# Water closet / toilet room size and entry question.



## mav99 (May 2, 2021)

Hi all,

I'm building a second story in San Diego, California and in the master suite there is a toilet room. 

My first question is that I understand that it has to be 30" minimum width. I believe it needs 24" minimum in front of the toilet as well. Does it also need to be at least 60" long? I ask because the toilet I will use is only 27" long and will be put against the back wall, which, when adding 24" in front of it, would make the entire compartment only 51" long. So do I need to put 33" in front of the toilet to the door opening instead of the 24"?

My second question is about the door opening to this toilet room. What is the narrowest opening permissible? I was planning on putting in a 30" prehung door frame so it would be a 28" door.

Thanks in advance!


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## SH225 (May 3, 2021)

There appears to be no minimum door width or minimum toilet compartment length in the California code. IRC doesn’t have either of those, other than a requirement for egress door. IPC has a requirement for 60 inches in the toilet compartment, but that’s not adopted in California.


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## Paul Sweet (May 3, 2021)

A walker won't fit through a 24" door, so I wouldn't go with anything narrower than a 28" door.


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## Pcinspector1 (May 3, 2021)

60-inches is the common width of the tub. Not aware of a minimum bathroom door width, but you have to be able to get the fixtures through the opening. I have seen a 2-0 (24") door used but the common size around here is a 2'4 door. (28").

See IRC R307.1 or check your CBC for some required minimum measurements. I see that the IRC permits 21" in front of the toilet.


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## mav99 (May 3, 2021)

Awesome, thanks guys!


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## Joe.B (May 3, 2021)

Residential or commercial?


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## mav99 (May 3, 2021)

Joe.B said:


> Residential or commercial?


Residential.


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## mark handler (May 4, 2021)

*Best To talk with the City or county. Some Municipalities make changes to the Code.*
2020 Los Angeles Residential Code R311.2 
"...*Every interior door shall have a minimum width of 32 inches*, except for closets less than 10 square feet in size, which shall comply with CBC Section 1010.1.1, Exception 3."​
*The intent of this is to allow a fully outfitted firefighter, entry to all spaces.*


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## ADAguy (May 4, 2021)

What you are proposing is bad practice. Ever use a phone booth? It is your master bathroom, not for tenants.
A minimum 36" to 42" is a more comfortable width, will your door swing out or in? How tall are you? Better more room in front of bowl then less.


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## mav99 (May 4, 2021)

Hmm, how do I insert a picture?

Basically, the total internal dimensions of the WC are 2'6" x 5'.5". It's in the corner of the room and the door will be a pocket door of 2'6" width.


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## mav99 (May 4, 2021)

Oh and the room in front of the bowl is just under 2'10"


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## Teeshot (May 4, 2021)

Unless there is an amendment to your California Code, there is no requirement for the size of your toilet room, as long as the fixtures you are placing within, meet their minimum dimensions; 30" width for water closet and 24" clear in front of the bowl. As for the door width, the 28" door, although not the best practice as mentioned, unless there is a code amendment, the door would be acceptable.


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## ADAguy (May 4, 2021)

Just how skinny  and short are you? Consider resale value later?


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## Teeshot (May 4, 2021)

If the door swinging inward is a space issue, maybe a pocket door would work and allow a wider opening.


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## tbz (May 5, 2021)

MAV99,

You are asking these questions because you have limited space, as thus the answers to your questions are simple, as noted 30 wide x + 24 in front of the commode.

As a person that is 6ft and 280 on a good day, the size of the clearance is tight and not my cup of tea, but make them as big as possible for your space, and go with it.

As with Marks Post, always check for local amendments, the can catch you sometimes when you just look at the statewide, normally only found in larger jurisdictions, the small locals don't have the time or money to reinvent the wheel.

ADA, why do you always go off topic with your posts.  The OP asked about the minimum because they don't have a lot of space, they explained that and If they had the room to put the bigger space in and wider doors, I give them the benefit of the doubt and figure they likely would not be posting the question for the minimums in the first place.


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## ADAguy (May 5, 2021)

Missed the limited space, my bad but as you have noted what he is proposing is still too tight by todays human dimensions.


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## mav99 (May 5, 2021)

Hi guys,

Really appreciating all the feedback!

I can't post pics here but here's 3 web links to 3 different versions of my proposed second story layout. The only differences are in the master suite bathroom area. 

I know this all started with questions about the toilet/water closet, but I'm very open to any other comments about the rest of the layout as well. Regarding that water closet, I have made the door opening bigger, and in one version removed the closet part of it altogether. 

Some general notes about it:


It's a second story new construction 2br/2ba of 975 sq ft. to be built in San Diego, CA. The wall to the bottom of the pictures is mostly North facing. 
Blue = closet, pink = mattress, yellow = table/desk (in kitchen it's an island). The bed in the second bedroom is a murphy bed.
There is an internal spiral staircase and a private external staircase.
There is a 2 barn door divide between the kitchen and the master.
There are pocket doors entering the second bathroom and the kitchen from the hallway.
The roof is a saltbox design with 9' walls and 12'.25" peak. 
There is a 9'6" tall and 7" deep wall (of varying widths depending on version) behind the bed that separates the shower/bathroom area.



https://imgur.com/mPOzmnf




https://imgur.com/WECnGkb




https://imgur.com/Kh39CQV


Thanks in advance!


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## mav99 (May 5, 2021)

Oh, and there's also a 304 sq ft deck off the southern wall.


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## ADAguy (May 6, 2021)

Do you really need both a tub and a shower?


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## mav99 (May 6, 2021)

ADAguy said:


> Do you really need both a tub and a shower?


This is about want, lol. Sometimes it's nice to have a soaking tub. Plus, if I rent it out and it's a small family with a baby, they want to use the tub to bathe it.


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## tbz (May 7, 2021)

Floor plan is a little to odd for my tastes, 

But why is the spiral in its own enclosure, are the walls set already or are you trying to have a separation point for a mother daughter use??

And just curious why would you want an open air bathroom in a main room / bedroom seems like a lot of wasted space IMO, I would go with just one central full bath, maybe a half bath for the second commode and if your deck is big enough and outdoor shower in the corner of the deck with a area in it for a sink and changing room, no commode.  SD has great weather.

I doubt you get much of an interest on design suggestions here, wrong type of forum for those questions.


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## mav99 (May 10, 2021)

tbz said:


> Floor plan is a little to odd for my tastes,
> 
> But why is the spiral in its own enclosure, are the walls set already or are you trying to have a separation point for a mother daughter use??
> 
> ...


What's a good forum to ask about the general design layout?


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## ADAguy (May 10, 2021)

Maybe time to ask an architect? or Magnolia Farms


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