Many years ago, in a previous house, I refitted 3 bathrooms. The main one had a nice whirlpool bath with taps midway along one side.
It was not a big bathroom. The bath was 1.8m and the wall was 1.9m so just enough space to fit the bath below the window. It took a while to juggle the bath into position, but I was really happy with it because the taps were in the middle, not at the outside wall, but in the room. Also, the big pump/motor assembly was at the RHS, so if it ever failed, it was accessible by opening up the plasterboard wall on the landing, so everything was fixable.
SWMBO said "NO!" the taps must be against the wall...meaning pre-assembling the H and C feeds...and the pump would be against an inaccessible wall. I took the bath out, assembled the piping etc and slotted the bath into position...
My wife took her first bath in the newly finished bathroom and after bathing she used the taps to haul herself upright...and the tap rotated...I can only say I was fortunate because the push-fit connectors didn't ever leak, and I superglued the tap base to the bath...but 2 years later the pump failed and all the fitted units had to be removed, then the bath and some of the tiling...basically the whole bathroom had to be re-done.
Trust me, it's just not possible to replace/service taps fitted midway along a bath if that side of the bath is against the wall...
Unless you have access from behind that wall or from below. It may not be so stylish, but taps at the end of a bath are much easier to work on.
It was not a big bathroom. The bath was 1.8m and the wall was 1.9m so just enough space to fit the bath below the window. It took a while to juggle the bath into position, but I was really happy with it because the taps were in the middle, not at the outside wall, but in the room. Also, the big pump/motor assembly was at the RHS, so if it ever failed, it was accessible by opening up the plasterboard wall on the landing, so everything was fixable.
SWMBO said "NO!" the taps must be against the wall...meaning pre-assembling the H and C feeds...and the pump would be against an inaccessible wall. I took the bath out, assembled the piping etc and slotted the bath into position...
My wife took her first bath in the newly finished bathroom and after bathing she used the taps to haul herself upright...and the tap rotated...I can only say I was fortunate because the push-fit connectors didn't ever leak, and I superglued the tap base to the bath...but 2 years later the pump failed and all the fitted units had to be removed, then the bath and some of the tiling...basically the whole bathroom had to be re-done.
Trust me, it's just not possible to replace/service taps fitted midway along a bath if that side of the bath is against the wall...
Unless you have access from behind that wall or from below. It may not be so stylish, but taps at the end of a bath are much easier to work on.
