What size vanity fits an older bathroom in La Grange Park?

What do La Grange Park’s house ages mean for a vanity?

CMAP’s community data snapshot for La Grange Park counts 67 percent of the village’s homes as built between 1940 and 1969. So a new vanity here usually goes into a bathroom that has been around for decades, with walls, pipes and a door that aren’t going anywhere.

That flips the usual shopping order. Instead of picking a vanity you like and hoping it fits, start with the room and let it narrow the list.

What’s in the bathroom now?

The old fixture tells you most of what you need to know. Look at which of these you have:

• An old vanity cabinet: measure its width, depth and height, and look at the floor and wall right around it. If the tile or paint stops at the cabinet’s edges, a new vanity with the same footprint or a slightly larger one covers the line.
• A pedestal or wall-hung sink: a vanity adds storage but takes more floor. Check that it clears the toilet and the door, and that the pipes coming out of the wall will land inside the cabinet.
• A vanity built between two walls: the width is fixed, so the exact inches of the new one matter most (next section).

Will a 30‑inch vanity really fit a 30‑inch space?

Not always. A vanity’s size name is rounded, and the real width runs a little either way. Among the 30‑inch vanities HausRack sells:

The 24‑inch options do the same: the compact fluted oak vanity is 24.02 inches wide and the 24‑inch fluted oak vanity is 24.5. In an alcove with walls on both sides, half an inch decides it. Measure the opening at the floor, at counter height and at the back wall, use the smallest number, and compare it to the measured size on the model page, never the size name.

How deep can the vanity be before the door hits it?

Open the bathroom door all the way and measure from the wall where the vanity will stand to the door’s edge. That number, and the space you need to stand at the sink, set the depth.

Most vanities from HausRack are 21.5 to 22 inches deep. When that’s too much, three run shallower:

Where do the pipes come out?

Look under the old sink. Pipes that come out of the wall leave the cabinet floor clear. Pipes that come up through the floor need open space inside the cabinet right where they rise.

Doors leave the most room for pipes. Drawers are handier for storage but have to work around the plumbing, which is why some models shape their drawers for it:

• elm drawers vanity: a tilt-out drawer above two U-shaped drawers.
• farmhouse sink vanity: a farm sink over a U-shaped drawer and an open shelf.
• The natural wood shelf, oak and black frame, and oak and gold vanities have an open shelf at the bottom, so whatever is down there stays in view.

Bring a phone photo of the pipes and the distances from the floor and the side wall when you call. It’s the fastest way to rule models in or out.

Will your faucet fit the new top?

Check the faucet before you buy anything. The holes in a top decide which faucets fit:

• An 8‑inch widespread faucet, the kind with separate hot and cold handles, needs three holes.
• A single-hole faucet needs one.

Measure the holes on your old faucet, then match the new faucet to the new top. Call (708) 449-4055 to confirm exactly what comes with the vanity you pick. Our guide to what to ask before buying a bathroom vanity covers the rest.

Do you need a permit to swap a vanity in La Grange Park?

Ask the village before you order. La Grange Park’s Getting a Permit (opens in a new tab) page lists projects exempt from permits, including “minor interior plumbing or sewer repairs and maintenance, including valve or fixture replacement”. It doesn’t name vanities. If you’re still not sure, the village points you to its Building Department.

If the drain or water lines move, or the bathroom is getting more than a new vanity, look at the village’s Residential Interior Remodel packet (opens in a new tab) and describe everything that’s changing when you ask.