These Santa Cruz, California, homeowners prioritised two things in their remodel: entertaining and honouring their home’s past. So rather than cast aside an old “cattywampus“ redwood water tank in their woodsy backyard, they decided to repurpose it as an outdoor bathroom. They called in general contractor Harry Smeenk, along with electricians and plumbers, to help. The result is an unexpected combination of old and new textures that celebrates the simple magic of an outdoor bathing experience.

Project at a Glance

Location: Santa Cruz mountains, California

That’s interesting: The owners now prefer this outdoor bath to the one inside their house.

The concrete pad was in already in place. There was a pipe coming out of the tank right where they wanted the door to be, so they rotated the whole thing about 3 to 4 feet around so they could both cut the door and keep the pipe. They removed the solar panels on the roof and the nearby water tank structure.

AFTER: The team drew inspiration for the exterior from birdhouses, especially those that are round or octagonal with lots of detailed trim.

Smeenk added gingerbread scrollwork trim to match the aesthetic of the main house. The original red exterior paint was left untouched.

The homeowners wanted an old-world Victorian aesthetic for the interior.

They gave the wood a light wash to help give the new redwood structural elements the same tone as the aged redwood.

Contrasting corrugated steel wraps around the interior walls in an updated take on wainscoting.

With no wall to hide pipes, the owners chose a shower fixture with visually pleasing plumbing features.

They considered leaving the roof open but instead installed eight glass triangular panels to prevent any branches or other elements from the redwood trees from falling through.

 The owners wanted the roof to be a circle but went with octagonal because curved glass was too expensive. The glass roof helps highlight the interior wood patina.

You can still see the original markings on the water gauge .

The homeowners reattached the original water gauge and float system to add to the tank's historical character.

The owners now prefer this shower to the one inside their main house.