EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT BUYING A BATH

2-MIN READ2-MIN

Published: 12:00am, 9 Mar 2003

THE BATHROOM IS A SANCTUARY, a place where we can shut out the world (or at least the rest of the household) and enjoy a long, hot soak. Taking this a stage further, a survey has found consumers even rate choosing their bathroom fixtures as 'a very intimate experience'.

Naturally, a bath is the biggest item in a bathroom, so it is sensible to design the room around it. In Hong Kong, choice of bath is usually governed by space. Denise Lau, of kitchen and bathroom importers BSC (333 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, tel: 2510 2328), says the bath is probably the least innova-tive item in bathroom design because of size restrictions. 'Homes of 1,700 square feet or more represent only about three per cent of living units in Hong Kong,' she says.

Depending on design, construction material and features, a bath might cost anything from $1,000 to more than $200,000. Although units can be made in a variety of unusual materials, including glass, concrete or limestone (like the 800-kilogram, egg-shaped Po bath by Claudio Silvestrin at Boffi - www.boffi.com - costing $223,500 from Anterra, I/F, The Ellipsis, 5 Blue Pool Road, Happy Valley, tel: 2577 5764), the most commonly available are cast iron, pressed steel and acrylic. All three are easy to clean and equally durable in normal use. The enamel that coats metal baths can chip when heavy objects are dropped onto its surface, however.

The basic bath styles are free-standing and baths with or without an apron (or incorporated side panel). Apron baths are often low at the sides - a boon for children and the elderly. Those with larger bath-rooms might consider offset corner and corner baths. Top-of-the-range baths include whirlpool, steam and sauna features. Whirlpool units offer more than just simple water jets these days; they might provide deep massage with ultrasound, built-in radios, underwater lights, timers, automatic disinfection systems and seats for abdominal or back massages. You can also have sounds of nature (birds chirping, ocean waves breaking) built-in, and even buy baths with spoken instructions. When choosing a unit don't just consider price and gimmicks, but also the quality of the motor, cleaning systems, safety factors and maintenance costs.

Sturdy cast-iron baths are in the greatest demand locally. Prices for a basic model vary from $1,000 for made-in-China units to $20,000 for European and American brands with whirlpool features. Pressed steel (about the same price as cast iron for a basic bath) is second choice because of a perception - not based on fact, according to Lau - that it is less solid than cast iron. Several upmarket manufacturers, such as Bette of Germany, are boosting the material's popularity by introducing baths with decorative glass panels trimmed with stainless steel. These cost more than $20,000.

Acrylic baths are lightweight, warm to the touch (unlike metals baths) and affordable, starting at $1,000 for mainland-made brands. They are often moulded into interesting shapes and can incorporate side handles. They also offer the greatest range of colours. Most acrylic baths with unusual designs are large, at 1.7 to two metres or more in length, and not an option for the average bathroom.