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How Can Your Home's Existing Plumbing Impact Your New Bathroom?

26 July 2021 by Bill Turner

Plenty of people think about their home's resale value when building an addition, but a new bathroom can offer so much more. If your family is expanding, then you know the pain of living with limited bathroom space. If nothing else, the fight for the shower every morning can be an unforgiving brawl with few winners.

The extra breathing room afforded by a new bathroom can be priceless, but your existing plumbing can affect the cost and effort involved in this project. Working with your plumbing contractor to design your new bathroom around your home's plumbing system can reduce expenses and allow you to use that money for better flooring or other amenities.

Why Does Your Existing Plumbing Matter?

You're adding a new room to your home, so it can be frustrating to find yourself limited by existing utilities. Unfortunately, running electricity and water isn't always a straightforward process. In most cases, you'll have wiring running through just about every room in your house, so bringing new power to your new bathroom shouldn't be an issue.

On the other hand, you shouldn't expect to find pipes behind every wall and ceiling. If your home's current kitchen and bathroom are both on one side of the house, you may have few (if any) pipes on the opposite end. These design issues can impact the most efficient places for a new bathroom, especially if you're building an entirely new room to house it.

In many cases, the cost and difficulty involved will also depend on the accessibility of your pipes. If you have an unfinished basement or family room below your main floor, your contractor may be able to run new plumbing through this area. Without this easy access, you may need to choose between extensive interior demolition or building your new bathroom close to existing pipes.

How Can You Minimize Costs?

If you're willing to pay enough, then anything is possible. Of course, most people want to minimize their costs, and working with your home's existing layout is the best way to accomplish that. Before jumping ahead to the planning phase, have your plumbing contractor evaluate all aspects of your home's plumbing. They'll usually be able to recommend options to minimize the cost of new pipes.

You can also help to reduce costs by altering your new bathroom's layout. For example, if one end of the room will be closer to existing plumbing, then consider placing your sink or shower on that side. These decisions can reduce the distance you'll need to run new pipes and help save money on both materials and labor.

By working with your existing plumbing rather than against it, you can enjoy the benefits of a new bathroom without facing excessively high costs or requiring significant interior demolition. Reach out to a plumbing contractor to learn more. 

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