Selecting The Right Bathroom Accessories For Hotels – 5 Factors To Consider
In a hotel, for a paramount guests’ experience, a well-designed and functional bathroom plays a major role. Irrespective of the number of hotel stars and the size of the bathroom, today’s traveler looks at the functionality, and aesthetics of the bathrooms in guestrooms. To make the bathroom space functional and aesthetically pleasing, a wide range of bathroom accessories are available out there.
For any midscale 100 room hotel with approximately 104 bathrooms, each bathroom of around 70 Sq. Ft., the total cost of bathroom accessories comes to a lumpsum 25,000 USD – 35,000 USD. This cost includes all the necessary toilet and bath accessories, and it comes to around 0.25% of the entire project valuation.
A good hotel bathroom design has more to contemplate than choosing just the paints and tiles. Architects need to cover all products of toilet, bath, washroom, and restroom for designing a good hotel bathroom, and all these terms are not the same. A toilet is an area with water closets, and urinals for human waste disposal, a bath refers to an area with a bathtub or an area for shower, a restroom is a term used at public places that has many toilet compartments, hand wash area, and an area to relax, a washroom is an area with a sink used for hand washing and may or may not have a rest area, and a bathroom comprises of majorly all the accessories as it covers a toilet, bath area, hand wash area and a rest area. Hence bathroom is a term widely used for hotels and residential projects. From small robe hooks to towel bars, to ADA products like shower seats and grab bars, to dispensers and disposals, toilet and bath accessories cover a varied range of products. Bathroom accessories define style, and add a distinctive charm to the bathroom space contributing to the overall comfort, and look of the bathroom. Adding small and big bath accessories that provide utility will definitely benefit the bathroom, and will improve guest experience.
There are many different aspects that need to be considered for selecting the right bathroom accessories for hotels.
Here are 5 major factors to consider while selecting the right hotel bathroom accessories:
1. Bathroom Layout
There isn’t a lot of flexibility when it comes to the layout of the bathroom. For hotel bathrooms there are standard sizes for shower area: 30”x60” and 36”x36”, the rest of the area with sink, water closet, and all depends on the design. One must assess the bathroom in terms of availability of the space, required accessories, and the placement of the bathroom fixtures. Regardless of the size, there are countless options when it comes to how to accessorize it. A larger bathroom space may provide more flexibility and freedom of choice, but space is not the only dictator for accessories. How one uses the space cleverly together with the correctly styled accessories decides the look for the bathroom. Based on the layout of the bathroom, one can make a list of all the bathroom accessories that would go in. The arrangement, and selection of appropriate of toilet and bath accessories matters the most when complementing a bathroom style as this covers the problem related to layout or space. For example, adding a mirror in a small bathroom will create an illusion of space making the bathroom look bigger than its actual size.
2. Material Selection
When it comes to toilet accessories, the market gives a wide variety of materials to choose from – Stainless Steel, Brass, Zinc, Alloys of Zinc, and Stainless Steel, Glass, ABS plastic, Nylon, etc. The base material/composition of the toilet and bath accessory plays a vital role in terms of longevity of the product and the aesthetics. One’s bathroom accessories should be able to withstand repetitive touch, as well as get wet without significant degradation. Hence, organic materials like wood are rarely used in bathroom hardware. Based on the budget and the look one wants to go for, picking the right material is extremely important. Some of the most commonly used material for bathroom accessories in US Hotel Industry are explained below:
- Stainless Steel – Stainless steel is the most common base metal for bathroom accessories. As per the requirement, the composition of nickel and chromium may vary but overall, 304 Stainless Steel (18% chromium and 8% nickel) is commonly used.
- Zinc – If you are looking for very cost-effective options, Zinc is the base material to pick. The cheaper price also means it is less durable compared to Brass and Stainless Steel.
- Brass – Brass is a solid bet for bathroom fixtures, as all-brass made hardware can last for many years. They’re also less likely to corrode. So, it’s often worth paying a little extra for brass bathroom hardware.
- Alloys – (zinc + SS) – To balance the cost and quality, sometimes manufacturers offer an alloy of zinc with brass or stainless steel. This ensures the durability of the hardware is better than a zinc hardware while also being less expensive.
- Plastic ABS – Plastic or PVC is a popular material used in the manufacture of some of the bathroom accessories. Their advantage is that they are most inexpensive and can be easily replaced. On the downside, plastic models are easily worn out and can also be easily damaged but because of its resistance to water, and moisture, it is a great material to pick for products like shower and tub seats.
3. Design of Bathroom Accessories
Bathroom accessories come in different shapes and designs. The overall look of the bathroom space is defined by the style or design of the chosen toilet and bath accessories. Choosing the design that is just right for a particular toilet/bathroom is an entirely personal choice. In general, it pays to keep a bathroom design scheme relatively consistent. For instance, an antique robe hook might look out of place with modern decor. These days manufacturers and suppliers quote bathroom accessories for hotels as a collection/group for the sake of maintaining consistency, and this makes architects’ job very easy. However, it is an individual choice whether they would want to incorporate a collection from a particular manufacturer or whether they would like to quote different models altogether. Bathroom accessories make a great product that are most often small and unnoticeable but makes a great difference to the overall look of the bathroom space.
4. Finish of Bathroom Accessories
Once the design is finalized, picking the right finish is equally important. While picking a color, the overall aesthetics and interiors of the bathroom need to be considered. Architects must pick a finish keeping in mind the sentiments of the guests as well as the market trends. Manufacturers provide a vast range of finish options to pick from. Some of the most commonly used finishes in the USA hotel bathrooms are:
Chrome
Chrome is a more popular finish because of its versatility. It is less expensive compared to other finishes. It is easy to clean and maintain. Its neutral color look will be easy to match the accessories with the interiors of any bathroom. The polished shiny look of chrome gives a very expensive look even when it isn’t.
Satin
Satin finish features the classic brushed-over look like true stainless-steel metal. It hides water spots better than polish or chrome and looks neat and modern.
Matte Black
Adding Matte Black accessories to your bathroom can amp up the look entirely. Although it is easy to maintain, finding the right design in this finish could be a challenge as it may have lesser options and turn out to be more expensive.
Satin Nickel
Satin Nickel is a bit glossy finish as compared to satin. It gives a softer matte appearance. If one wants a minimal modern and underplayed look for their bath accessories, this is the best finish to opt for.
5. Utility of Bathroom Accessories
While picking the right bathroom accessories one must consider the usage of the bathroom. For example, adding a grab bar along the water closet or shower to provide provision in ADA rooms is alright, but adding grab bars in all the bathrooms is merely a cost addition. Likewise, utility and functionality of each toilet/bath accessory should be considered otherwise one might end up having too many accessories making the bathroom look cluttered along with added cost.
Make A Perfect Choice
All in all, a bathroom is not only a place of convenience but also a relaxing space. Hoteliers must make sure that the bathroom accessories selected for toilets and baths must be utilitarian along with being aesthetically appealing, for their guests to have a hassle free bath experience. At AORBIS Inc. we supply bathroom accessories for guest areas, public areas, ADA bath accessories, and all other general bathroom accessories.
The hotel baths offer a WOW factor all by their own and become a branding asset for the top-notch hotel companies.
These hotel companies sure know how to get in a lather about choosing the perfect toilet and bath accessories.
We are CT based suppliers/distributors of doors, frames, & hardware. We supply all types of wood doors, hollow metal doors, fiberglass doors, & vinyl doors to our clients across 48 states of the USA. As a reliable distributor, we supply all types of wood, hollow metal, fiberglass, and vinyl doors in swing, barn, pocket, by-pass, and bi-fold styles along with frames and hardware.
As a dependable supplier/distributor of toilet & bath accessories, we supply a complete line of toilet, bath, bathroom, restroom, and washroom accessories for unit, public & common areas, and all the general building products. We supply 40+ different types of toilet/bath accessories in 50+ finishes and 30+ materials for all project types.