Bathroom types
Bath to shower conversions: what changes underneath
The short answer
Swapping a bath for a shower is rarely a like-for-like exchange. The waste position, the wall build-up behind the old bath and the floor under it all get exposed.
Common questions
Is it a quick job?
Assume it is a small bathroom refit rather than a swap. Once the bath is out, tiling, flooring and often the waste all need redoing.
Will removing the only bath affect resale?
In a family house with one bathroom it can. If there is a second bathroom with a bath, most buyers are relaxed about it.
What we look at first
- 1
The bath waste sits lower than a tray waste, so the trap and branch usually need reworking rather than reusing.
- 2
Walls behind a bath panel are often unfinished or patched; a shower needs a flat, sound, tanked substrate across the full height.
- 3
Removing the bath frequently reveals a soft floor section by the old trap, worth pricing as a possibility before starting.
Working out what is realistic in your space?
Room dimensions, the position of the window and where the waste leaves the building decide most of it. Send those and we can be specific.