One of the design challenges in a bathroom renovation situation is tackling the design challenge of making elements of different shapes and sizes (shower, toilet, vanity, etc) look like they are a family. Accomplished well, a bathroom achieves an integrated look and feel – the ultimate goal of a bathroom renovator! Of all the elements, showers can be one of the more challenging to make ‘at home’ in a bathroom because of the oppositional nature of their tall, vertical structure to other low-set elements in the room.
One sure-fire way our team achieves a connection between showers and bathrooms, that have used with success on a number of our Gold Coast renovations, is to build the shower into the room.
Managing Your Bathroom Renovation Budget
Any bathroom renovation is a careful balance between style and budget. Finding the right balance is the key to a successful renovation. Accordingly, a built-in shower may not be for everyone – it’s going to cost more than a prefabricated shower. But it will solve the design challenge of integrating your shower into your bathroom design, along with a number of other advantages explained below.
Types of Built-In Showers
Building a shower into the bathroom can be done to different degrees and effects.
A shower might be completely screenless (a ‘wet’ shower) in a bathroom designed to accommodate it. Alternatively, it may be built into a partial or complete recess, in the shape and size you need to achieve your ideal bathroom.
From these distinctions follow a wide range of possibilities in style and function, since all aspects of built-in showers can be fully customised to suit the needs of your bathroom.
From the design point of view, the advantage of a built-in approach is that the shower is integrated into the room, rather than added in as a separate element and made to fit as best as possible.
Alternatives to Built-In Showers
The alternative option to a built-in shower is a prefabricated shower. They are purchased as a ready-to-go unit from a plumbing provider and installed by our team. We can help guide you to the right type of choice to suit your project, and then install them in our project. You can achieve a great result with a prefabricated shower. However, a built-in shower has the capability to take your bathroom to the next level.
Built-In Advantages
The principal advantage of a built-in shower is integration. Because the shower is being built as part of the room, choices about the shower can reflect and inform choices in the rest of the room, and vice-versa.
For example:
- The tiling in your built-in shower can create a relationship with the rest of the room.
- A built-in shower can also include a tiled niche for storage of items such as shampoo and soap.
- Built-in showers can use shapes to compliment the flow of the room. They don’t have to be square (a common prefabricated shower shape).
Built-In Showers with Armrock Constructions
In addition to helping your shower to integrate with your bathroom, there are other advantages to having a built-in shower. It can be designed for an optimal fit in dimension, functionality, shape and style. A quality built-in shower will enhance the resale value of your home and enjoyment of the bathroom for many years to come.
