11 Tips for a Windowless Bathroom

11 Tips for a Windowless Bathroom

Every room in the house should have at least one window to allow for ventilation and to bring in natural daylight. Sometimes, however, this isn’t possible in a bathroom. Fortunately, there are ways to make this minor inconvenience a little less so.

 

Is your windowless bathroom dark and dreary? Does it make you feel claustrophobic? Do unpleasant odours linger? No problem! Here are 11 tips to address all these issues.

1- Make Sure You Have Unbeatable Ventilation

Our first bit of advice is to make sure you have an adequate exhaust fan installed to compensate for the lack of air circulation. If your mirror fogs up every time you take a shower, this might be an indication that the system is not powerful enough. A proper fan is essential to preventing mould issues as it will suck out excess humidity (as well as any offending odours!).

2- Shed Light on Shadowy Corners

In a small, dark bathroom with no windows, every nook and cranny should be illuminated. For example, there should be at least one light source at either end of a long and narrow room.

3- Use Bright Sunny Colours

Bright accent colours – like canary yellow or a muted but warm orange – are equally welcome in windowless rooms. They will cheer up a space that would otherwise be spoiled by the lack of sunlight. 

4- Fall in Love with Reflective Surfaces

Polished finishes reflect light, both natural and artificial. In addition to creating the impression that the room is larger than its actual dimensions, it will also maximize the illumination power of the pre-existing lighting. Lustrous ceramic tiles on the floor or wall, lacquered decor accessories, high-gloss or semigloss paint or a big mirror may be exactly what this room needs.

5- Use Pale and Neutral Tones

Dark colours will only make the lack of light in a windowless bathroom even more obvious. It is best to choose mostly sober, pale tones such as white, cream or a subdued grey.

6- A Glass Shower Door

Because of its transparency, a glass shower door is the best option in a small windowless bathroom as it isn’t visually restricting or cumbersome the way a shower curtain can be.

7- Don’t Overload the Space

The less light a bathroom has, the fewer decorative accents and accessories you should use. Think handleless cabinet doors, floating furniture and an overall sleek minimalist decor!

8- Include a Sweet and Subtle Fragrance

When there’s no window you can open to air out a room, bad smells can linger. So why not add an air freshener? Scented candles or an essential oil diffuser will also do a great job of making the ambient air more pleasant. 

9- Install a Skylight

A drastic yet effective solution, when possible, is to have a skylight installed in the ceiling. But be aware that adding a window is usually a less expensive alternative.

10- Go for the Natural Look

If you don’t have a window through which you can gaze out at nature, bring nature inside! Houseplants, natural materials (linen, rope), prints of birds, a mural featuring a sunrise, etc., will give your bathroom the boost it needs.

11- Fake it

This illusion is not easy to pull off but can be very impressive when successfully carried out! The idea is to add a brightly-colour rectangular object (window-shaped) on the wall where the window should be. It can be a wooden panel that has been painted white, a length of white canvas stretched over a frame, or white ceramic tiles. This tip is most effective when paired with a contrasting dark wall colour.

 

A windowless bathroom doesn’t have to be a negative for your home when you decide to put it up for sale. If properly designed and luminous, visitors may well succumb to its charms.

RE/MAX Québec

By RE/MAX Québec

By RE/MAX Québec

A leader in the real estate industry since 1982, the RE/MAX network brings together the most efficient brokers.