6 ms·

I suppose for appartments unit baths are prefab? Like just a sealed block with your toilet and bathtub, all in one package. There's also just like... the showe

by rtpg 6y ago

I suppose for appartments unit baths are prefab? Like just a sealed block with your toilet and bathtub, all in one package. There's also just like... the shower room itself, even in nicer appartments, that ends up just being a block (see video of installation). Seems like a pretty good way of reducing issues like leaks or weird plumbing issues. [0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB3wl4LWSJU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB3wl4LWSJU

bschwindHN 6y ago
> the shower room itself, even in nicer appartments, that ends up just being a block These are the best! One of my favorite parts of Japanese apartments. They make so much more sense than standing in a narrow bathtub, next to a toilet, in a room where you can't splash water everywhere. With that being said, I'll take the insulation and central heating/cooling from western housing.
- franciscop 6y ago
  I live in Japan as well and this it the thing I hate the most! You have half a shower and half a bathtub (unless you go very high end). I'd rather prefer a full shower or a full bathtub instead. Same happens with the toilet, it's a claustrophobic "room" under 1 sqmt, smaller than a ryanair seat. I would strongly prefer either having a bigger shower (no bathtub) + bigger toilet, or a bigger bathtub (no shower floor) + bigger toilet! Though some Japanese people really want/need a bathtub, so I guess it's just cultural.
  - fomine3 6y ago
    Shower + bathtub style is unacceptable for traditional Japanese lifestyle. All people on family take a bath everyday after a shower. They shares same bath water on a day because replacing water on a bath every time is huge waste of water and energy. It's fine for single person who don't take a bath but just a shower, but it seems to not majority. Most Japanese hates shower/bathtub + toilet style because it seems to completely nonsense, small space is relatively not a problem. While bathing, why should we see toilet and sniff toilet smell? Also toilet paper and cloths wets by bath. It's more problem for a family because Japanese house very rarely has multiple shower rooms.
    - franciscop 6y ago
      Yes, I understand that the dynamics might be different for a family. In Spain normally you'd have 1 bathroom for each 1-2 rooms, so a house/appt with 3 rooms would normally have 2 bathrooms. I am talking mainly as a single person renting. And of course it's my opinion coming from a different culture. "While bathing, why should we see toilet" I prefer to see an ample room while doing anything, than to have a wall right in front of me. It's not about the contents of the room, but about having walls less than 1 feet on each side of my face (for the toilet). "Toilet smell" should not be a problem normally with decent ventilation, specially with the industrial fans that Japanese homes seem to have in the bathrooms. My issue is with overall distribution, where Japanese houses (at least for single person/room) seem to take 30~40% of the floorplan space in what in other countries would be a single room taking 15~20%.
    - triceratops 6y ago
      > All people on family take a bath everyday after a shower Wait, first shower, then sit in a tub? What is the reason behind this? One or the other by itself should be enough to get clean right?
      - fomine3 6y ago
        Without showering, water in bathtub getting dirty earlier. We wash hair and body with soap and shower, then bathing. So the real question would be: Why bathing rather than just showering? It's cultural and it is considered to relaxing and healthy activity.
      - greggman3 6y ago
        The tub is for relaxing. The wash area is for washing. The Japanese tradition is first wash outside the tub. When you clean, climb in the tub and relax (like a Jacuzzi)
      - Aeolun 6y ago
        Jumping immediately in the bath when I’m the last one in is fine. Not so much when people come in after me.
      - 6y ago
  - greggman3 6y ago
    You don't have to go "very" high end. Nearly everyone I know who isn't under 35 lives in a 2 bedroom apartment with a tub larger than most western tubs and a shower (wash area) which just as much space as that tub Something like this https://i0.wp.com/easylifejapan.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/IMG_7958.jpg?fit=960%2C720&ssl=1 https://i0.wp.com/easylifejapan.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/... That's tub is the same length and wider than any of the 25 places I've lived in the USA and the shower would just be an attachment in the tub and I wouldn't have the wash area next to the tub.

by rtpg 6y ago

bschwindHN 6y ago

> the shower room itself, even in nicer appartments, that ends up just being a block These are the best! One of my favorite parts of Japanese apartments. They make so much more sense than standing in a narrow bathtub, next to a toilet, in a room where you can't splash water everywhere. With that being said, I'll take the insulation and central heating/cooling from western housing.

franciscop 6y ago
I live in Japan as well and this it the thing I hate the most! You have half a shower and half a bathtub (unless you go very high end). I'd rather prefer a full shower or a full bathtub instead. Same happens with the toilet, it's a claustrophobic "room" under 1 sqmt, smaller than a ryanair seat. I would strongly prefer either having a bigger shower (no bathtub) + bigger toilet, or a bigger bathtub (no shower floor) + bigger toilet! Though some Japanese people really want/need a bathtub, so I guess it's just cultural.
- fomine3 6y ago
  Shower + bathtub style is unacceptable for traditional Japanese lifestyle. All people on family take a bath everyday after a shower. They shares same bath water on a day because replacing water on a bath every time is huge waste of water and energy. It's fine for single person who don't take a bath but just a shower, but it seems to not majority. Most Japanese hates shower/bathtub + toilet style because it seems to completely nonsense, small space is relatively not a problem. While bathing, why should we see toilet and sniff toilet smell? Also toilet paper and cloths wets by bath. It's more problem for a family because Japanese house very rarely has multiple shower rooms.
  - franciscop 6y ago
    Yes, I understand that the dynamics might be different for a family. In Spain normally you'd have 1 bathroom for each 1-2 rooms, so a house/appt with 3 rooms would normally have 2 bathrooms. I am talking mainly as a single person renting. And of course it's my opinion coming from a different culture. "While bathing, why should we see toilet" I prefer to see an ample room while doing anything, than to have a wall right in front of me. It's not about the contents of the room, but about having walls less than 1 feet on each side of my face (for the toilet). "Toilet smell" should not be a problem normally with decent ventilation, specially with the industrial fans that Japanese homes seem to have in the bathrooms. My issue is with overall distribution, where Japanese houses (at least for single person/room) seem to take 30~40% of the floorplan space in what in other countries would be a single room taking 15~20%.
  - triceratops 6y ago
    > All people on family take a bath everyday after a shower Wait, first shower, then sit in a tub? What is the reason behind this? One or the other by itself should be enough to get clean right?
    - fomine3 6y ago
      Without showering, water in bathtub getting dirty earlier. We wash hair and body with soap and shower, then bathing. So the real question would be: Why bathing rather than just showering? It's cultural and it is considered to relaxing and healthy activity.
    - greggman3 6y ago
      The tub is for relaxing. The wash area is for washing. The Japanese tradition is first wash outside the tub. When you clean, climb in the tub and relax (like a Jacuzzi)
    - Aeolun 6y ago
      Jumping immediately in the bath when I’m the last one in is fine. Not so much when people come in after me.
    - 6y ago
- greggman3 6y ago
  You don't have to go "very" high end. Nearly everyone I know who isn't under 35 lives in a 2 bedroom apartment with a tub larger than most western tubs and a shower (wash area) which just as much space as that tub Something like this https://i0.wp.com/easylifejapan.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/IMG_7958.jpg?fit=960%2C720&ssl=1 https://i0.wp.com/easylifejapan.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/... That's tub is the same length and wider than any of the 25 places I've lived in the USA and the shower would just be an attachment in the tub and I wouldn't have the wash area next to the tub.