<\/p>
- Question 2) <\/strong>How can you design your bathrooms to be easier (and more time-efficient) to clean? After all, 65% of your housekeeping budget are wages and salaries. How can you stop front desk complaints before they get started?<\/li><\/ul>
In this article I\u2019ll look at 5 practical (yet stylish) ideas to do the (seemingly) impossible \u2013 create a distinctive bathroom and shower and reduce housekeeping costs and operating expenses. Let\u2019s check out the 5 ideas.<\/p>
Hotel bathroom design idea #1 \u2013 Blow up tile grout joints, without sacrificing the luxury tile look \u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>
Who on your housekeeping staff loves to clean tile grout joints? \u2018Er \u2013 that would be no one! And the time to scrub away dirt and scum is so time-consuming it makes the financial people break out into a sweat.<\/p>
When you realize, in most hotel rooms, tile grout joints are everywhere it doesn\u2019t take a self-professed psychic from the Psychic Friends Hotline to conclude these joints are a front desk complaint waiting to happen.<\/p>
Although your tiles \u2018looked\u2019 great the day they were installed, if your tile joints scream out \u2018nasty and dirty\u2019 to guests today they may not only never return but also \u2018blast out\u2019 their \u2018findings\u2019 to everyone on Instagram and Facebook at your expense.<\/p>
The question is, can you find a better, yet-stylish alternative to grouted tiles? \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>
One grout-free idea (which blows the doors of fake-plasticky-looking, molded products like acrylic and cultured stone) are laminated wall panels<\/a><\/u>. These specially designed hotel shower wall panels<\/a><\/u> not only have the look and feel of real grout joints, but they\u2019re non-porous. They\u2019ll slash the time it takes your housekeeping staff to clean a shower or bathtub surround.
![\"laminate](\"https:\/\/innovatebuildingsolutions.com\/multi-unit-bathrooms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/laminate-shower-panels-antique-gray-hotel-bathroom-727x900.png\")
<\/a><\/p>Since these panels come in 2\u2019 x 8\u2019 x 3\/8\u201d modular sections (which weigh 26 lbs.) they can be installed by your maintenance people.<\/p>
You\u2019ll also get your interior designer excited because design styles range from Modern Minimalist to Transitionalist to Modern Farmhouse.<\/p>
Why put up with nasty hotel shower<\/a> and bathroom wall grout joints ever again?<\/p>
Hotel bathroom design idea #2 \u2013 Ditch the 60\u201d x 30\u201d alcove tub. Build a shower. <\/strong><\/h2>
In residential home remodeling, bath to shower conversion projects are hot. You may ask, why. Here\u2019s two reasons.<\/p>
- Stepping over a tub rail is dangerous.<\/li><\/ul>
- Nobody has the time to sit and bathe in a tub.<\/li><\/ul>
In your hotel or resort, guests are looking to get out quick. They have a meeting. They\u2019re sightseeing or visiting relatives (and were glad they weren\u2019t \u2018stuck\u2019 having to sleep over their house). They\u2019re not looking to soak and bath in your bathtub. Besides, half them are grossed out at the thought of bathing in a tub (and the germs in this tub) some stranger (might have) used yesterday. I know my wife Rose wouldn\u2019t be caught dead using a hotel bathtub, and I know she\u2019s not alone.<\/p>
It\u2019s for this reason, contemporary hotel bathroom designs<\/u><\/a> favor showers over tubs.
![\"Hotel](\"https:\/\/innovatebuildingsolutions.com\/multi-unit-bathrooms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Hotel-bathroom-shower-with-laminate-wall-panels-600x900.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>When you design using a shower, you could have the side benefit of gaining space (a stand-up shower is smaller than a 60\u201d tub), giving you more room for a niche for towels. In addition, you\u2019ll also have a smaller space for housekeeping to clean and a shower is less back breaking to clean than bending over a tub rail (maybe you\u2019ll finally start reducing those workmen\u2019s comp expenses).<\/p>
Hotel bathroom design #3 \u2013 Make it simpler to clean bathroom \u2018nooks and crannies\u2019 which Mrs. Thomas (if she actually exists) would want NO part of! \u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>
Cleaning a hotel bathroom IS NOT a tasty job (am I \u2018Captain Obvious\u2019 right here, or not?).<\/p>
When you think about the \u2018nooks and crannies\u2019 of a hotel bathroom they surely aren\u2019t as tasty as dreaming about the buttery or raspberry jelly-filled nooks and crannies of a Mrs. Thomas\u2019 English Muffin (and no Mrs. Thomas doesn\u2019t have me on the payroll for that free non-paid plug!).<\/p>
No, the nooks and crannies your Manager of Housekeeping worries about keeping clean and having guests coming back are around the toilet or inside tile shower niches. They want (and you need) these nooks and crannies cleaned well. Your manager also wants to increase the number of rooms cleaned per staff member per shift, at the same time. They want to reduce operating expenses.<\/p>
Nooks and crannies are the archenemy of hotel operating efficiency. The good news is there are ways to \u2018beat-down\u2019 this enemy.<\/p>
One idea (if you\u2019re building or remodeling and want a contemporary bathroom) is to use a wall hung toilet. With a wall hung toilet (or wall hung vanity for that matter) these nooks and crannies on the floor are eliminated.<\/p>
Another idea (for your shower or bathtub surround) is to get rid of tile niches and install a stainless-steel shower niche<\/a><\/u>. They look sharp, have a modern matte finish and are easy to clean. You also won\u2019t have guest complaining about the cheap wire baskets you installed years ago where the soap always falls through the cracks (as a side-note, these wire baskets drive me NUTS!).
![\"Stainless](\"https:\/\/innovatebuildingsolutions.com\/multi-unit-bathrooms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Stainless-steel-recessed-niche-laminate-panels-hotel-bath-675x900.png\")
<\/a><\/p>Hotel bathroom design idea #4 \u2013 Less \u2018design\u2019 can be more stylish for your guest (and give you a better financial return) <\/strong><\/h2>
Let\u2019s face it, there are a lot of \u2018not-so-great\u2019 choices for the entry to your shower or tub surround.<\/p>
First, there\u2019s the shower curtain option. The problem with shower curtains is they get dirty, stained and need constant replacement.<\/p>
Or you could use a pivoting door, but they leave pools of water on the floor.<\/p>
Lastly, you could use a sliding door, but they often have bottom tracks which trap soap and scum no human being wants to look at, let-alone clean!<\/p>
You need an operationally efficient (OK \u2013 that\u2019s code word for simple to clean and cuts cleaning costs per occupied room), yet stylish way go create a shower or tub entry. Here\u2019s one idea to consider.<\/p>
Use a straight or cool curved shower screen<\/a><\/u> with a walk-in shower design. This product works in 48\u201d, 54\u201d or 60\u201d wide alcove spaces. It\u2019s contemporary, has a smaller surface area to clean and creates a \u2018wow\u2019 look to inspire guests to say, \u201cWouldn\u2019t this look cool in my home?\u201d
![\"Curved](\"https:\/\/innovatebuildingsolutions.com\/multi-unit-bathrooms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Curved-glass-shower-screen-walk-in-design.png\")
<\/a><\/p>This option is a \u2018win\u2019 for your guest and a \u2018win\u2019 for you.<\/p>
Hotel bathroom design idea #5 \u2013 Stylish shower pans which \u2018take a licking and keep on ticking\u2019 <\/strong><\/h2>
I don\u2019t know if you\u2019re old enough to remember this classic Timex watch commercial where they used their once-famous tag line, Timex, It Takes a Licking Yet Keeps on Ticking. <\/em>If not give it a quick view and add a little humor to your day.<\/p>
- Nobody has the time to sit and bathe in a tub.<\/li><\/ul>
- Stepping over a tub rail is dangerous.<\/li><\/ul>