How to design a bathroom: the complete guide
How to design a bathroom? Here is a complete guide with bathroom floor plans, layouts, reference standards and an example produced with an architectural BIM design software
Do you need to design a bathroom? Looking for diagrams, design tips, examples to follow?
In this focus, I will explain how to properly design a bathroom, providing you with examples of different types of bathrooms, technical drawings, renderings and a complete 3D project made with a professional software for engineers and architects.
We will also share some other free downloadable 3D models that you can use as inspiration for your own projects. To open and edit the 3D models, or to create new projects, you can use the same BIM architectural design software that I used.
To open this file and open and create many other 3D models, you can use the same architectural BIM design software used to produce the above mentioned file.
bathroom render produced with Edificius
This is a render of a bathroom designed using Edificius. Experience for yourself how to obtain similar photorealistic images in an easy and quick manner.
Download the project 3D BIM model (.edf file)
Download Edificius, the architectural BIM design software
Different bathroom plan layouts
Bathroom render created with Edificius
The main toilet of a house needs to be sized and organised in order to include the following sanitary elements:
- Water closet
- Bidet
- Washbasin
- Bathtub or shower-bath.
In some cases, it may also be useful to provide the necessary electric and plumbing connections for installing a washing machine if not placed somewhere else.
A half-bathroom can be sized to include only some of the fittings listed above.
The drawings below show some of the main fittings and how they can be arranged in a bathroom taking into account installation spaces and accessibility.
According to the spaces available, we can arrange our components in different ways, such as:
Bathrooms with fittings arranged on one side
Layout of bathrooms with fittings arranged on one side produced with Edificius
Corner bathrooms
Corner bathroom layout produced with Edificius
Bathrooms with fittings arranged on opposite sides
Bathrooms with fittings arranged on opposite sides produced with Edificius
Windowless bathrooms with fittings arranged on opposite side produced with Edificius
Download the 3D BIM (.edf file) of the bathroom design
Click here to download Edificius, the architectural BIM design software
How to design a bathroom
Several aspects need to be considered when designing a bathroom. When your layout and fittings are a good match for your family’s needs, you also need to think of creating a functional space that makes your morning rush that much easier.
bathroom floor plan produced with Edificius
Windows
As opposed to all the other rooms in a house, it is not necessary to have a window in a bathroom but an opening to the outside for the air exchange or a vacuum system is required.
Ceiling heights and tiling
Houses with high ceilings can often be used for creating extra storage spaces by means of false ceilings or suspended decks.
What about vertical tiling. Which heights should we reach?
Although there are no restrictions in exceeding 2 metres in height or more, these cladded walls work as a protective shield from little splashes of water, so they tend to be useful inside the shower or bath area or behind the washbasin.
More specifically:
- The shower walls need to be coated up to 2 mt
- For the washbasin area 1,20 – 1,40 mt should be sufficient
Top view render produced with Edificius
Lighting
Lighting a bathroom is always an important aspect. First of all, natural light must be designed where possible. Inserting windows or balcony windows takes the bathroom design to a whole different level.
When designing a bathroom, you should keep two types of lighting techniques in mind: scattered light and point light (washbasin and mirror area).
Scattered lighting is softer and with right intensity, can provide a sense of relax. On the other hand, point lights must be well organized in order to avoid creating shaded areas that can be uncomfortable for our eye-sight.
Wiring
The minimum standard requires at least 2 power outlets: one near the mirror and another one near the washing-machine if present.
Floor
Choosing the bathroom flooring is far different from choosing flooring flooring in other parts of the house. Water is prevalent in bathrooms and it will quickly ruin the wrong flooring so a non-slip floor should be installed avoiding smooth surfaces and glossy paints.
bathroom cross-section produced with Edificius
Electrical safety
When water and electricity mix, the result can be deadly. Bathrooms present high risks of electric shock compared to all the other rooms in a house. This is why following wiring and building regulations, together with the use of appropriate circuit-breakers, can often turn out to be life savers when electricity is used in combination with the presence of water.
Fittings installation
Bathroom fittings come in different shapes and configurations. Consulting the manufacturer’s technical data sheets can be of great help to avoid mistakes and installation errors.
How to design a bathroom | Render produced with Edificius
Click here to download Edificius, the architectural BIM design software
Download the 3D BIM model( .edf file)
