House Building in Union City, GA

For their size, bathrooms are the most technical rooms in a house. Each one packs plumbing, ventilation, wiring, waterproofing and finishes into a small space, and mistakes are hard to fix once tile is set. In a house building project in Union City, careful bathroom planning during design pays off every day the family lives there.

Here we look at how many bathrooms to plan and where they go, what sits inside the walls and floors, and the order in which a bathroom comes together.

How many bathrooms, and where they go

A common pattern is a primary bath, a hall bath or a shared bath between two bedrooms, and a powder room near the living areas for guests. A full bath on the main level adds flexibility for overnight visitors or a relative who would rather avoid stairs. Try not to open a powder room door straight into the dining room or kitchen.

Location also drives mechanical coordination. Stacking an upstairs bath above a downstairs bath or the kitchen, or placing two baths back to back on a shared wet wall, keeps drain runs short and leaves fewer pipes passing through ceilings over living spaces.

Layout inside each bathroom

Plumbing codes set minimum clearances around toilets and between fixtures, but comfortable rooms usually exceed them. A pocket door can rescue a tight room where a swinging door would hit the vanity. Many primary baths separate the toilet into its own small room. Decide between a double or single vanity, and between a tub and a shower in secondary baths; a household with small children often wants at least one tub. Keep windows out of the shower if possible, or plan privacy glass and water-resistant trim where one cannot be avoided.

Structure under tubs and showers

A large soaking tub full of water, or a cast iron or stone tub, is heavy, and the floor framing beneath it may need extra support. A curbless shower requires the subfloor in that area to be recessed so the floor can slope to the drain without a step, which has to be planned before framing. Joists should not be cut to make room for a drain. Blocking for grab bars, a glass shower door, a wall-hung vanity and towel bars goes in while the walls are open.

Fixtures and lighting chosen before rough-in

Plumbing rough-in depends on the exact fixtures. The shower valve type, body sprays or a handheld, the tub filler location, a wall-mounted or deck-mounted faucet and the toilet’s rough-in distance all have to be known before pipes are set. Lighting follows the same rule. Sconces on each side of the mirror light a face more evenly than a single bar overhead, a fixture rated for wet locations can light the shower, and an outlet inside the vanity or beside the toilet for a bidet seat must be roughed in early.

Waterproofing, ventilation and durable finishes

Tile and grout are not waterproof on their own. Behind them goes a waterproof membrane, either a sheet or a liquid applied over cement board, with the shower floor sloped to the drain and niches built into the waterproof layer. A flood test of the shower pan before tile catches leaks while they are easy to repair.

An exhaust fan sized for the room and ducted to the outdoors, ideally with a timer or humidity sensor, removes the moisture that leads to mildew. For finishes, choose floor tile with good slip resistance, remember that large-format tile needs a flatter substrate, and favor vanity boxes made from moisture-resistant materials.

The order a bathroom comes together

Construction sequencing for a bathroom runs roughly like this: framing and blocking, plumbing rough-in with valve bodies, electrical and fan ducting, then rough inspections and insulation. Backer board and waterproofing follow, then tile, the vanity and countertop, plumbing trim such as faucets and toilets, and finally accessories. Frameless shower glass is measured after tile is finished and has its own lead time, so a short wait for it near the end is normal. Our Union City remodeling services page covers bathroom and other updates for existing homes.

Union City permits, inspections and sewer connections

Union City is in Fulton County. The city’s Building Permits Division, part of Community Development, takes permit applications, plumbing among them, through the iWorQ online portal. Most projects need a permit obtained either by the owner or by a contractor who meets the city’s license and bonding requirements, and work must start within 180 days of issue or the permit expires. Inspections are booked through the same portal with the permit number and the contractor’s code, and requests made before 4 p.m. are inspected the next business day by the city’s contracted inspection firm.

Opening or connecting to a public sewer takes a separate written city permit with its own permit and inspection fee, and the connection is made under city supervision (Sec. 15-199).

Frequently asked questions about bathrooms in a new home

Why should a shower be flood-tested before tile goes on?

A flood test fills the shower pan with water for a set period, often a full day, to confirm the waterproofing holds before tile hides it. Finding a leak at that stage means repairing a membrane rather than tearing out finished tile, and possibly drywall and ceilings below. It is a simple step that protects one of the most leak-prone parts of a house.

What does a curbless shower require during framing?

The shower floor has to sit lower than the surrounding bathroom floor so it can slope to the drain without a curb. That usually means recessing the subfloor in the shower area with dropped framing or a recessed shower system, decided before the floor is built. Waterproofing that extends beyond the shower and a carefully sloped floor complete the design.

How long do I have to start work after a Union City permit is issued?

According to the city, work must begin within 180 days of the permit being issued, or the permit expires. Permits, including plumbing permits, are requested through the iWorQ online portal, and inspections are scheduled through the same portal using the permit number and the contractor’s code.

Plan the bathrooms with us

For a new home with bathrooms laid out the way your household needs them, call 404-409-4448. Tell us how many people share each bathroom and what bothers you about the ones you have now, and we can visit the lot and start shaping a plan around those answers. You can also read about new construction across Georgia on our site.