Kitchen & Bath Business - May/June 2018 - 34

Solutions

"I like that this is a warm
bathroom and feels like it has a
personality/point of view. The Asian/
Japanese theme comes through right away,
and it feels modern and approachable - unlike many
themed spaces that feel overwhelming or fall flat."
-Guest editor, Tina Ramchandani

Embracing Zen

CHALLENGE #1: CHOOSING THE RIGHT BATHTUB

A Japanese-inspired remodel
considers height differences
and unusual materials
THE AMERICAN BATHROOM HAS LONG BEEN

EVOLVING from a place of utility to a peaceful oasis. In Japan, this idea has already been in practice
for centuries.Traditional bathrooms there devote
an entire room to a deep soaking tub meant solely
for relaxation.The bather first uses a hand shower
outside of the tub to do the actual cleansing and
then immerses themself in the tub. When designbuilder J. Byron Kellar and his associate Jennifer
Renninger of Portland-based Neil Kelly Co. met
a couple looking for this style of bathroom, they
were up for the challenge.
"The wife is Japanese and grew up in Japan, and
both have traveled back and forth to the country
and enjoy the Japanese bathing experience," said
Kellar. "They had been considering this project
for some time."

ABOVE Similar to the separate

bathing rooms used in Japan,
this wet space is surrounded
by a glass enclosure and
contains a tub, bench and
American-style standing
shower.
To make this space even more
spa-like, the design team
installed heated ﬂoors, LED
lighting and medicine cabinets
with built-in electrical outlets.

BY ERINN LOUCKS

The traditional tub used in Japan is called an Ofuro tub, which has straight,
vertical sides and is made of wood. This tub is designed for wet areas and
usually has no overflow drain, so the water can be as deep as possible and can
even drip over on the floor.
The design team chose a tub made of Western red cedar wood. This type
of wood ranges in color from deep brown to red, pink and blond and has a
sweet and calming aroma. While wood is not common in the U.S. as a bathtub material, this is one of the few species that is durable in wet spaces and
has historically been used in boatbuilding and exterior siding. Since soap is
reserved for the shower and will not be used in the tub, the homeowners also
do not have to worry about the wood staining.
CHALLENGE #2: WORKING WITH A WET LAYOUT

The rest of the design evolved around the tub, however, since it is designed
to overflow directly onto the floor into a linear drain, the designers had to
change their original plans for a curbless shower enclosure.
"Limited space dictated the placement of the shower doors when keeping
the soaking tub, shower and vanity in the same area," said Kellar, who used
AutoCAD to draw the plan elevations and SketchUp to provide a 3D view
of the space. "To eliminate stagnant water, the linear drain required a slope,
which would not work in a curbless shower area. Because of the size of the
space and location of the drain near the tub, we added a curb outside of the
wet space to contain the water."

Kitchen & Bath Business / MAY-JUNE 2018 / KBBONLINE.COM / The official publication of KBIS (KBIS.com)

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Kitchen & Bath Business - May/June 2018

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