Basic bathroom planning - measurements?

18 years ago

My husband and I are remodeling the main bathroom in our house. We're not happy with the ideas which our architect has proposed and want to map out some different layouts for the fixtures. But we're clueless on the basics, like the standard measurements for a toilet, bathtub, shower and double-sink vanity...and how much clearance you need for a door...and the minimum space you allow between, say, the toilet and the sink so it's not too cramped.

Is there a bathroom FAQ on this site somewhere, or does anyone know a good basic bathroom planning site with this info? I did a GW search in this forum and couldn't find anything.

Tks in advance!

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Comments (4)

lazypup
18 years ago
The clearances for a bathtub are determined by the physical size of the tub you select.

Under the International Residential Code (IRC) a shower stall is required to have a minimum rough pan size of 32" x 32" and under the UPC it is required to be 34" x 34"

A shower is required to have a 30" diameter area in the shower stall with vertical clearance of 72" above the elevation of the finished drain. (The shower control knobs or an handrail may project into the 30" clearance.

When constructing a shower the shower head MAY NOT point towards the door.

When constructing a corner shower with an angled door on the front corner, the UPC requires the pan to be 39-1/2" on each wall and the door must have a minimum 22" width.

Under both the IRC and UPC a toilet or bidet is required to have a side to side clearance of 15" from the centerline of the bowl to any wall, fixture or appurtenance on either side.

The IRC requires a toilet to have a frontal clearance of 21" from the front edge of the bowl to any adjacent wall, fixture or appurtenance. The UPC requires a 24" frontal clearance.

The IRC requires a lavatory to have a 21" frontal clearance measured from the front edge of freestanding bowl or from the front edge of that lavatory cabinet. The UPC has no specific clearance for a lavatory bowl, however you must check your local codes.

Door swing clearances would be dictated by the size of the door. Most code require an interior door to be a minimum of 30" wide.

This should give you the basics based upon the national model codes but before you finalize your plan be sure to check with your local inspection authority to see if your local codes may be different.
zeebee
Original Author
18 years ago
EXACTLY what I needed - thanks so much!
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flseadog
18 years ago
Are there any requirements for distance from center of sink to the side wall? In other words how much elbow room is required? We were all set to order bathroom vanities for the new house and DH looked at the sink placement and realized that "his sink" is centered at 15" from a side wall. He measured from the center of his chest out to the end of his elbow and says he feels he'd be more comfortable with 19" or more. This is seriously funny since "his sink" of more than 20 years was probably closer to 10" from the side wall. But we still have time to reconfigure before the order goes in and I think he should be happy. I know this falls into the area of personal preference but we worked hard to get this plan perfect and I hate to make last minute changes over something that might be trivial in the long run.

Any thoughts?
sweeby
18 years ago
Nice summary Lazypup -- But I'm pretty sure a bathroom door can be 24" wide. (At least here it can.)