Bathrooms · Primary bathrooms
Primary bathroom remodeling in Chicago.
The primary bathroom is used twice a day by the people who own the house, usually at the same time. We plan it for that: two people getting ready, storage that closes, a shower that is a pleasure to use, and a room that still feels calm at the end of the day.
Is this you?
Is a full primary-bathroom remodel the right project?
A primary bathroom rewards a complete remodel more than a partial one, because the things that make it work well, drainage, waterproofing, ventilation, lighting and storage, all sit behind the finishes. Replacing the tile while keeping a failing pan or a bare-bulb light leaves the room with the same problems in a new color. Not every project needs every feature described here; the visit decides which ones earn their place.
A good fit when
- Two people share the room and the single sink, the door swing or the lack of storage causes daily friction
- The tub is never used and a proper walk-in shower would be
- Ventilation, lighting or a persistent leak suggests the room was never built right
- You want a wet room or a larger bathroom borrowed from a closet or an adjacent room
- You are planning to stay in the house and want the room to work for years to come
If the bathroom only needs a new vanity top, a faucet or a regrouted shower, a smaller contractor will serve you better than we can.
Decisions
The questions that shape a primary bathroom.
- 01
Keep the layout or change it
Fixtures that stay in place keep drains and supplies where they are and hold the schedule steady. Moving the toilet, rotating the shower or adding a second sink opens floors or walls. We draw both where both are plausible and say what each one costs before you choose.
- 02
Double vanity, or one sink done well
A double vanity needs roughly five feet of wall to be comfortable, plus a plan for where two sets of things live. In a narrower room a single wide sink with drawers on both sides often works better than two cramped basins. The measurement decides.
- 03
Shower and bathtub
A shower and a separate tub both fit in some rooms and not in others. Where they do not, most households choose a generous walk-in shower and keep a tub elsewhere in the house for resale. We talk through how you bathe today rather than assuming.
- 04
Toilet privacy
A partial wall, a pocket door or simply the right placement out of the sightline from the bedroom makes the room work for two people. A separate water closet is possible in larger rooms and worth the space in some.
- 05
Storage that closes
Drawers instead of doors under the sinks, a recessed medicine cabinet, a tall linen cabinet or a niche for towels. The vanity is planned like kitchen cabinetry: around what you own and where you reach for it.
- 06
Lighting and ventilation
Sconces or a lit mirror at face height, a dimmable ambient layer, a light in the shower, and an exhaust fan sized for the room and ducted outside. These are planned with the electrical work, not chosen at the end.
What is included
From first preview to a finished, tested room.
In planning
- Complimentary render previews from your photos, if you include them
- Field measurement of the room, the adjacent closet or bedroom, and the plumbing, venting and electrical that serve it
- Layout options with the tradeoffs of each written down
- Vanity, shower, tub, tile, fixture and lighting selections to the level needed to price the work
- Heated-floor, accessibility and storage options raised where they fit the household
- Detailed renders, a written scope and a priced proposal
In construction
- Demolition to the studs with the rest of the home protected
- Plumbing and electrical rough-in, new venting and any relocation
- Subfloor repair, shower pan, waterproofing membrane and a flood test before tile
- Tile, vanity, countertop, fixtures, glass, lighting and accessories
- Painting, trim and the final walkthrough
- Permits and inspections where the scope requires them
Decision aid
Keep the layout or change it?
A quick comparison of the two starting points. Many projects land between them, for example keeping the toilet and moving the shower.
| Aspect | Keep the layout | Change the layout |
|---|---|---|
| Plumbing | Fixtures replaced in place; supplies and drains reused where sound | Drains and supplies rerouted; floor or ceiling below often opened |
| Shower | Rebuilt in its footprint with new pan, waterproofing and tile | Resized or relocated; drain and curb or curbless entry replanned |
| Vanity | New vanity in the same run, often with a second sink if width allows | Placed where the new plan works well, with new rough-in |
| Electrical | New circuits and lighting where needed | Replanned around the new fixture positions |
| Permits | Plumbing and electrical permits as required | Plumbing, electrical and building permits; structural review if walls move |
| Schedule | Most predictable | Longer, with more sequencing between trades |
| Best when | The room is the right shape and the finishes, storage and systems are the problem | The door, the sink or the shower is in the wrong place for two people |
What each path adds to the budget is explained on the Investment page.
Cost and schedule
What moves the number and the calendar.
The layout decision and the shower construction set most of it. After that, tile extent and the vanity have the most leverage.
- How far fixtures move
- A toilet shifted a foot along the same wall is manageable. Moving it across the room means new drain runs through the floor structure.
- Shower construction
- A tiled walk-in shower with a linear drain, a curbless entry and a glass panel is a larger build than a tub with a tiled surround.
- Tile extent
- Tile to the ceiling on every wall, large-format slabs or a patterned floor add material, cutting and labor compared with a tiled wet area and painted walls.
- Vanity and fixtures
- Custom vanities, integrated stone sinks, wall-mounted faucets and the fixture finish level drive cost the way cabinetry and appliances do in a kitchen.
- Heated floors and lighting
- Modest additions to a full remodel, but each adds a circuit and planning that is far cheaper to include while the walls are open.
- Existing conditions
- Old cast-iron drains, galvanized supply, a rotted subfloor under the tub or a missing vent are common in older Chicago homes and are priced once we can see them.
Stage two
What the in-home visit establishes
Previews from photos show direction. The visit turns direction into a design we can price.
- 01Exact dimensions, ceiling height, window and door positions and where the bedroom sightline falls
- 02Where the drain, vent and supply lines run, and whether the toilet or shower can move
- 03Floor construction, and whether a curbless shower or heated floor fits the build-up
- 04The exhaust route to the outside, or where one can be created
- 05Panel capacity for new circuits, heated floors, lighting and a lit mirror
- 06How the two of you use the room in the morning, so the layout fits the household
Questions
Common questions about primary bathroom remodeling.
Can we keep the tub and still get a real walk-in shower?
In a room of roughly 80 square feet or more, usually yes. In smaller rooms it is one or the other, and we draw both so the tradeoff is visible before you decide.
Does a primary bathroom remodel always mean moving plumbing?
No. Many of the most satisfying results keep every fixture where it is and rebuild the room around them properly. Moving fixtures is worth it when it fixes how two people use the room, and the visit tells us what the floor structure allows.
Are heated floors worth it?
In a full remodel they are a modest addition to a floor that is being rebuilt anyway, and most homeowners who have them would not go back. They need a dedicated circuit and a thermostat, which we plan with the electrical work.
Can you plan for aging in place without it looking clinical?
Yes. Blocking in the walls for future grab bars, a curbless shower, a hand shower on a slide bar and a comfort-height toilet are invisible or read as good design. We raise them where they fit and never impose them.
Let’s plan your bathroom.
Have bathroom photos? Include them with your inquiry for complimentary render previews within minutes. Photos are optional.
Prefer to talk first? Call or email during business hours.
- Call
- (312) 210-0016
Related
- All bathroom remodelingPrimary baths, condo baths, showers and wet rooms, and how the process works.
- Walk-in showers and wet roomsSizing, drains, waterproofing and glass in more depth.
- Condo bathroom remodelingWhen the primary bath sits inside a building with rules.
- Kitchen remodel timelineHow design, ordering and construction stages fit together.