Ever tried getting ready in the morning and found your bathroom door was annoyingly getting in the way? Welcome to my world. For several months our bathroom door became my mortal enemy.
The bathroom was tiny to start with – think telephone box small – but then someone had decided to instal this enormous wooden door that opened inward into the room. If you managed to open the door without smashing your shoulder against the sink, you had approximately 50% floor space to move around in. Danny used to watch me perform this elaborate dance every morning with amused giggles and call it my “bathroom shuffle.” mock as he might, trying to brush my teeth while sideways on the toilet was starting to make me insane.
Remember kids – the house in Bulwell. The one we bought when everything needed doing?
Well this door wasn’t important enough to replace right away.
How wrong I was. It took me jabbing myself in the face with the shower curtain rings one morning to realise I couldn’t keep living like this. I was late for work, rushing around trying to squeeze into the bathroom to grab some toothpaste when I somehow managed to trap myself half in and half out of the door, with my back against the sink.
I had to shuffle backwards out of the bathroom, close the door and start my “shuffle” again. It was time for a new door, and a sliding door at that. Except…we’d been saving our pennies for the kitchen.
But do you know what’s even better than a normal swinging door? A pocket door. Pocket doors are magic.
When they’re open, they disappear into the wall cavity – no need to consider door swing when planning your bathroom layout. The catch? You need enough wall cavity to accommodate the thickness of the door when it slides inside.
Watch out for any pipes or wiring you may have lurking in there too. Pinterest hours were had while I devoured every blog post and watched YouTube videos on how to install the perfect pocket door. From established hardware brand recommendations to which style to pick, I drank it all in.
There are a LOT of self-install videos on Youtube if that’s your thing, but I was foolishly trusting enough to get my local carpenter round to do it for me. The door wasn’t cheap (£300+), but it wasn’t an Ikea door either – I went for a frosted glass design which ran me about £500 for door and installation. Holy hell.
Best decision I ever made regarding our house. I get a ridiculous amount of joy opening my bathroom door every single morning and actually having enough space to maneuver around. Obvs.
If there was one thing I wish I’d known before we installed our pocket door it’s that you need to plan carefully before cutting holes in your walls. Behind ours were electrical wires running from our bedroom to the bathroom outlet which also needed moving. That’ll be another £200 charges on top of your door fees then.
We were actually helping Danny’s mum renovate her ensuite shower room last year so naturally, I insisted she got one too. Her walls were too thin though (no cavity walls in her house) and there were heating pipes in the way. That’s when I discovered barn doors.
WHAT. WHY HAVE I NOT DONE THIS BEFORE? Aren’t barn doors EVERYWHERE right now?
I know, I know. But hear me out. They’re great for tiny spaces.
Our little half-bath upstairs is shoehorned into the corner of the house and accesses an odd angled hallway. The original door stuck straight into the toilet whenever you opened it which was great if you were fastidious about closing the door but hilariously annoying if you weren’t. Installing a barn door was a no-brainer.
There’s no need for any hidden cavity with these babies so no fear of pipes or wires either. All of the weight is balanced by those awesome decorative brackets which hang on your wall like any old cupboard door. We picked up a reclaimed style wood door from the local timber yard (£180 for the panel alone) and the track was about £120 from screwfix.
Danny’s brother fitted it over a weekend as it was pretty much a straight forward hinge and hang job. Downside? They don’t seal like normal doors do.
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There will always be a gap on the edges to allow for the door to slide open and closed. Sound will travel through this gap and so will light. Perfect for a single ensuite bathroom where privacy really isn’t an issue.
Definitely not one I’d install on our bathroom though. Enough said. Which brings me nicely onto my sliding glass doors.
Our rental flat in Beeston had a teeny-tiny bathroom. It was a studio flat so space was at a premium. When we moved in the previous tenants had simply removed the existing door and put up a very flimsy curtain in its place.
Privacy had been an issue with them so whilst I wanted a sliding door to save space, I still needed to provide proper privacy for the tenants. After MUCH searching I found these fantastic opaque glass sliding panels on Amazon. They slide along an insane sturdy track so smoothly I thought they were counter weighted!
They look super modern and sleek too – completely hidden when closed and they let plenty of light through. Panels were about £350 all in and have lasted two sets of tenants with no issues whatsoever. My top tip with any sliding door is to spend as much on the track mechanism as you do on the door itself.
Trust me – I learnt that the hard way when I first installed mine in our bedroom. Bought a cheap ass track kit off Amazon that looked fine but started playing up after only three months. Door would get stuck half way through and jump off the track every time you opened it.
Had to bin it and reinstall a proper quality track that cost twice as much as the doors! Bi-Fold doors are another favorite of mine for super small spaces. They essentially fold in half as they open so require even less clearance than your average sliding door.
They’re perfect for awkward spaces like under stairs bathrooms or tiny cloakrooms. Again, the mechanism does require upkeep – you’ll need to tighten the hinges from time to time – but they’re SUCH space savers. Quick bathroom conversion tip: do NOT underestimate the importance of door swing.
I hung our bathroom door back in to the same place it was when we moved in and never thought twice about it. Our door actually swung straight into the shower area – every time you entered the bathroom you had to close the door before you could access half the room. Soul destroying.
After about a month of living with it, I summoned up enough energy to get Danny move it to the other side. Literally took two seconds to do and made accessing the room 100x better. Doors with hinges aren’t always a problem.
If you have the space to accommodate the door swing, they’re by far the easiest option and can seal properly to give you full privacy. You can also get them in literally any style. Just…..make sure you measure your swing space first.
Seriously guys, I cannot even tell you how many times I’ve seen bathrooms where the door swings straight into the toilet. Or where you have to do a disgusting weird sideways shimmy just to reach the sink. Privacy is another thing to consider when choosing your style of door.
If installed properly, pocket doors will seal nice and snug. But you lose all privacy with a barn door. Likewise with glass doors – if you opt for clear glass you’ll have zero privacy but even frosted glass panels can let light (and shadow) escape when the bathroom light is on.
Learned that lesson during an embarrassing dinner party… Cost really does depend on what door you’re replacing with. Swapping out an old door for a similar style might only set you back £150-200 if you’re confident with a drill.
But if you’re cutting into your walls for a pocket door then expect to pay around £800-1,000 all in.
Particularly if you need new door frames built, or have to move any wiring or plumbing when installing. Measuring is KEY. I cannot stress this point enough!
Make sure you measure your door cavity twice before ordering that new door. And then measure twice again. Got caught out when ours got delivered – door was almost a whole inch bigger than what I thought we needed!
Thank god we had enough extra cavity space to accommodate butord drove me MAD. Your perfect bathroom door is something you don’t really think about once it’s installed. It just forms part of your daily routine; getting ready in the mornings, hiding from kids mid-shower and telling guests to knock before tumbling into a council estate bathroom brawl.
Ours slides open every morning and I smile every single time I peek through to make sure nobody’s lurking on the toilet. Now that’s what I call a functional bathroom door.
