Bathroom Design

Does Bathroom Vanity Need to be Attached to the Wall?

It is more harmonious if a mirror is centred over the vanity

Most of the time, people would like to do the renovations themselves. You may have bought a new bathroom vanity and wonder if you should have the vanity attached to the wall. Since you may think vanities are heavy enough to stay at their place without moving, you may want to avoid securing the vanity against the wall. But what is the right choice?

Do All Bathroom Vanities Need to Be Attached to the Wall?

There might be very rare cases where the vanities are not attached to the wall due to the bathroom decoration. Generally, it is not recommended to do this. Since the plumping is attached to the sink and is located inside the vanity cabinet, you may face a plumbing problem due to the vanity movement if you do not secure the vanity to the wall. One benefit of a vanity attached to the wall is to keep the plumping safe and secured. Meanwhile, the pipelines are the most important parts of a bathroom, and you may have trouble fixing them yourself.

What are the exceptions? Sometimes the plumping is not located inside the wall. It is not common, but you may find some bathrooms with plumping that comes through the floor. In these cases, the bathroom vanity might not be attached to the wall. This type of vanity is called a “Bathroom island.” Even in this case, the decorators prefer to place the bathroom vanity against the wall to use a vanity mirror over it.

Does Bathroom Vanity Need to be Flush With Wall?

Since there should be no gap between the wall and the vanity, it should completely flush with the wall so that it will not move over time. As mentioned, the floating vanity may damage the plumping located inside the vanity cabinet.

Should Bathroom Vanity Be Against Wall?

The wall gives it more maneuverability because not only can you hide the plumbing, but you will also be able to hang a mirror. Undoubtedly, the bathroom will not be complete without a mirror. Furthermore, a vanity attached to the wall gives you more space in the bathroom, especially if it is small. However, in some large and luxury bathrooms, you may find another type of decoration with a vanity at the center of the bathroom.

 Fix the bathroom vanity to the wall.
Fix the bathroom vanity to the wall.

How to Install a Bathroom Vanity to the wall?

Installing a bathroom vanity will be easy if you follow these steps:

  • Place the vanity against the wall and trace its outline so that you will know exactly where it should be placed. If the vanity and sink are separated, you should level the vanity cabinet with the bathroom sink.
  • Drilling holes in the vanity and wall is necessary because you need to screw the vanity into the wall. Some vanities might have these holes for an easy installation.
  • It will be much more effortless to install a wall-mount vanity because they usually have all-in-one vanity units, which do not need you to level the vanity and sink. Furthermore, their open backs make it easier to attach them to the wall. Sometimes you may not need to screw this type of vanity because they are known as free-standing vanities too. However, we strictly recommend you have your vanity attached to the wall.
  • Make sure you completely secure the vanity to the wall.
vanity installation instructions
vanity installation instructions

How To Fill The Gap Between Vanity And Wall?

When you want to install a bathroom vanity, correct measurements are crucial. You need to know how far the vanity should be from all other objects in the bathroom, especially the wall and the bathroom door. Therefore, follow these rules: 

  • The vanity should be almost 34” farther from the door, so when you open the door, it will not hit the vanity.
  • As mentioned, the vanity attached to the wall should not have any gap except you have a backsplash which might make a gap of 1” or 2”. The open back vanities can be placed approximately 4” from the back wall.
  • You should at least have a 21” space in front of the vanity so you can move in the bathroom comfortably.

Please note that you can use silicone caulk, backsplash or backer to fill the gap between vanity and wall. 

Bottom Line 

Replacing a bathroom vanity will be much easier if you check the measurements and rules about how to attach the bathroom vanity against the wall. You do not need a specific tool or skill. If you have bought a bathroom vanity from Aquarina, follow the rules in this post and renovate your bathroom.

FAQs

Do bathroom vanities need to be screwed into the wall?

In most cases, bathroom vanities should be screwed to the wall to stay stable and fixed. In some rare cases, you may not need to do that because of the vanity type or the bathroom decoration. 

does a freestanding vanity need to be attached to the wall

A freestanding vanity is designed to stand on its own and is not required to be anchored to a wall. However, it is recommended to secure it to the wall for stability, especially if it is in a high-traffic bathroom.

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