Guest Suite

The laundry list of things that needed to be changed in this guestroom en-suite bathroom was extensive. The largest issue and catalyst for the renovation was that the tub/shower was no longer usable. Water was getting behind the tile and finding its way into the adjoining closet and bedroom. 

As with the door  size issue, we discovered that someone injured or disabled was not easily able to navigate the current setup. The need for a bathtub was reassessed and resulted in the decision to go with just a walk in shower. In order to accommodate less mobile individuals, the shower was to be widened to 40" and a minimum rise threshold would be attempted. A permanent shower seat (ADA compliant) along with provisions for grab bars (if needed) was also incorporated into the plan.

The entrance into the bathroom was also problematic.  The door opened into the bathroom which created issues getting past it unless it was closed. It was also too narrow which made wheel chair access difficult, as we discovered.

What laundry list would be complete for this house without the usual electrical shortcomings being on it. There was only one outlet and the one light fixture failed to keep things bright and cheery.  

Winter mornings found the barely awake user coming suddenly awake with the shock of cold tiles beneath their feet. The bathroom was located over the unheated garage so something needed to be done to help improve this situation.

This room had a number of issues I wanted to address with this renovation. At the top of that list was a bouncy floor that didn't inspire a lot of confidence that it was structurally up to the job.

As this was a guest room, I felt that guests should be able to have private conversations (or anything else) without worry of anyone unintentionally overhearing them. Insulating for sound also became a theme in this project.

The room was entered from the main upstairs hall but had a hall within the room as well with the typical builder style closet off of it. After opening the two closet doors within the unlit hallway, you'd find the clever rod and shelf solution to all closet organizing challenges. Add into the mix the inaccessible side areas, one could easily see the need for a better solution. The IKEA closet that will be  installed into the remade space of the old closet I believe will be a vast improvement over what the builders limited imagination and budget came up with.

The room was "temperature challenged" due to its being over the garage, so attempting to fix that issue was also high on the to-do list. Ducting changes, insulation improvements and a vapour barrier do-over were some of the ways I tried to improve the room's temperature issues.

The builder only met code requirements when it came to placing outlets on the walls. Functionally, no thought was given to how the room might be laid out. Between being poorly spaced and not having enough outlets in the room, an electrical upgrade also made it onto the list.