Are You Afraid of Your Bathroom?

Creepy cabinets and petrified plumbing.  Blood-stained bathtubs and slimy showers. Terrified toilets and screaming sinks. For some people, Halloween doesn’t happen once a year but every day of the year. Here are some helpful tips to exorcise your bathroom from its demons.

According to Better Homes and Gardens, slow draining sinks, tubs and showers scare homeowners most. For bathroom sinks, the pro’s advice is to close the drain, fill your sink with hot boiling water and then open the drain carefully. If you’re lucky the water pressure will dislodge the debris. For tubs and showers you might have to remove the clog manually with a hanger by unscrewing the drain cover, and prying the debris out with a straightened coat hanger with a small hook at the end. If you don’t feel comfortable with this approach, call in a plumber.

Straight out of the classic horror movie Psycho, a leaky showerhead can ruin anybody’s day. Usually it’s nothing more than mineral buildup or a worn-out rubber gasket that’s seen better days. Start by finding out the cause of the problem. Remove the showerhead with a pair of pliers or a wrench; be careful to not bend the attached pipe. If the gasket is worn, you can pick up a new one at your local hardware store. But if a clogged showerhead seems to be the problem soaking it in vinegar overnight will loosen the deposits. Poking the holes with a toothpick into the showerhead’s holes and scrubbing it in the morning will remove them completely. The vinegar will also leave your new showerhead shiny and clean.

While these quick fixes might end your bathroom spook fest; you might need some help from Soak Saskatoon for the right products and accessories so that you can live happily ever after.

Choosing the Right Bathroom Sink

Top mount or undermount sinks? Wall-mount or pedestal sinks?  There is a lot of choice out there and we’ll try to break it down for you.

Before you head out the door to get that new sink (and feel free to stop by our showroom) you need to consider which bathroom (master en suite, family bathroom, powder room), who is going to use the bathroom more often and the size of the space you. You might not have the space in your powder room for a double sink but you might in your master bedroom bathroom.

A top-mount sink is the most common sink and sits in the bathroom cabinet with the rim visible. It works best in a minimalist design scheme. It can be used with any countertop material and is also less costly to install in a stone countertop, because you avoid having to polish the cutout edges, as is the case with an undermount sink.  Unfortunately you can’t wipe any spills into the sink because of the rim.

An undermount sink is installed underneath the counter with the rim flush with the countertop instead of sitting on top of it. Its clean look makes it a great fit for a high traffic family bathroom. You can clean up water spills easily but it is a more costly alternative requiring it to be installed to a stone or solid surface countertop material.

The advantage of a wall-mounted sink is that it doesn’t have any cabinets below it. Not only do you save on space but it makes the room look larger than it is. All of the plumbing must be located in the wall, there isn’t any storage space and excess water usually spills onto the floor. Ideal for the powder room; where storage isn’t a priority.

Suitable for a classic or a period oriented design, a pedestal sink hides the plumbing but the lack of any storage space under the sink or any counter space around it might not be suitable for a family bathroom.

A semi-recessed sink is the perfect alternative because it’s installed on the cabinet; providing you with some underneath storage space; perfectly suited for smaller spaces that need storage space,   Because the cabinets do not extend to the floor, it frees up additional floor space. But with limited storage space and a front of counter installation water often spills onto the floor.

If you want a statement piece a vessel sink that sits completely on top of the countertop might be the sink for you. It holds more water than most sinks but because it is higher than most other types of sinks it can be uncomfortable to use and difficult to clean.

Visit us online at www.soakbath.ca to see our full selection of high quality and reasonably priced bathroom sinks and cabinets.

What came first … the Chicken or the Egg Shell?

One of life’s biggest questions doesn’t really have a right or wrong answer. No matter what side of the debate that you’re on there’s no denying that both are essential in order for life to exist. And just like that great dilemma, we’re going to try to settle this once and for all… the Shell Series Massage Bath Tub came first … of course. The cleaner chicken catches the worms or something like that.

Computer controlled with remote (one of life’s simple pleasures) 17 hydro massage and air jets, constant heat function, a hand-held shower to get to those hard to reach spots and 2 built-in seats with head cushions will make sure that you’ll never want to leave your bathroom oasis. Measuring 59” (1498mm) x 59” (1498mm) x 27” (685.8mm) the A111B’s shape will fit most bathroom configurations.

Enjoying your new bathtub might be what’s first in your mind but when it comes to cleaning; the Shell Series A111 will make your life easier with features such as a pipe rinse and drain system and water pump protection.

You’ll love your Shell Series A111B Massage Bathtub from Soak and like most of its owners, you’ll wonder how you go by without one.

Winterizing Your Hot Tub

Environment Canada is calling for the snow to end sometime today with total amounts in the 20 to 30 cm range. Ready or not winter is knocking on our doorstep. So how do you prepare? Snow tires ... check, snow blower … check, drain the pool … check.  What about the hot tub?

If you have a hot tub that you want to close up for the winter it starts with the realization that hot tub spas get damaged because they aren’t properly winterized.  It also costs a lot to repair them.  Don’t let it get that far.

You have to start by turning off the circuit breaker for the spa’s electrical line and even better unplug the unit. Then remove the hard thermal cover and drain out the spa by hooking a garden hose to the spa’s bottom drain spout. Make sure that you leave the bottom drain spout open when you’re finished.

After you turn off your spa heater and  replace the hard thermal cover on the spa and turn the spa’s circuit breaker back on, or plug the unit back in. If you have an air blower, let it run for approximately 30 seconds in order to blow all the water out of the air channel under the spa seats.

Remove the cover and soak up all the remaining water from inside the spa with towels or the best way possible, making sure that you get all the water out. Take out the hot tub filter and empty the water out of the filter canister compartment.

You’ll have to get the water out of the jet piping.  You can do this by blowing air through a compressor or hose into the jets. Get out of the spa and put the hard cover back on the unit. Tie down the cover to so that wind it doesn’t get flipped up by wind.

If you have an in ground or in deck hot tub, you’ll have to attach Winter Spa Cover over the hard thermal cover. One neat trick is to place the winter cover over the hard cover and lay swimming pool type water tubes around the hot tub decking which will prevent rain or water from getting into your spa over the winter.

All that’s left to do is bury your head and wait for spring. If you go through withdrawal, there are always outdoor spas. 

Feng Shui for Your Bathroom

In the world of interior design, Feng Shui is hot. Feng Shui is China’s ancient art of placement of things and objects and their effect on the energy flow of the environment and their influence on personal energy flow.

Feng Shui can be applied to every room in a house, including our modern bathrooms. Energy as represented by chi or qi is the term for the universal energy, or the energy that permeates everything around us.  Chi affects our physical and mental health, relationships and level of success. A strong, vibrant flow of Chi in your home will keep nourishing your personal energy, thus allowing you to focus and achieve your personal goals.

It’s easier to implement Feng Shui principles in a new home. But if you’re renovating an older home; don’t despair; you can correct the Feng Shui of an older home. You should avoid locating your bathroom near or next to the front door because this placement drains chi the moment the energy enters the home. Likewise a second floor bathroom directly above a kitchen or front door will extinguish the fire element of your kitchen and damage the health and prosperity a kitchen's chi brings.

If you have a bathroom located near the front door hang a full length mirror on the inside of the bathroom door and place a mirror directly opposite the toilet. Fresh flowers or a bowl of pebbles on the lid of the tank represent earth and will minimize the powerful negative effects of a toilet.

If your bathroom has too much negative chi (energy) you can prevent loss of wealth by adding either a black or red bath rug around the base of the toilet. Beige, cream light blue or gray will also help the counter the effect of too much water because they draw fire.

It’s important to remember that bathroom design elements can be influenced by objects and their placement allowing you to achieve harmony with nature and your surroundings.