customers water pressure.

A bifold door was fitted that opens into the shower enclosure, and we sourced this from our local bathroom supplier.

You can see that the walls have been tiled with a large wall tile in a brick bond pattern.

These ceramic tiles mimic the natural beauty of travertine very well without all the upkeep hassles.

rear of shower

Here you can see the back of the shower enclosure in the adjacent bedroom cupboard.

adding an en suite roundhay

Here’s the final before & after picture, with the original carpet rolled back & refitted.

PS Adding an en suite needn’t take up masses of space:

This en suite was just 150 x 70cm internally (plus the shower enclosure).

Timescale

A job like this would normally take up to 2 weeks for me and my team, and in this instance there was a lot more work to do than normal in getting pipework, cabling and ducting to where it needed to be!

Cost

A job like this is likely to cost £5-6K including:

  • Planning / designing the room
  • ALL of the work from start to finish (see below)
  • Project management as standard
  • Waste disposal
  • All necessary completion certificates
  • Building control fees & liaising with building control officers

How we helped this customer (and could maybe help you)

Even when installing a small en suite such as this, many trades(men) are required:

  • Labourers / builders to knock down internal walls & support as necessary
  • Plumber to fit pipework for the new en suite and position / fit suite items as required
  • Tiler to prepare & tile the walls & floor
  • Carpet fitter to refit the bedroom carpet up to the new en suite
  • Plasterer to prepare & skim the walls & ceiling ready to be painted
  • Painter to paint the newly skimmed ceiling with anti mould bathroom paint
  • Joiner to build the stud-work, hang the door, build the cupboard, fit the skirting & architrave etc
  • Electrician to fit the ceiling spotlights, an extractor fan & an electric radiator.

That’s 8 separate trades for one tiny en suite! (though there is always some crossover between the trades)

More importantly though, these trades all need someone (the lynchpin) in charge to plan & pull the whole project together.

Thats exactly what we do – project managed bathroom & en suite installations from start to finish.

Thanks for reading, ask me any questions you may have…..

Chris

What We Do

We install quality bathrooms, en suites and downstairs WC’s from start to finish, with all the bits in between taken care of.

We provide advice and guidance during a free site survey, and we have a blog with lots of articles that cover frequently asked questions and show you examples of our recent work.

We install bathrooms from start to finish, supplying all the necessary trades and project managing the whole process, so you don’t have to!

We work to detailed, itemised estimates with fixed costs, so you can budget properly without fear of unexpected skyrocketing prices.

Our focus is on doing a proper job for a fair price in a reasonable time – see here for more info or contact me for a quote.