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no no no no no. no. no.... no.

I've definitely had to do the dishes in the bathtub due to plumbing issues for about a week, but the coffee pot in the bathroom kind of just feels wrong to me.

This reminds me of that episode from Seinfeld where Kramer starts living in his tub. Then he installs a garbage disposal in the tub and cooks meals.


Gross. No no no no no no

i just renovated my kitchen and I didn't have to stoop to this level. I used water from the bathroom, yes, but kept the coffee maker in the living room.

There is a british show (or at least it was going on two years ago) two guys test all sorts of things that can be explained theu science. SO one time they decided to check how far away from the toilet do you have to keep the toothbrush so it doesn't get bacteria that are in the air from the toilet business. The bathroom was very large, and they found out _ after there were thorough tests done, that no matter where the toothbrush was sitting, the bacteria was attached to it.... So I don't want to know what is happening to that coffee pot there.... and then doing dishes in the bathtub????? so when do you do dishes while showering and you scrub with yout feet??? :-) it just sounds weird and antihygenic..

Been there.

But I only went as far as cleaning dishes and gathering water.

Food preparation was relegated to living areas only.

I used my bbq most of the time. Even when it was cold outside. It was also the only time I used a microwave.

Does anyone want an over the range microwave for real cheap? It's white and has the little exhaust fan on the bottom. It's basically brand new. Maybe used less than 20 times.

i'm sure she used a dishtub and just ran water into it.

Really, you shouldn't even keep your toothbrush in your bathroom because of the exposure to airborne bacteria. Possibly in the medicine cabinet or drawer...just something to think about.

Yeasr ago when I was Active-Duty USAF, I used to cook in my dorm room (No, it wasn't allowed - but I did it anyway...) so I know all about doing dishes in a tiny little bathroom sink and cooking on a hotplate and in a microwave that I had disguised as a TV (just put an antenna on top)

i don't really like the state of coffee, but i doubt poo particles floating through the air is going to make it any better.

I'd just go to Intelligentsia for my coffee until the kitchen is functioning again!

Had to do dishes in the bathroom in college. NEVER AGAIN. Grosses me out just thinking about it. And anything else....no, no, no, no...DEAR LORD..NO.

Ha ha... You haven't lived 'til you've washed dishes in the bathtub! I went through a kitchen remodel that spanned... months? years? ...and I can't ever remember cooking (including coffee) in the bathroom, though. I think we just cooked/brewed in the rubble...

I used to live in a classic East Village tenement apartment that had only one tiny sink, alongside the shower, in the kitchen. The toilet was in a separate room, but the whole setup--though charming in a rundown, old Manhattan way--never felt sanitary. In my current apartment, the bathroom is divided into two parts, but neither overlaps with the kitchen, thank goodness!

My parents had a kitchen reno that forced them to do dishes in the downstairs powder room for a few months. They started out with ambitious plans ("we'll eat salads, we'll get fit!") which quickly degraded ("Chipotle again?"). But the dishes never sit when you have to do them in order to wash your hands.

NASTY! This just makes me sick to my stomach. I'm sure to be chastised by environmentalists, but I'd use paper plates and plastic silverware rather than wash dishes in the bathroom! Or just eat out!!!

I've had to do dishes in the bathtub, but only b/c I had no other choice, so I can understand if someone has to do that, but as far as the coffee pot is concerned, that is a definite no no...any room but the bathroom for that!

that hulking bottle of mouth wash behind the mug sure ain't sweetenin' the deal.

((cough)) Insert environmentalist chastisement here. ((cough))

grooooooooooooooooooooooss guys.

just the thought of food or drink in the bathroom...even coffee, grosses me out. i guess if i had to i'd wash a mug or glass in the bathroom sink, but anything I eat from is not going near the bathtub or toilet. i'd rather use disposable for the time being.

why wouldn't you just keep the coffee pot in the living room?

hahah, everyone is so weird nowadays. like, we've survived this long with the toothbrush in the bathroom, k? sheesh.

when we renovated the kitchen, we basically ate out for every single meal and didn't use a single kitchen item - not a coffee maker, not a plate. thankfully, living in nyc it's not so hard to eat out for every meal.

but sure, i've cleaned stuff in the bathroom sink, why not?? it's not like my toilet is a fancy dishrack.

My germaphobic self is going to have serious nightmares about this tonight!!! ;-)

What's the big deal? Has anyone really gotten sick from doing this? Many, many things you touch everyday are dirtier and more dangerous than even a toilet seat. It might not be pleasant, but I think there are many worse things.

Yes, very Kramer.

It's not pleasant, but if you're all so grossed out about your bathroom, perhaps you're not cleaning it often enough. Do you wear a full-body protective suit each time you go into your bathroom?

I must me missing the fear-of-germs gene because my thought was "that will make getting ready in the morning pretty convenient!" I don't know what makes passing a mug over the threshold into the bathroom so gross, as I'm sure we've all seen those studies about how many more germs there are on cell phones and stuff than there are in the "vapor" of the bathroom (I saw that episode of mythbusters too!) However, I did grow up eating popsicles in the bathtub and I don't wash organic fruit before I eat it!

Anusha73, I think they actually did that on Mythbusters. And if I recall correctly, they found that even the toothbrushes they kept outside of the bathroom, out in the hall, had similar bacteria counts. Perhaps this seems a little odd, sure, but seriously? It's not like Heather is flinging her poo about the loo like a monkey. If you keep things washed with soap and water, it's really not a big deal.

I'm with ARC and kdkaboom.
Actually, I kind of dread the "airborne toilet germ massacre" and "cats sitting on surfaces" conversations on AT starting up because y'all end up sounding like a bunch of neurotic Americans. ;)

Do you guys think that people are filling up their dirty bathtubs and tossing their dishes in to wash them? I'm not understanding the freak out - given that there are things called dishpans and trays and such to place said dishes in and on, and I would like to think that most people actually keep their bathrooms really clean.
If I said that I has used disposable dishes and utensils during our kitchen plumbing fiasco I'm sure there would be an equal freak out as to how wasteful that would be.

I think this whole discussion is really interesting. Do you keep a glass in your bathroom for post-brushing rinse? What's the big deal?

I agreed with the comment that it must have been very convenient to get ready in the morning, but I think the coffee maker in the bedroom or living room would be more suited (mostly because I don't like leaving things plugged in in the bathroom).

As for doing dishes in there, I have no qualms about it. It's all the same water.
It's like people who don't drink tap water out of the bathroom. It's all psychological. You're all crazy.

:)

I'm surprised about that Mythbusters because I read that "experts" advise shutting the toilet lid upon flushing because the flush actually creates an aerosal and within that aerosal is contained...

I had forgot to mention that upon my first trip to NYC around 91 or 92, we visited a friend of a friends apartment which happened to be a hallway before it became an apartment. There was an old clawfoot bathtub in the kitchen! It was used for dishes and for showers! I thought that was wild--and cool.

If you clean your bathroom regularly it should be fine. Interacting with toddlers on a regular basis will get you closer to fecal bacteria than having a bathroom-based toothbrush or coffee pot.

Very Kramer. But isn't there room any other place in your home to put your coffeemaker? All it needs is a little surface, why the bathroom?

What's up w/ the germ-o-phobes?

It's not like your DH would be sitting on the commode while you're warming the Dinty Moore Beef Stew on a hotplate...
...or making poo in the tub before you wash the dinner dishes.

What about the person who keeps a kitty-litter box under the sink in the kitchen - Isn't that just as "unsanitary"?

What's the big deal? Really, people, get a grip of your germaphobia.
I saw the photo and thought "Hey, that's a great idea! My work-day routine would speed up significantly!"

I am with the "get a grip" group... Toilets have lids for a reason.

As for using the bathroom as a temporary kitchen... I had to do it for three months back in 2003 when I did a gut redo on my kitchen. I had the coffee maker in the bathroom because I had access to water, an extra outlet, counter space, and it was one of the only places that wasn't filled with dust (I lived in a studio) and I actually felt it was cleaner (well, easier to keep clean). I had a microwave in the living room, and I will admit to using more disposable dinnerware than I would ordinarily want to use.

I wasn't that bad, but I was glad to have my bathroom back after it was all done (not to mention my new kitchen!).

Hey guys what has a higher bacterial count the toilet or the kitchen sink?... SORRY KITCHEN SINK, so its prolly more sanitary to make the coffee in the bathroom than the kitchen. As far as closing the lid before flushing the toilet uh didn't the stuff in the toilet just come OUT of YOU. Seriously if you find this that disgusting you should really clean your bathroom more.

so it's unsanitary to wash your dishes in the bathtub-- but not your body? i'm confused. ;)

i think everyone who ever went to college had to use their bathroom as a makeshift kitchen in some way.

We washed dishes in the bathroom sink when we were without a kitchen, but no way I'd keep food in there. Regardless of the germs, bathrooms smell like bathrooms sometimes and I just don't want to keep food there (I also Listerine after every tooth brushing, and like to think that keeps the germs at bay).

My mom is redoing hers and she wants to put in a coffee bar for my dad. I think that's a bit odd but it definitely helps that they have a separate WC, with its own door.

I wouldn't do dishes in the bathtub, either, unless I was cleaning the tub each time before washing up. And I hate cleaning the tub.

And is the cat box in there under the sink too!!!!!! A multitasking room Oh Yes!!!!

i'm pretty sure kitchens are just as germy as bathrooms, but things you consume/savor somehow should not be brewed in the bathroom.

A lot of people don't realize that our own bodies and surroundings are constantly swimming with vast numbers of 'germs', and that being afraid of 'toilet aerosol' is just silly.

I recall that a recent study found that a typical computer keyboard contains far more microbes than a toilet bowl.

I thought I was a huge germphobe, but these comments are making me think I am not. Sometimes in the morning, I take a glass of OJ in the bathroom and drink it while I do my hair. Is everyone grossed out?

I do make a habit of putting the toilet lid down before I flush.

Be careful about mixing those small appliances with water in awkward places, though. Make sure you're safe. My bathroom is ancient and doesn't have a GFIC outlet, so I don't even plug in a hair dryer in the existing outlet.

yuk.

Come on, people. It's a temporary solution for people who are trying to make the best of it.

You want gross? This one time I dropped my toothbrush IN the toilet...

wow. this is a great thread. as for the coffeepot in the bathroom? well it just ended up there b/c we have DUST in every other room due to sawing, sanding and everything else. not to mention most of our outlets are hidden behind boxes and furniture. we are not afraid to rough it, and not all that afraid of these evil things called germs.

like chellebird says: It's not like Heather is flinging her poo about the loo like a monkey. If you keep things washed with soap and water, it's really not a big deal.

hilarious!

i am loving this thread and the strong, contrasting opinions. my opinion is: most of this stuff is not a big deal. what's a big deal to me is that my whole life is out of whack and it's hard not having a kitchen! i'm the queen of "making due".

I have one of those Violight things that disinfects your toothbrush after each use, so I guess I'm really germaphobic. I do bring a cup of coffee into the bathroom when I'm getting ready in the morning, but no flushing while the coffee is in the bathroom. AND I wait at least 15 minutes for the toilet spray to settle before bringing the coffee in. That probably makes no real sense at all, but it makes me feel better about it.

Also, I don't think dishes get clean enough unless they're done in the diswasher, so I don't handwash dishes. I would use paper plates and utensils until the dishwasher was usable again.

I guess that's a whole new level of crazy germaphobicness, but so be it!

It's this whole germophobic mentality that's causing all these superbugs not to mention the increase in allergies...And to think, I just wash my bathroom with dish detergent. I figure if I can clean my dishes with the stuff I can certainly clean my bathroom with it. :)

Lived without a kitchen twice. First apartment with my husband before we were married. Slumlord issues. Honestly, I don't remember what we did for food or dishes. Too much in love to care. :)

We did a partial kitchen remodel a couple of years ago when we bought our first house. The coffee pot never moved into the bathroom but dishes were done in the tub. A few of the gross ones were housed off in the backyard. You just have to make do.

Totally agree with the anti-germaphobes. My mother is a hoarder and was one when I was a child. Our house was a pig sty. And I was and am perfectly healthy. Less illness than my classmates and NO allergies.

Funny story-- and true. We lived in a house with only one bathroom (on the second floor). When we gutted the second floor we lived on the first floor and had to climb through construction debris on the second floor to get to the bathroom. Because we didn't want our cats getting into the construction, we kept the stairway blocked off with a hockey goal stretched across the staircase and boxes in front of it to secure it. (Regular gates wouldn't fit) You guessed it -- 3 a.m. and you had to go....what a pain to move all that stuff and sneak around the net without the cats following you upstairs!

... why???

I tried to be open-minded and wrap my mind about the possible logic for this and it's just...no...

the french studio i stayed in had a bathroom / kitchen, replete with hot plate & minifridge


its not a big deal if you keep your dishes put away, close the loo when you flush & consume outside the lavatory.