Adding a Bathroom to a Basement

Wondering how to install a bathroom in a finished basement? 

You’re not the only one. However, there are few basement bathroom ideas you can borrow when creating your own unique basement bathroom.

While the basement bathroom offers a boost in your home’s value, basement bathroom ideas and designs are hard to come by. Many people aren’t sure where they can save some money, where to stretch their budget, or how to get creative with their unique basement bathroom construction design.

Luckily, there are lots of options when it comes to adding a basement bathroom to your home.

Here’s what you need to know.

The Best Basement Bathroom Ideas

Installing a bathroom in the basement isn’t always easy. It can be challenging because beyond the interior design, unless you’re trying to figure out how to finish a roughed-in bathroom, you’ll have to make a plan for new plumbing.

This is where a basement bathroom design can quickly get expensive.

While the cost to add plumbing varies largely, it can easily come to thousands of dollars and may well drive the price of your new bathroom basement remodel or addition through the roof. Because of this, many people avoid adding a bathroom to a basement, unless their mission is learning how to finish a roughed-in basement bathroom.

How to Install a Basement Bathroom

Adding a bathroom to the lowest level of your home makes life easier and more convenient while also giving your property value a little increase. If your basement is finished and you’re using it as a spare room, recreation space, or home theater, having a small basement bathroom down there also increases functionality and prevents guests and kids from running upstairs every time nature calls.

Even if you’ve added bathrooms to your home in the past, putting one in the basement is a different situation. Because of this, it’s smart to consult with a plumber (especially if you’re planning to add new pipes) because basement bathroom plumbing is challenging.

4 Essential Basement Bathroom Design Considerations

Even if you don’t need to consult with a plumber and are not planning to dig up your concrete floor, understanding a few simple aspects of basement bathroom design will help you make smarter decisions when it comes time to renovate.

1. Zoning and Permits

If you plan to add a bathroom to your basement, contact your local building authority first. When it comes to adding a basement bathroom, it’s likely that you’ll run into zoning ordinances, deed restrictions, and other things you’ll have to consider as you move forward with your project based on your basement location.

2. Existing Plumbing

To save yourself some effort and money, aim to put the new bathroom as close as possible to existing plumbing and electrical systems. This makes hookups more streamlined and much less expensive.

3. Full vs. Half-Bath

Next, you’ll have to consider what kind of bathroom you want. Are you opting for a full, whole bathroom with a bathtub or walk in shower, or just a half bath with a toilet and sink? Remember that most basement bathrooms are typically a small space, and definitely a small bathroom when compared to other bathrooms.

Regardless of your choice, consider adding a high-power ventilation fan to draw out moisture since basements tend to be damp. While thinking about your potential renovation, you can also consider adding a laundry area or utility sink to boost the basement bathroom's functionality.

4. Drainage

You’ll also need to consider drainage, which is an essential consideration in any basement bathroom. In standard, above-ground plumbing, your plumbing uses gravity to drain waste toward your pipes.

In a basement bathroom, however, this can be an issue. For the plumbing to work correctly, there must be enough of a fall for the sink, toilet, tub, and shower to drain correctly.

When you go to install a new basement bathroom and you hire a plumber to help you, they’ll likely evaluate two things: the depth of your plumbing and your pipe size. If your sewer line is deep enough that your plumbing can rely on gravity like the rest of the house, then adding a new bathroom is simple, and may not even require that much digging into the floor.

If your drainage lines aren’t deep enough or your budget isn’t too high, however, you’ll have to consider other options.

Plumbing Fixtures and Alternatives for Basement Bathrooms

Because basement bathrooms don’t always get a lot of natural light, you may be looking at additional lighting and plumbing fixtures. If the drainage lines in your house aren’t deep enough to operate on gravity, you can look into installing alternative options, like Saniflo toilet systems.

Saniflo toilet systems utilize a pump and a macerator to grind waste and pump it up, against gravity, to your main plumbing stack. Because of this, they don’t require the addition of any new plumbing and can be installed in a weekend or less.

For example, you can simply add some PVC pipes to run the toilet to your main stack, and you’re set to go. What’s more, you can hook a sink, shower, and toilet to a single pump and macerator, making a clean all-in-one solution for your home.

Upflushing toilets are self-contained and sit atop your concrete, which means you don’t have to do any extensive remodeling or excavation to place one.

If you’re entirely against drilling into your concrete floor to add new amenities or a basement toilet, you can also find sinks and showers that will work with a Saniflo upflush system. This overhauls the process of adding a bathroom and makes it much simpler and more straightforward—even if you don’t moonlight as a plumber or have a huge budget to work with.

How to Install a Basement Bathroom, The Smart Way

If you’re ready to turn your basement bathroom ideas into reality and want to learn how to install a bathroom in a basement, this guide gives you a smart place to start. By following it step-by-step, you can address plumbing issues, come up with alternatives, and create the bathroom space you’ve always wanted.

If you need additional help navigating your basement bathroom ideas or figuring out which Saniflo system is right for you, don’t hesitate to give our team a call. We’re happy to walk you through our selection and help you find the one that’s right for you.