Susan Ozipko of the Canadian design firm sO Interiors installed two Geberit concealed prewall systems with a back-to-back vertical drain connector when renovating two residential bathrooms, increasing usable space and maintaining the existing footprints.
The Challenge
“The two bathrooms in the mid-century style home in Kanata, Ontario needed renovation. There was no space to increase the footprint of the bathrooms, so maximizing their attributes was an absolute necessity,” Ozipko says. “A natural progression of the design was to lift the toilets and vanities off the floor, increasing the visual footprint of the spaces.”
The Kanata homeowners wanted more bathroom and storage space in their two bathrooms, one a small ensuite and the other a powder room, while maintaining existing footprints and meeting budget parameters. The value of homes in Kanata, many in the vicinity of hi-tech companies, can reach a half-million dollars. City lots are small, and restrictions are in place that prevent the exterior expansion of homes and limit water usage.
The small rectangular-shaped ensuite was limited in space, merely 6 ft. x 8 ft., typical of homes built in Kanata during the 1950s. A shower took up one-third of the bathroom, leaving little space for the door, sink, and toilet. The half-bath, 8 ft. x 4 ft., was long and narrow, with the entrance door nearly as wide as the room and the toilet at the far end.