The air is dry and cold, the surrounding landscape has turned brown and dull and the nights are long. Winter had made itself known which typically signals a collective shift towards hauling blankets out of cupboards and wiping dust off heaters. Your bathroom, which inevitably becomes the coldest room in the house during winter, can also be made ‘winter-ready’. According to Tile Africa’s marketing manager Debra Retief, there are a number of things people can do to heat up bathrooms while improving them at the same time.
Heated towel rails:
A heated towel rail is just one of the many stylish accessories that can be used to transform a bathroom design from a purely functional room into a truly luxurious warm ‘cocoon’ where you can relax and boost your metabolism. There’s also nothing quite like drying off in the middle of winter with a freshly heated, toasty towel.
Notes Retief: “Heated towel rails are trendy, available in a wide range of styles and will complement any bathroom. Though labelled as the ultimate luxury item for your bathroom this winter, heated towel rails are not as costly as you may expect. Heated towel rails also don’t consume a large amount of electricity as most brands have developed solutions that use less electricity, while maximising heating efficiency.
“For instance, Tile Africa supplies heated towel rails featuring Dry Element Technology (DET) which provide direct ‘intelligent’ heating. Only the horizontal bars and not the vertical bars of the towel rail heat up too which saves electricity.”
Ditch that icy floor:
If the thought of stepping out of a nice, warm bath or shower onto an icy floor makes your toes curl, you may want to consider investing in underfloor heating in the bathroom.
There are numerous underfloor heating options available on the market which are quite cost effective and energy efficient says Retief. Given the nature of the installation process, it’s best to integrate underfloor heating right from the start when your house is being built or during a bathroom renovation project. Underfloor heating raises the ambient temperature in the room, making it pleasant to step out of the bath or shower no matter what the temperature is outside.
If you can’t stretch to underfloor heating, chat to an electrician about installing a bathroom-safe heater. If you do go this route, make sure you work with a professional. You don’t want to take chances with electronics in the bathroom. If this isn’t an option either, simply opt for a nice, plush memory foam bathmat which can also take the edge off an icy floor.
Invest in an awesome bath:
A bath during the winter months can be positively heavenly and warm you through and through. Notes Retief: “Apart from their core cleaning function, baths are a soothing reward, a meditative reprieve and provide a truly personal experience.”
With this in mind – and again if you can afford it – invest in a bath that looks the part and retains heat. Materials such as copper, limestone and soapstone retain heat well and will help keep the water warmer for longer while you spoil yourself with a book or magazine or just a good soak.
When purchasing a bath, make sure it gels with the rest of your bathroom design, is comfortable and fits within the allocated space.
Other winter warmers:
Although décor doesn’t heat up a space as such, it certainly helps to create the impression of warmth. For instance, in the bathroom, you could add soft, appealing lights, paint the walls a warm, inviting colour and add natural and wood accents.
Lastly, if you are of the slightly eccentric persuasion and chilly toilet seats leave you cold during winter, there are number of heated toilet seat products such as the ‘Toasty Tush’ which can be ordered online.