Room Without a Window

[Steven Robbo]

My dad's currently renovating a 3 bedroom terraced house and there is currently an ongoing debate wether to have a larger bathroom and a walk-in-wardrobe (accessible from the master bedroom) or a small bathroom and a small separate box room however this room would have to be situated in the middle of the property (due to the toilet waste pipe) and therefore would have no window.

Just to give you a better idea, the layout is as follows;

Ground Floor: Open plan living room with kitchen situated in a ground only level extension to the rear of the house.
2nd Floor Attic: 2 adequate sized bedrooms & a second bathroom.

The problem lies with the layout of the 1st floor. The bathroom has to be located to the rear of the house as it is the only position the toilet can be placed with the waste pipe. the dilemma is either 2 of the following;

Layout 1) Have a small box room bathroom with only enough room for a Toilet/Basin/Bath at the rear of the property and a box room in the middle of the house with no window.

In this layout the bathroom and box room are both accessed from the landing.

Layout 2) have a larger bathroom with Toilet/Basin/Bath and shower cubical and to make a walk-in-wardrobe which is accessible from the master bedroom.

In this layout the bathroom is accessed from the landing and the Walk-in-wardrobe from the master bedroom.

I'd like to get some of your opinions on this an I'm sure that that are the regulations regarding a room without a window? (I'm guessing that it can't be a habitable room due to health and safety - No fire escape window, no ventilation and no natural light)

I'd like to get some professional advice on which layout would be the better of the two and possibly some advice on which would be more valuable to do for either rental or selling.

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[Jerry Peck]

What is a "box room"? Is that just a description of a room which is box-shaped? (Aren't most rooms "box shaped"?)

What building code are you under? Most codes require a window in a bathroom (with a required minimum size and minimum operable opening size) unless an exhaust fan is provided (which must meet minimum cfm requirements based on the size of the bathroom).

[John Kogel]

Layout #2 Larger Bathroom and walk-in wardrobe or closet. Those are both desirable features for resale. A room with no window in the middle of a house is good only for storage. A closet or a pantry.

Yes, the bathroom MUST have an exhaust fan. Install a modern timer switch with it. The fan must be practical so that it gets used every day. Do not buy a cheap fan as they are too loud and people don't like using them.

Consider installing a light tube, which provides natural light through a tube from above.