Problems often arise with storage space for household chemicals. All sorts of powders, cleaners, rinses... There are more and more of them, but there is usually nowhere to store them. The bathroom is too humid, the kitchen is not very pleasant, as they can spread extraneous aromas, which do not combine well with cooking, or rather, do not combine at all. However, there is a way out - a closet in the toilet. Although the toilet is usually a small room, you can still find free space in it - above or behind the toilet. This is where you can hang/install the toilet cabinet.
Features of selection and location
A few things to choose from:
- The cabinet is selected according to the size of the room. For example, for a small toilet room in an apartment, small structures or narrow models located above the toilet are better suited.
- In a spacious toilet combined with a bathtub, you can install a larger hanging structure, a cabinet or a pencil case.
- You should not choose products that are too wide and will hang over your head. The most optimal and harmonious option are cabinets with a width of 20 cm.
- It is also undesirable to save on accessories and prefer high-quality and proven products.
Types of toilet cabinets
There are a large number of lockers with different operational parameters and appearance.
Mounted
It is a universal solution for a miniature room, where it is most often located above the toilet. Such hanging furniture pieces on a mounting plate have a wide variety of sizes, depth, content and stylistic design.
The photo on the left shows a narrow wall cabinet above the cistern in the interior of a modern toilet.
Built-in
It has a fairly compact design, easily fits into the interior space and provides convenient access to the filling.
Floor
It is a free-standing model that can be equipped with legs, open or closed shelves.
Retractable
These multifunctional products allow you to save usable space and are therefore especially suitable for decorating a small toilet. Roll-out cabinets are often located near the toilet, which is very convenient.
Open shelves in the toilet
Such designs add special style and comfort to the environment and are mainly used to place various decor, for example, it can be a vase of flowers, wicker baskets, jars of cream or soap, etc.
The photo shows the interior of a toilet with wooden open shelves located above the toilet.
Rack
It is a compact and ergonomic furniture element that can add versatility to even the smallest room. Forged racks have a particularly impressive appearance; they are not only a beautiful and elegant product, but are also suitable for storing towels, napkins and other hygiene products.
Cabinet
Quite roomy and at the same time not occupying much space, the pencil case, thanks to the shelves installed along the entire length, allows you to place all the necessary household supplies inside.
The photo shows a pencil case made in white in the interior of the toilet.
With doors
This option has different sizes, installation methods and designs. Wardrobes with hinged or sliding doors perfectly hide all contents and help create a neat interior.
With roller shutters
It can be a model with roller doors, which is a practical option for a small room and allows you to save additional space, or a cabinet with louvered doors, which provides excellent ventilation for the internal contents.
Purpose of the closet in the toilet
Main types of destination:
- Plumbing. Used to cover pipes, meters or boiler and thereby adds more attractiveness and neatness to the room. A plumbing hatch provides free access to communications or a water riser for repairs or cleaning. In addition, devices hidden in plasterboard, wood or plastic construction have a longer service life and accumulate less condensation and dust.
- Economic. It can be quite large in size and serve as a kind of storage room for a mop, broom, rags, buckets, basins or storage of other household items used in the household.
- Decorative. It performs an exclusively decorative function and may have a very interesting design, original color of the doors, a glossy or glass facade through which neatly placed decorations will be visible.
The photo shows the interior of a modern toilet with a utility cabinet under the sink.
The design with a specific purpose not only has a practical function, but also allows you to create a rather pleasant design.
The photo shows a decorative brown cabinet in the interior of the toilet.
Options for the location of cabinets in the bathroom
The most popular solutions.
Cabinet behind the toilet
A convenient cabinet behind the toilet provides an excellent storage system for toilet paper, towels, air freshener and other small items.
The photo shows a pop art style toilet with a cabinet located behind the toilet.
Thanks to this placement, it is possible to free up space on the cabinet with a sink or shelves, which can be decorated with other beautiful decor.
Above the installation
Such a solution will be an excellent addition to the toilet, which does not overload or clutter the room. This arrangement not only allows you to hide communications, but also provides enough space to fill with other necessary things.
The photo shows a cabinet with a mirrored door above the installation in the interior of the toilet.
Hidden
It is distinguished by a very aesthetic appearance and, due to the facade part, which harmonizes and merges with the walls in the interior, creates the feeling of a complete plane, behind which there is actually a secret closet with a lot of things. Quite often, when finishing a toilet with tiles, the doors of the hidden box are also decorated with identical cladding.
Side
It perfectly complements the decor and, due to its thin and light forms, does not overload the space. This piece of furniture may be left or right-handed.
The photo on the right shows the interior of a small toilet, decorated with a narrow floor cabinet with drawers.
Angular
It is considered the most suitable option for small toilet rooms, which can be located in any corner of the room. Two corner shelves installed on both sides of the toilet will look very organic.
In a niche
Such products are equipped only with shelves and doors, and the rear and side walls represent the niche itself.
The photo shows the interior of a toilet with an open cabinet with lighting built into a niche.
Open niches
In this case, the niche performs a decorative function. The relief of the uneven surface and the contour of the recess are emphasized by spot lighting.
Diversity in a monochrome interior is achieved through the play of light. Volumetric decor fills the recess in the wall and casts interesting shadows.
An open niche laconically complements the minimalism in space.
Design of a small toilet with a cabinet
A small toilet room is equipped with narrow shelves that take up space above the toilet barrel, or a side wall or mini-models, with open or closed shelves that look very harmonious and neat.
Quite often they use products with mirrored facades, which make it possible to visually increase the dimensions of the room. Such cabinets do not contribute to cluttering the space, give the atmosphere a special lightness and allow you to radically change the design of the room.
Development of a design drawing
Any design, even the simplest one, needs detailed elaboration. Creating a drawing will allow you not to be distracted by calculations and correcting errors during work.
Detailed design drawing
First, you should draw several sketches, choosing the location of the cabinet, its interior space, and the design of the facade. Then it is necessary to measure the height of the room and the width of the free space behind the toilet so that it becomes clear what dimensions of the structure are acceptable in the existing conditions. The drawing shows the location of pipes and other communications, linking their position to the corner of the room.
Sketch drawing
Taking into account the data space obtained during the measurement, a detailed drawing is developed, which shows the location of the cabinet, communications and access to them, frame features, top and bottom covers, shelves, doors, places and methods of fastening individual elements.
The principle of fastening the frame and shelves
Note! Depending on the chosen design, its frame can be installed along the entire wall or above the barrel.
The width of a typical toilet varies between 820 – 850 mm, so the installation of shelves with cutouts for pipes (about 250 mm) occurs across the entire width of the room.
There are several door design options:
- Traditional swing doors require free space for opening.
- The sliding sash does not require free space.
- Roller shutters can be used as a shutter, the blade of which moves up and down along the side guides.
- The interior space can be closed with blinds or curtains.
Mirror swing doors
How to decorate a locker?
In the color scheme for the cabinet, you can choose either delicate white, beige, blue pastel tones, perfect for a small toilet, or brighter and more contrasting green, red, black shades, which will form a catchy accent in the interior and thereby also create the appearance of additional space.
Models made of colored acrylic plastic or frosted, transparent glass look very interesting and original, as well as metal structures, especially often used for a loft-style toilet room.
Homemade cabinets or products decorated with drawings, 3D images or photo printing, which are suitable for a toilet in almost any style, have a rather unusual design. An even greater effect can be achieved by equipping the structure with lighting that automatically turns on when the doors are opened.
The photo shows a wall cabinet with a mirrored front in the interior of the toilet.
What material is it made from?
When you decide to make a closet for your toilet, the question immediately arises of what material to make it from. If we talk about furniture, there are the following options:
- laminated chipboard (LDSP);
- laminated MDF;
- wood.
Furniture for the toilet can be ordered from a furniture shop.
The cheapest material in this category is laminated chipboard. MDF is four times more expensive and wood is even more expensive. If you assemble doors from edged boards or lining with your own hands, it may not be more expensive than MDF. But such work requires at least minimal carpentry skills. If it is not there, you will have to pay for the work of a specialist, which can significantly increase the final cost of the product.
If you are going to cover the cabinet with tiles, wallpaper, vinyl, plastic, you can use materials other than those listed above:
- plywood;
- GVL (gypsum fiber sheet);
- OSB;
- sheet MDF.
All of the materials listed are quite suitable for constructing a cabinet in the toilet. The only doubt may be about the GVL: will it crumble at the place where the hinges are attached? If large loads are not expected, it is quite possible to use this material.
Frosted glass and mirror are also possible options for facades for a closet in the toilet
Now the question is whether it is worth using moisture-resistant materials. The closet for the toilet can be made of ordinary material, provided that it is only a toilet and not a combined bathroom, i.e. There will be no high humidity in the room. An exception is the situation when the ventilation of the bathroom is done using a flow window through the toilet. Such schemes still exist in houses with old layouts. In all other situations, the use of moisture-resistant materials is optional.
