Shelf in the bathroom: types, materials, choice

The bathroom is one of the smallest rooms, but it takes a lot of time and money to equip it. The main problem in the choice of materials is that they must tolerate high humidity. In this article, we'll talk about bathroom shelves. About what they are in design, shape, what materials they are made of and how, after all, to choose them.

Types of bathroom shelves

First, let's take a look at what kind of bathroom shelves there are. According to the method of installation, there are only two of them - floor and suspended. Floor shelves do not always have where to install - not everyone can boast of a large area. Most try to organize a small space rationally and therefore floor shelves are not very common.

Not everyone can find a place to install a floor shelf

Wall-mounted shelves are more popular. They can be angular and linear. Corner ones are convenient above the bathroom - they use that part of the space that usually remains empty. In addition, located close to the shower head, this shelf allows you to keep everything you need close at hand. Below is a brief classification.

• Outdoor. These are rather shelves for storing towels, household chemicals and other things.
• Mounted:
  • wall-mounted:
    • single-tiered;
    • two or three-tiered;
  • corner:
    • on a common bar;
    • individual installation.

Different designs and different materials of wall shelves

In addition, built-in shelves should be a separate category. Their basis is made of drywall at the stage of repair. Then they are finished with waterproof materials: ceramic tiles, mosaics. They are practical, but after the repair is over, it is impossible to make them.

With mirror

It's hard to imagine a bathroom without a mirror. It can be separate, or it can be part of a shelf. A shelf with a mirror can be cabinet - this is one of the types of bathroom furniture. The base is made of waterproof MDF, covered with either a layer of paint or a laminated PVC film, and a mirror and shelves are attached to this base.

Shelves with mirror: with and without base

The second option is a frameless mirror shelf. In this case, the foundation may not exist at all. The mirror is taken thick and shelves are attached to it.

Cabinet shelves with a mirror are often called a mirrored bathroom cabinet. They can have shelves on the sides and bottom. Built-in lighting is often made. In this case, there is also a jumper on top, into which small depth lamps are built. The upper part can also be used, but you won't be able to store something heavy there. Shelves can be open or closed. They are usually made from the same MDF, but glass or mirror options can be found.

Cabinet cabinets are also called wall cabinets for the bathroom.

The mirror can be mounted on the base. Then it is framed by the surrounding shelves. The second option is on the cabinet door. There are two ways to open the door - as usual to the right or left or up - with a lifting mechanism.

Frameless mirror shelf options

Frameless mirrored shelves often have a frame to which the shelves are attached. There are few of them, most often one at the bottom. There are also those in which the shelves are attached to the main mirror. It is not recommended to overload them.

Wall and corner wall shelves

It can take a long time to describe options for shelves in a bathroom with wall mounting - on a plane and in a corner. There are a lot of design options. This applies to the choice of shape and material. But the designs are limited. They will be discussed.

First, let's talk about the number of "floors". There are single-tier shelves, there are two or more levels. If we talk about single-tier ones, each of them must be fixed separately. And these are additional holes in the walls. Since our bathrooms are mostly tiled with ceramic tiles, every hole is like a wound. Therefore, if one plane is not enough for sure, consider multi-tiered options.

Several tiers - fewer holes needed for installation

Alternatively, several single shelves can be hung at the desired distance from each other. For non-corner ones, you can still choose any position relative to each other. In general, more freedom of action. With this, we hope it is clear.

The second point: the presence of a fence. Both angular and wall-mounted can be with or without fences. The absence of sides is not so critical if they are hung straight. Yes, you can accidentally knock some tubes. But, if there are no children, this does not happen so often. But putting everything is much easier.

Fences can be of different heights

Shelves with bumpers are not very convenient during operation - it is harder to put and take out items. Especially high ones must be tilted carefully at a certain degree. In general, it is also a hassle.

There are shelves with the ability to hang a towel

Another modification is found in wall-mounted shelves. There may be a bar or two at the bottom for towels. There may be hooks. You can hang here not only towels, but also some accessories. It makes sense to place such models not in the "wet" area, but very close, so that you can take off the towel with your hand outstretched.

Corner on the bar

Corner shelves can be mounted on one vertical bar. Moreover, they can be plastic, metal, glass. The shelves can be fixed with the same pitch (more common), but you can find models with installation at different distances from each other. Why are they good? The fact that they require less fasteners. In the classic version, the bar is attached at the top and bottom, and the shelves are held on it, as well as by resting on the walls (in the photo, the far right).

Corner shelves on a bar

There are options for corner shelves with installation without drilling holes. Two ways - with a spacer bar and with suction cups. More reliable is the spacer bar. It is installed in the right place, pushed all the way into the floor and ceiling, and fixed in this position using a special clamp. The design is completely reliable.

What you should pay attention to. On the rod material. The shelves themselves are most often made of plastic, and they are attached to a metal pipe. This is bad: the metal quickly begins to rust. Therefore, better search on a plastic bar. The load from the bottle cans is not hundreds of kilograms or even tens of kilograms, so the safety margin of the plastic pipe will be more than enough.

Materials

It is difficult to decide on the material from which the shelf is made. As usual, we want high quality, beautiful and inexpensive. You probably understand that only two out of three requests can be satisfied at the same time. Everyone has their own concept of beauty, but if your taste is not so refined as to deny plastic, then it is quite possible to combine all three requirements in plastic. But "inexpensive" is relative to, say, stainless steel. And very cheap ones can hardly be called durable.

Glass and metal shelf

Plastic

The good thing about plastic bathroom shelves is that you can safely hang them in the shower stall. They feel great under running water. Put it in a bathtub with water. Just so that there are no problems with cleaning, make sure that there is a possibility of moisture drainage. There are a variety of models - both floor-standing, corner and wall-mounted. Moreover, mounting on suction cups is available. Unfortunately, few people keep them normally. But, if the tiles are smooth, with no embossing, chances are you are in luck.

Plastic shelves can be of different shapes and mounting methods

If we talk about special designs, then, perhaps, shelves on the sides of the bath are made only of plastic and stainless steel. But the price is stainless as an airplane wing. You can't find them here, but it's a very handy thing. There is another option - mounted. These are models that can be hung on the partition of the shower stall, if it is not up to the ceiling (in the photo at the bottom left). Such options can still be found among metal ones, but the word "cheap" is not applicable to high-quality models.

This shelf is installed on the sides of the bathroom. Everything is at hand and no need to get up for soap or a washcloth

A couple more practical points. First. If your water is hard, it is better to take light shades - salt deposits are not so visible on them. The second point also concerns the choice of the color of the shelf, but the approach is from a design point of view. If the design is boring, you can add colors just with bright plastic accessories - you get a "fun" bath. If you prefer a more discreet style, choose gray, brown, black. Play on contrasts.

Glass and mirrored

Glass shelves are considered dangerous by many. Maybe so, but think, you've ever heard someone hurt themselves with a glass shelf. It's just that the shelves in the bathroom are usually located in places where it is problematic to damage them. Above the sink, in the corners of the bathroom. In addition, thick glass is used, which is difficult to damage. Of course, if there are fidgety children, experimenters, then probably not worth it. But if everyone has left the age of unrestrained exploration of the world, you can hang glass shelves in the bathroom without problems.

It's impossible to split such a thickness

Why are they so good? Those that look good in both large and small spaces. In small ones, they give an additional plus, since they do not visually clutter up the space. They are almost invisible. Only holders stick out from the wall, and the shelves themselves are "weightless" and transparent.

When buying a glass shelf, you can safely look with stainless steel holders and "swing" at good companies. There are not too many stainless steel, so beauty will result in a small amount. If the shelf assembly still shocks you at the price, look for glass shelf holders in furniture hardware stores. Limiters can also be found there if you want to install them.

The models are not particularly complex, so you can easily make yourself

Ask for the shelf itself to be cut in a glass workshop. In the same place, they will process the edges and make holes. Just be sure to clarify that you need it. By the way, there are colored glasses, there are frosted ones. So "transparency" is optional. Mirrors can also be used. Or patterned glass, and in order to have less problems with cleaning, turn the patterned side down.

From a maintenance point of view, glass is a normal material. But only if the water is hard, marks and stains remain. In this case, do not take "transparent", it will be easier with frosted ones.

Metal shelves

The most popular and, perhaps, the most difficult type to choose. It's not about the form, but the choice of the manufacturer. Metal bathroom shelves can be:

• made of stainless steel;
• chrome-plated (ordinary steel or brass with a spray layer);
• enameled;
• powder coated.

Metal shelves

The most durable are stainless steel shelves. But high-quality ones are very expensive, and there are no "average" prices. The assortment includes cheap ones, and then very expensive ones with a sharp price gap. Prices differ 5 times or more. Cheap ones are stainless steel that rusts. First, in the places of welding, then - further, because there are few alloying metals, and during welding they also burned out. Well, expensive ones are made of metal with normal properties, and even welded in a protective environment.

In the middle of the price range are chrome shelves. All is well for the first six months. And then, if the quality is not too high, the dusting will peel off, rust will climb out. This is if steel is plated with chrome.If brass, then over time a greenish tint appears, which is not removed by anything. The shelves of domestic production suffer from this. European manufacturers do not have such a problem, but the price is almost the same as that of a good stainless steel, so there is no point in buying them. Unless I liked the model.

The variety of designs is also not too great - usually grids

Enameled and powder coated metal shelves are an economical option. They cost quite a bit, but they do not live long either. In theory, powder coating should hold up well, but somehow so far no normal ones have been found. She will climb literally in six months.

If we talk about manufacturers of metal shelves in the bathroom, expensive ones can be taken without much hesitation. In the sense that they are generally of good quality. If you want the ones already tried, here they are:

• SMEDBO (Smedbo) medium price range (as for quality), good quality and wide assortment (so wide in the catalog).
• Groe is more expensive, but beautiful and lasts a long time.
• Hansgrohe - very nice and high quality, but very expensive.

Of course, there are other manufacturers of metal bath shelves, but there is no reliable operating experience, so we will not name them. If you have any verified brands, please unsubscribe in the comments. Or, on the contrary, there is a negative operating experience. In any case, it will be useful for everyone.

Wooden

Wooden shelves are practically not considered here. We are used to the fact that wood in the bathroom is impractical. But it is used outdoors, it is used for decking around the pool. There, the operating conditions are worse at times. It's just that now there are tools that allow you to make wood insensitive to water. And these are not varnishes. Or rather, not only them.

Although we don't associate wood with a bathroom, it looks great here.

Wood treated with a special oil is not covered with a film, remains “rough” to the touch, but stops absorbing moisture. She is not afraid of water or steam. The wood texture remains, the color is optional. You can leave the "native" one, you can make it darker / lighter, add some shade. In general, there are options.

Artificial stone

Another unusual material for bathroom shelves is artificial stone. There are no more questions here - he is definitely not afraid of water. That's just heavy, so such shelves require walls with good load-bearing capacity. Can be installed on brackets or embedded studs.

Artificial stone shelves. The color can be chosen at will, as well as the size and shape

They are not on sale, but they can be ordered according to your size and desire in those firms that make sinks. Just check with them the technology. An artificial stone will be normally operated, in which the mineral component (crushed stone, quartz sand, etc.) will be at least 80%. The remaining 20% ​​is synthetic binder. And it's good if it's acrylic resin (copolymers).