The Problem: Hacker Bathrooms Need Help
Have you noticed our bathrooms? While it’s great we have them, they are in need of a major overhaul and not just for looks. Our plumbing isn’t the greatest, it gets blocked easily, and it’s likely at end of life. Here’s how we fix it all and at the same time make VHS wheelchair accessible. All for free!!!
The Opportunity: A grant for free money written by MMC
Makers Making Change (MMC) has kindly offered to write the grant application to cover washroom and door improvements including accessibility upgrades. This is amazing and is a huge opportunity for us as the grant can cover all the contractor requirements - construction/permits/etc. Literally the work for us is minimal to nil!
What’s Required: Info Needed
What MMC and people like me (a non-construction person) don’t know, is what would need to happen to upgrade our bathrooms? So, VHS hive mind, can you help with this information:
what would be involved in the upgrades?
who is a good contractor to get a quote from?
anything else that would help?
Also if anyone could oversee this project who knows stuff about construction that would be totally amazing. Just putting that out there. No pressure. At this point just getting the grant is the first step.
I am not an expert in anything required here, but 2 years ago I had to manage the upgrades to my Father’s bathrooms for his post-stroke disabilities.
IIRC, the major beats for an accessible washroom include:
minimum 36" wide access to and in all facilities for wheelchairs/walkers (hall, door, stall.)
elevated/high-deck toilet, possibly with a wider/longer bowl as well
handrails to lift oneself off/on the commode with EITHER arm. (ie: if your left arm is disabled, a bar on the left is useless to you.
the height of the sink needs to be low enough for wheelchair use
usually no cabinet underneath the sink, again for wheelchair access
no slippery surfaces, no rugs, nothing underfoot, grip tape on tiles if necessary
levers on hand-operated controls, for those with no fine motor control (faucets, doors, flusher)
part of this for VHS bathrooms will mean removing that odd step-down section of concrete, and blowing open the hallway to be wider, for at least the first room, assuming we’re able to keep both.
There are two funding pots that can help with this. The larger one has some spec information on the washroom stuff:
Across from the doorway is an accessible sink, vanity and an accessible height mirror. There is space underneath the sink for a person with an assistive device to fit their knees. The sink’s insulated pipes protect the knees from the hot water supply
Beside the sink, there is a clear area for a person to move from their assistive device onto the accessible manual flush toilet. The distance is at least 3’ (900mm)
The toilet has a backrest and a grab bar fixed against the back wall. On the left-hand side of the toilet, there is:
an emergency call button (optional)
a horizontal grab bar
a vertical grab bar
a toilet paper dispenser
a power door actuator button
The grab bars are 2’5”and 2’10” (750 to 850mm) from the floor and at least 2’ (600mm) wide
With the amount of cabling and electrical having been run to the server/ops room, the boiler tank in there, as well as the lack of plumbing, I would find this unfeasible. I’m not saying that it can’t be done, but there are a whole bunch of considerations, including digging into the foundation, that would require a serious engineering review.
If repurposing the server room is being considered, I would consider rethinking the entire setup, including the plumbing and the furnace room, as well as the heating ducts, and the general ventilation. We should then also reconsider improving the plumbing to the kitchen.
Putting my covid hat on; from a ventilation standpoint, upgrading the bathrooms would be great!
Early ideas that were discussed requring feasibility research involved turning the front 4 feet of the server room into a ramp.
Ie wheel strait into the room, with a slight ramp down, turn 90 towards the side door and washrooms and go straight into the washroom which can be on the front wall for more space.
Other option was rejiggering the front stairs to go up and over with a shorter stair coming down by the mame cabinet connecting to the landing by the side door.
Also if we ditch the existing washroom opening (making access from the server room) we could kick the stairs out a few feet, making the landing safer, and giving more room for the server room entrance.
All this might depend on how strutural the wall is of course between the server room and washrooms.
Hi all I’m off work next couple weeks so can put some time towards this.
Grant application that can help pay up to $10,000 is very straight forward. The catch is we need a quote on the work to be done. So any more bikesheding on what it could look like would be helpful, and leads on someone that could do the work (paid gig) that could give us a quote would be good.
If somehow, this quoted work is less than $10,000, then we could look at other accessibility improvements, but my guess is the washroom mods is not a cheap deal, especially with thoughts of some ramp / way to mitigate the stairs to the washroom.
Also, if anyone has a “floor plan” layout of the space, that would be helpful. And if we get an idea that we like for layout, anyone with CAD skills that could “draw it” would earn my utmost appreciation and beer / ice cream.
Had a fresh idea – what about in the first / closest washroom, we raise the floor in there to be height of the main floor, and then go into the washroom through the wall where the arcade machine as a new doorway? That would solve a whole bunch of the issues:
Current hallway is too narrow for wheelchair
need to for ramp where stairs are would no longer be necessary
put new toilet / fixtures on top from there.
Will still need to make sure the spacing tolerances are still there in the washroom, but I think that is a more feasible approach.
I would require the arcade machine to move, eventually, if/when this work starts, but otherwise, would be a lot less distruptive to other existing space and infrastructure. But I’m also in the “I don’t know what I don’t know” category, so please feel free to tell me if / why this is a bad idea.
Also not sure if that is a support wall. Is that indicated on the plans at all? There are already a lot of doors cut in it which makes me think it is not.
