Designing a bathroom that is safe, functional, and appealing to children is often one of the top priorities for parents of young children who are looking to design or remodel their first home. Because of the unique challenges that children pose, it can be difficult to balance practicality with aesthetics, especially in the bathroom. In this post, we take a closer look at some useful tips that can help you design a child-friendly bathroom in your home.
Child-Proofing the Bathroom for Maximum Safety
Some tips that can help you child-proof your bathroom to ensure that your children are safe when using it include:
- Non-Slip Flooring: Bathroom floors tend to get wet especially with kids around and this can pose a danger to them. Thus, non-slip flooring options such as slip-resistant tiles or mats are an essential part of every child-proof bathroom.
- Rounded Fixtures: Installing rounded edges on counters, faucets, and other sharp edges can help minimise the risk of children accidentally injuring themselves when they knock into these edges.
- Secure Storage: Kids can be inquisitive creatures and it is therefore also important to have secure storage solutions such as lockable cabinets or hard to reach shelves where you can store away cleaning products, medicines, razors and other potentially dangerous objects.
Choosing the Right Materials
Choosing the right materials for the various surfaces in your bathroom can also be beneficial:
- Stain-Resistant Surfaces: Children are usually more prone to getting things dirty when playing and they can leave stains on your countertops and walls. Thus, opt for stain-resistant or easy to clean materials for these surfaces that are likely to come into contact with your children frequently.
- Waterproof Paint and Tiles: Splashes and spills are also generally more common among children and waterproof paint and tiles can help you avoid too much hassle during the cleaning up process.
Optimising the Layout
You’ll also want to optimise the layout of your bathroom so that your children are able to use it easily:
- Adjustable Height Fixtures: You may want to install features with adjustable heights where possible, such as adjustable showerheads, so that your children are able to easily reach them.
- Lowered Height Fixtures: Where adjustability is not possible, consider installing lowered height fixtures such as toilets, sinks and towel hooks to enable your children to easily reach them.
- Ample Space: Ensure also that you have ample space in your bathroom such that you are able to assist your children where needed.
Design a Custom Home with Australian Heritage Homes
Australian Heritage Homes are the leading custom home builders in Melbourne and our experienced professionals have been designing and building homes for the local community for generations. If ensuring that your home is child-friendly is a top priority for you, we can help. Contact us today for a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss all of your home building needs and let us help you turn your dream home into a reality!