Bathroom reno with nib wall to hide plumbing

[jward]

This bathroom renovation incorporates a nib wall to conceal bath plumbing that comes up through the floor.

• The project
• Materials used
• Before and after
• How to plan a bathroom renovation
• More bathroom renovation ideas

The project

We were on a mission to create a beautiful new bathroom on a budget. Hubby is a sparky and managed to do the whole reno on his own.

The grand total was $5920. Everything except the floor tiles was purchased from Bunnings. 

This is the old bathroom. We ran into trouble with the bath pipes.

When we removed the built-in bath the water pipes weren't in the wall – they came up out of the floor a few centimetres from the wall. Because of the way the house is built it would have been difficult (and expensive) to move the plumbing, so we built a ledge/shelf around them instead that the bath backs on to.

It worked out really well. It's the perfect spot to pop a plant on, and I think it looks really good with the grey floor tiles coming up the wall to the top of the ledge.

We had planned to have floor-to-ceiling tiles on all the walls, but one of the walls has a sliding door in the wall cavity, which makes the wall quite flexible. We didn't think it would be able to hold a full wall of tiles.

We decided to tile half-way up that wall, put a coat of paint on the top half and pop up three towel hooks.

Materials used

The products we used were: 

• Duratile 30cm x 60cm white gloss ceramic wall tiles

• Mondella Rumba tapware and fittings

• Methven black shower system

• Rick Mclean black-framed shower screen

• Rick Mclean freestanding back-to-wall bath

• Forme 900mm Mont Albert wall-hung vanity.

Before and after

How to plan a bathroom renovation

No matter what type of bathroom you have, it all starts with planning and research to discover how you can make best use of what is often the smallest room in the house. Check out How to plan a bathroom renovation by experienced Bunnings Workshop member Adam Woodhams for advice on how to redesign your space.

More bathroom renovation ideas

For more inspiration check out our Top 10 most popular bathroom projects, and let us know if you need a hand with your project. We're here to help.

[Akanksha]

A beautiful transformation and a clever way to hide unsightly views. Great work, @jward. 

Looking forward to seeing your next D.I.Y. project.

Akanksha

[RenoRach1]

WOW!!!!!  @jward, this looks amazing! I actually think that the situation with having to put the nib wall in was a blessing in disguise - the way the floor tiles go all the way up to the ledge looks more like a luxurious day spa and definitely not an ordinary residential bathroom. It really does. The ledge is the perfect width for a champagne flute...to help you relax in your lovely bath. Congratulations on a luxe bathroom!