Every home needs a few bathroom storage ideas. Even the largest, most luxurious rooms need somewhere to hide everything away. This is even more critical in small bathrooms. The more clutter that is visible the less open the room will feel. Hiding everything away can actually make a small bathroom feel bigger.
Most UK bathrooms are on the small side, especially in modern homes. They are usually built around the dimensions of a standard bath. Older, Victorian style properties will normally have more scope to easily add some extra storage.
We will highlight all of the products that can add a little or a lot of extra storage in your bathroom. If you don’t have the room for the large storage items you could employ a range of small techniques. It’s amazing how they all add up in the end.
Modular Bathroom Furniture
Modular bathroom furniture will provide you with a ton of storage space if you have the room
The premise is a lot like kitchen units. You buy separate cupboards and drawer units and then fit them together with a countertop over them all.
There are wall units available too that enable you to utilise the space above the the base units. Bridging panels, mirrors and lighting make for a practical and attractive option.
You need a bit of space, obviously, to be able to fit a run of these units. But because they are modular you can select fewer units if required to make the most of every inch.
There are speciality units such as towel racks, open shelving units and glass shelving units – all designed to add a real touch of luxury to your bathroom design.
But if you don’t have the room for fitted furniture then a stand alone vanity unit might be the best solution.
Replace Your Basin With A Vanity Unit
Standard wash hand basins provide zero storage other than having a small bit of real estate to put a bar of soap and a tumbler on. They used to be the automatic choice when people bought a new bathroom suite.
But things have changed. People have realised that they need extra storage and standard basins just do not cut it. As a consequence, vanity basins have become much more popular.
And because they are more popular they have come down in price. They are also being made in cheaper materials which has also helped lower the price. Many units a use a lot of plastic in their design. This ensures that the unit will be completely unaffected by water. This was not something that could be said of those vanities made from wood or MDF.
There is a bewildering array of designs and sizes on the market. We have an article that helps you find the one that is right for you – here.
Semi-Recessed Vanity Unit
If you are really pushed for space, and you don’t have the floorspace for a full vanity unit then this is another option you should consider.
Semi-recessed vanity units have a footprint about half the size of a full-depth one. This can be critical in a small bathroom where every square inch is precious. Half the wash hand basin projects out from the the unit so it is a very useable size.
There are some models that are wall mounted. This will reduce the footprint to zero but will also mean you lose a little bit more storage. The visual benefit of the open design does not really compensate so we would recommend sticking to a full height vanity.
You can replace and existing basin quite easily as all of the pipework will be in virtually the same position. It might even be something you would consider as a DIY job. Flexible tap connectors and push-fit waste pipes mean that installation can be undertaken with the need to solder any pipes.
Keep Your Basin, Add Some Cupboards
If you are on a budget or don’t have the DIY skills to fit a vanity unit then there are two options: add some small cupboards under the sink or fit an under-sink cabinet that is designed to slot around the pedestal as shown in the photo. This unit is available online from Amazon. As an associate, we make a small commission on any qualifying sales
Click on the image or click here to see more cabinets
There is another way to utilise the dead space on either side of the pedestal. Small, upright cupboards or shelving will swallow up quite a bit of clutter for not a lot of outlay.
Try and select a material for the cupboards that is tolerant of water splashes because it is inevitable that there are going to be some. MDF and chipboard do not respond well to getting wet. Melamine will protect the core to some extent, and laminate even more so.
You could wall mount the cupboards to free up floor space but again, this will reduce the overall amount of storage available. The visual benefits are outweighed by the extra hassle and reduced capacity.
Bathroom Wall Cabinet
This a very traditional option as bathroom storage ideas go. If the bathroom does not have any floor units for storage this will be the easiest way of tucking away the toothbrushes and toiletries.
There are many different types, styles, materials and features, so what should you look out for?
As mentioned previously, wooden-based units can get affected by the moisture levels in a bathroom. They should be able to withstand most high humidity situations but plastic units will fare better.
Go for the biggest cabinet that you can fit into the available space. You will never regret having more storage.
Make sure it has mirrored doors to keep it from looking too imposing. Mirrors have long been a way of making a room look bigger. This article has a few more ideas on designs for small bathrooms.
So a large, mirrored unit will have double the effect by making the room look bigger and hiding away a lot of clutter.
Other features that can prove useful are a shaving socket, lights and demister pads. All of these will require that the cabinet is wired to the mains.
The following cabinets are all available on Amazon – as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
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Hidden Storage Under The Bath
There might be quite bit more storage space in your bathroom than you realise. That’s because there are some areas are not usually used to store items. The area under the bath is one such space.
A standard bath panel is not designed to be removed and replaced frequently. Once in place they tend to stay there. But they are covering up quite a bit of useable storage space.
There are now bath panels available that can make the most of this unused space. This area can be accessed by building hatches into the bath panel. It is not the most convenient space for everyday items but is great for stowing cleaning products away out of sight.
Here is an example of such a panel available online on Amazon
There is also a matching end panel for the bath should this be required.
Boxing-In Your Cistern
Boxing-in the cistern is a common practice, especially in cloakrooms. But you can also do this in a bathroom if the room shape lends itself to this type of design.
Here we see a cistern that has been boxed-in using bathroom cladding. This has been attached to plywood to enable all of the panels to be removed should access to the plumbing be required.
The top of the boxing can be opened up to reveal extra storage inside. There is a surprising amount of storage space inside but some of it might be out of reach. A shelf inside the unit will help keep items with arm’s length.
Here we can see the cleaning products that have been hidden away inside the box-work:
In this instance the box-work runs from wall to wall. This is quite an easy and straightforward location to hide a cistern away. You would need to construct your own cupboard if the wall to wall option was not available.
Bathroom cladding is much easier to work with in this situation than tiles.
Add A Freestanding Cupboard
This is a very simple step to take but one that could have a big effect on the total amount of storage in your room.
If you can identify a bit of dead space in your bathroom then this is the perfect solution. Sometimes one corner of the room never actually gets used. Even i it is only a small area by fitting a tall, narrow cupboard into this area you can add several cubic feet of shelf space for towels and toiletries.
You can leave it freestanding but ideally a tall cupboard should be attached to the wall to give it some stability. If you are not happy drilling or don’t have the right tools you could always just stick it to the wall for extra stability. It won’t be perfect but it is better than nothing.
Add A Niche Or Two
This option is bit more involved. Ideally it should be incorporated during the initial installation. But it is just about possible in the right circumstances with the right wall construction.
A niche is basically just a recessed area in a wall. Usually this would be a stud wall made from timber and plasterboard. It is not really feasible to create niches in masonry walls unless they are extremely thick. And even then it would really need to be created at the point of construction.
One common location for a stud wall is at the end of a bath. Often, a soil pipe can be present in this area. By fully boxing this in to the width of the bath you can create a stud wall that is perfect for niches.
Niches are a great place to store soaps and shampoos in a shower area without anything protruding into the shower area. This is great if you are pushed for space.
Use a piece of PVC sill board for the bottom of the niche. This can be raised up slightly at the back to ensure any shower water just runs off and back out into the shower.
What’s Behind The Door?
Well there could be a multitude of things. But this is the perfect location to tuck away most of your towels.
Hanging towels behind the door is probably not he best idea when they are wet. But once dry you can hang them up out of sight behind the door. They are an easy bathroom storage idea and are handy even if you have plenty of other storage in the room.
There are dozens of different designs and styles so which door hooks are best?
We would recommend that you opt for the type that have a plate that goes up over the top of the door. Sometimes this design clips right over the top of the door and some designs require them to be screwed into the top surface. Both designs work well and will support a lot of weight.
Self adhesive hooks are easy to fit but will be more likely to come away if too much weight is applied.
You can also use hooks that screw into the door. You need to be careful with these because many doors are of a hollow construction. There are hooks specifically designed for this type of door.
One problem with both self-adhesive and screw-in hooks is that the damage the door surface. So keep this in mind when making your decision.
