Laundry Room Renovation

The idea behind this renovation was to move the laundry room from the customers basement to an under used bedroom on their main floor. For this project we worked with the homeowner and cabinet supplier to come up with a design that would not only create an efficient and functional space but also give the home more storage.

We were able to include a couple nice features in this room. We installed a mosaic tile backsplash, quartz countertop, LED under cabinet lighting and concealed Washer/Dryer controls. The classic black and white colour scheme of the cabinets, tiled backsplash and cabinet handles have a clean classic look and are easy to maintain. This tile backsplash design gives the room a fun overall look.

For the countertops we used a left over quartz piece found at our countertop supplier. The tiled backsplash uses the classic shape of a subway tile, however in a smaller size and black colour with contrasting white grout. We also incorporated a painted access panel that hid the laundry hook up to keep the tile backsplash looking clean and sharp.

Moving the laundry room for this customer from the basement to the main floor helps make the simple task of doing the laundry safe and efficient. This improved their day to day lives and likely will enable them to stay in their home longer.

Framing completed for Laundry room mechanicals

Drywall completed

Completed Laundry room

Accessible design that isn’t institutional

When people think of accessible or universal design, usually the first thing that comes to mind is a commercial space that is cold and uninviting.  Today we are able to package stylish products with accessible design. This allows people to design these features into their new home or renovation long before they may even need these elements. When this is done correctly your home will look great and also be comfortable and safe for family members of any age or ability to use.

Comfort height toilets

Toilets are at the top of our list because they are the easiest part of the bathroom to tackle and provides the quickest return for just about any one. As the name suggests, these toilets are just more comfortable than lower height models.  Anyone that has ever had sore legs or a bum knee will also agree that the higher seat of these products allows the user to exert less effort to use. A bonus feature is that new comfort height toilets also use less water than older toilets, providing another benefit by saving money.

BARRIER-FREE CURBLESS SHOWERS

 Today’s bathrooms are ballooning in size. The average bathroom in a Calgary 1960’s house was 40 square feet (this is your typical tub, toilet, vanity set-up). The average master bathroom today according to Hunker.com is 160 square feet and average. This extra room allows more possibilities to integrate universal design into your renovation or new build. One item that definitely ups the wow factor for your bathroom is a barrier-free or curbless shower. They look great, are highly functional and if done correctly will provide future aging-in-place possibilities.

DUAL PURPOSE BATHROOM ACCESSORIES

Bathroom accessories used to be flimsy things that barely could hold a wet towel without falling off the wall. Now, with proper planning these products can improve the function and safety of your bathroom without sacrificing style. This includes towel bars, corner shelves and curtain rods that are able to function in the traditional sense, but also be used to support up to 300lbs of weight when required to. These products are available from most supply companies and some box stores. They do need to be planned with proper backing installed for them to function properly.

These are only a few options for someone looking to integrate universal or accessible design into their bathroom renovation.  If you have other questions regarding these features in your project feel free to contact us for more information.

Barrier-free showers

New products allow us to build a barrier-free shower easier than ever before. Wedi has introduced the Wedi Fundo Ligno shower base. Schluter has introduced their KERDI-LINE linear drain systems which ties into their existing product line.

The Fundo Ligno shower base has been designed for wood frame construction. This shower base allows for barrier-free showers to be constructed in most bathrooms easily and without time consuming levelling or major alteration of the structure. Its thin profile of 20 mm (just over 3/4″) easily matches up with existing subfloor in most homes. As well, in concrete structures, the thin 3/4″ profile requires less build up than the usual go-to foam shower base or a traditional dry pack shower base. This allows us to create shorter ramps, allowing for more flexibility in design.

Completing an install with Wedi’s shower kits is also extremely fast. Typically the prep work takes only a few hours and the tiling can begin almost immediately after.

Schluter’s KERDI-LINE system, while not being as simple to create barrier-free showers as the Wedi shower base, does allow for more design flexibility. These elegant, low-profile drains are available in sizes from 20″-72″ in 4″ increments with either a centre or offset drain outlet location. This drain’s low profile and the flexibility in sizing and drain location allows for these drains to be placed in locations that allow for minimum transition from other areas outside the shower - keeping barriers at a minimum.

Tile is perfectly suited to creating these spaces, whether it be a residential or commercial wet room or bathroom.  Tile’s durability and endless design capabilities combined with Schluter and Wedi’s waterproofing reliability and ease of install make these installs come together perfectly and look amazing. This final product also has the benefit of not needing to look “accessible”.  Which if resale is important is something to keep in mind.

Require a barrier-free shower? We would be happy to help you on your next project. As well, if you have limited mobility and are low-income we work with RAD Renovations/RAMP to complete these type of projects. For more information regarding these programs follow the links below:

Accessible Housing RAD Renovations

Residential Access Modification Program Alberta