Bathroom Redesign: How to Do and Approve It Correctly

When we look at completed designer projects, questions often arise: Is this possible to approve? And most importantly, how? We previously covered kitchen redesigns, and today we focus on the most popular changes in bathroom layouts.

Relocating Door Openings

By relocating the door opening in a bathroom in a Stalin-era apartment, designer Elena Markina managed to create a spacious shower area with a seat that transitions into a bathtub. The toilet with a hygiene shower was hidden behind an existing ventilation pipe. In the foreground is a vanity unit with a wide countertop, behind whose doors a washing machine was placed.

How to Approve?

Often, apartment owners mistakenly believe that relocating a door opening doesn't count as a redesign. However, according to current legislation, approval is required. This requires a project and a technical conclusion from any project organization.

If the wall is load-bearing, the process is more complex. First, a technical survey must be conducted—usually by specialists who designed your building or MoszhilNIIProject. Based on the results, a technical conclusion is issued regarding the possibility of relocating the door opening and redesigning the apartment.

After that, a project is developed that takes into account all recommendations from the technical conclusion, dimensions of your future door opening, and material specifications (metal parts) needed for reinforcement.

Combining the Bathroom and Toilet

To make a bathroom in a panel building more spacious and accommodate storage systems, designers Svetlana and Ivan Melnikovs combined the toilet with the bathroom into one space.

How to Approve?

Approval requires a project and a technical conclusion from any project organization. According to the law, renovation work must be performed by an organization with a valid SRO permit, but you can do it yourself if there is no need to sell the apartment later—otherwise, issues may arise with the Moscow Housing Inspection.

Furniture Layout Plan

What Else to Consider?

If you plan to remove the partition between the bathroom and toilet or move external walls of the bathroom—ensure hydro-isolation of the rough floor. The simplest and fastest method is to use coating materials. The organization performing the renovation must provide concealed works acts.

Expanding the Bathroom by Using the Corridor

In a two-room Khrushchev apartment, designer Evgenia Matveenko expanded the bathroom by using space from the hallway. The result was a complex but very organic shape: the bathtub and washing machine were hidden behind a partition. They chose a very narrow model that is barely visible from the shower area.

How to Approve?

The corridor and hallway are non-living spaces, so the redesign can be approved with a project and technical conclusion from any project organization that has the appropriate SRO permit.

What Else to Consider?

During a redesign, it's often necessary to change the location of sanitary equipment. Ensure proper drainage to 'wet' points: pay attention to pipe diameter and correct slope of the drain.

The biggest problem with the sewer pipe: for natural drainage, a 2-degree slope is required. The further you move the toilet, the higher it will be installed.