Bathroom Design
By: Elisa Haryonugroho
Bathroom nowadays is not just a place for taking a bath but also for reading papers or magazines while sitting, body treatment and dressing up. The function of a bathroom which was always wet now has a dry area to accommodate the above function. With growing demands of the owner due to an increase in financial status, there are several aspects to be considered in planning an adequate bath room.
Several aspects in planning a bathroom are as follows:
Age and specific activities of user. Children and elderly have different requirements. Children’s bathroom should be equipped with hot water. Bath tub surface of non slip material, not of enamel or powder coating. Position of tap and shower should be adjusted to children’ reach. A wide table is needed while giving bath to a baby. Bathroom floor for the elderly should be level or to provide small ramp for wheel chair access or to avoid any slip due to different floor height. Hand rail should be provided
Position and dimension. Position of the room should be close to the outdoor for good ventilation. Natural day light is also important in planning a good bathroom. If not possible, an opening / void is to be planned to ensure both aspects. Room dimension can be adjusted to the available site and different activities to be accommodated. A house may be built on a limited space with plenty of occupants. So can a bathroom design to accommodate several activities at the same time by using partitions for example. In urban buildings, dimension of a bathroom is a crucial matter. Designing a compact bathroom with good facilities need a detailed planning.
At the building material shops. Bathroom decoration should be in accordance to design theme so as to enhance the theme
Style. The style is in contexts to the overall style of the house. Types of wash basin, taps etc should be carefully chosen. Materials and colour affect the style of the room. Tropical style for example may use natural colour for wall or floor tiles or using wood.
Planning for adequate utility & drainage. Several piping system must conform to technical standards. Waste water and sewage pipe should be equipped with vent pipe for reverse air flow. Position of the vent pipe should be higher than pipe height and connected to open air. Waste water pipe more than 12 m long or with bends should be provided with manhole for ease of repair if clogging occurs. In high rise building, utility pipes are placed in a vertical shaft or outside the wall for easy maintenance. Clean water pipe to bathroom taps should be equipped with stop valve
During and after use. High humidity can only be reduced by circulating air, passive or active like exhaust fan. Continuous humidity will ruin furniture around the bathroom or cause mold on surface or parts of the bathroom
Structures to be noted are the wall. Especially adjacent to the inner room. All inner wall must be waterproofed by applying 1PC : 3 sand on the wall surface or waterproofing liquid
With limited clean water resources, the use of bath tub is irrelevant. By using shower can save up to 20% - 30% clean water. If using shower a water tower should be constructed to reduce excess electricity. Height of the tower should be in accordance to overall pipe length, amount of taps and diameters of pipes used. If you are having doubts is deciding crucial aspects such as structure and utility system, ask the experts.
