Laundry in a Cupboard

[Pollyanna]

I have recently bought a house that does not have enough bedrooms for my needs so I want to turn the oversize laundry into a bedroom by moving a wall, a door etc.

I still need a laundry. I am considering building it into a large cupboard (to be purpose built) in the back back entrance foyer. Or making it part of the kitchen when that gets re-done. Which would be best? Not to keen on the kitchen idea except using the current plumbing is possible.

What are the pros and cons of having the laundry in a cupboard?

[Honorary Bloke]

Laundry can easily be in a cupboard. Using the stacked appliances saves a lot of space. Just put it where it is most convenient. :) Don't forget to install the water shut-off to the side, where you can reach it.

[One small, nagging question. Why didn't you buy a house with enough bedrooms? Didn't you know how many bedrooms you'd need? :? ]

[Groggy]

We had a laundry in a cupboard behind bi-fold doors for a number of years. It worked well and, as it opened onto the hallway, we never felt the pinch for space. Just make sure you run a vent for the dryer to the outside when you do the remodelling.

[Pollyanna]

Thanks for the replies.



Why didn't you buy a house with enough bedrooms? Didn't you know how many bedrooms you'd need?

Money and opportunity basically. The house I bought has huge rooms, great yard etc only thing it was lacking was the one extra bedroom. Looked at other houses with enough bedrooms but they all had tiny bedrooms compared to this place and were priced higher.

Plus this house has a lot more potential and character than other places I looked at.

[juan]

Do not write off on the Kitchen idea. I lived in 2 houses during a stint in London and both had no laundry and had the Front Loading washing machine under the Kitchen benches. Maybe Poms have less washing but it worked fine I thought. They did not have tumble driers but rather used the central heating to assist with drying.

[jags]

hi polly

The laundry in the kitchen is very common in Europe and one option you should consider is a two in one combo . Personally i (correction the misses ) hates front loaders they take four times as long to wash as a top loader .

And at present with the washer dryer combos that are LG i believe that you have to do a rinse cycle before you can dry which is redicules . I put one in for this reno but it was purely for looks and resale .

rob

[namtrak]

I actually think laundries are an outdated idea as well. We have a combination washer/dryer which will go on the deck in a small cupboard with a drying cupboard above it. We'll then turn the existing laundry/toilet into an ensuite for the 4th bedroom.

[Pollyanna]

I have 4 kids. Washing machine/dryer under the kitchen bench would be a disaster. Clothes would left everywhere. They would be in the back room as well. Better there for me than under my feet in the kitchen.

I am going to one day add a walk-in robe and ensuite to the master bedroom as its big enough to them down the far end of the room. I want to have my own bathroom!

[flynnsart]

I rented a place with a cupboard that took up one wall of the kitchen, with a vinyl concetina door. In this cupboard was the washing machine, dryer, laundry sink, cupboard and a small sorting bench. It was very handy, and to add to this, the clothes line was just off the edge of the verandah which was only a short distance away. could do the washing, prep in kitchen etc all at same time. Had three kids.

Donna

[rhancock]

I had a friend with the washing machine in the kitchen - right between the fridge and the stove! What a stupid idea.

The tiny house I renovated in England, back when I was a single batchelor, I put a laundry cupboard in the bedroom. I loved it! You take your clothes off, put them in the machine, then in the drier, then in the wardrobe. Perfect.

[Pollyanna]

I am seriously considering putting the laundry in the bathroom behind a cupboard. If I remove the linen cupboard, knock down the wall that joined the back of it to the bathroom and put the shower over the bath there should be enough room and access to do this.

If I put a smaller linen cupboard than there is now in the actual bathroom will I have problems with damp and moisture ruining my linen?

[Jacksin]

Laundry in a cupboard is a great idea, far better than the kitchen

For the life of me I cant imagine preparing dinner with some cheesy old undies and stinking socks in the machine waiting to be washed, anywhere near the food YUK!

[eemgee]

Pollyanna,
Check your local Health & building regs, it can be against health & building to have washing facilities in the same room area as cooking facilities.
One thing to look at if buying a washing machine & dryer in one that the washing cycle takes say 7 kgs and the dryer only takes 5 kgs so you have to remove some of the load before the dryer will operate.

[Pollyanna]

Thanks for that Eemgee.

Not going to put it in the kitchen. Not workable for me. Undies on the floor........Eewwwww!

I try not to use the dryer. Those things cost a fortune to run but are great to have when needed. I don't have a washer and drier in one.

[Bubblesinc]

I have just renovated my kitchen as it was a small dingy place I did not like being in so i removed the wall to the laundry and incorporated the two

My washer/dry combo is under the bench behind doors that slide back to the sides when open

And for those dirty clothes i have 2 large hampers one for dirty one for ironing in the huge island bar that i would not have had otherwise

The cupboards above the washer holds all the powders etc

No one can tell the laundry is in the kitchen and even with the laundry stuff I have more room now in the rest of the kitchen than I could ever want

But for you this may not be an option if your kitchen isnt large enough

I thought about this kitchen for 5 years so take your time deciding what to do (but maybe not 5 years :))

[totoblue]

Personally i (correction the misses ) hates front loaders they take four times as long to wash as a top loader .

And at present with the washer dryer combos that are LG i believe that you have to do a rinse cycle before you can dry which is redicules

A combined washer/dryer will have an even longer cycle time than a separate washer and dryer, since you can't start the next washing load until the drying is done. In any case, some front loaders have wash times comparable to top loaders (Choice magazine tests include wash cycle times).

Choice profiled an LG combined steam washer/dryer in the Aug 07 issue and they noted that it used 74 litres of water on the dry cycle (it uses water to condense steam from the hot air, so it doesn't have to be vented), in addition to the water used on the wash cycle.

[GraemeCook]

At previous house we had washer + dryer in a cupboard in the bathroom. Worked well and good aesthetically. On a cold winter morning in Hobart we'd throw cloths and towels into dryer, have shower then dry with hot towel and put on warmed clothes. Pure luxury.

Current house has dedicated laundry with washer and two dryers. Dryers are relatively cheap and the drying cycle takes much longer than the wash cycle; hence two dryers rather than waiting.

Cheers

Graeme

[LotteBum]

It's about what's most important to you I guess. Personally, I'd say the laundry is better off somewhere else if you really need that room. A cupboard seems like a good solution, whether it's in the kitchen or not. Not sure why people think there will be clothes all over the floor - that's certainly not the case in our house!!

We're about to tear down the walls between our toilet, walk in pantry and (large-ish) laundry as the three combined make the perfect size bedroom. As an alternative, our laundry will be incorporated into our bathroom in a cupboard (we're yet to start the bathroom, but will incorporate it when we do).

For those saying that they dislike front loaders, I have to disagree. I bought a front loader 2 years ago and it's the best money I ever spent. Sure, the cycles take longer, but only if you use full cycles which I find rarely necessary given how much better this thing works. Further to this, my 6kg front loader uses less than half the water my 4.5kg top loader used, 1/4 as much powder and about 1/3 as much power. I find myself utilising the 'delay wash' function quite a bit, putting clothes and detergent in the washer and setting the machine to wash before I get up in the morning, then setting another load to finish just before I get home from work. Can't go wrong!

Cheers,
Lotte

[bricks]

Just wondering if you can fit the laundry into a hallway cuboard or into the bathroom ?

[essiemac]

Lotte

We currently have our laundry in the bathroom but are about to modernise it and get a front loader but don't know which one to get. As you seem happy with your front loader, can you give me the brand and model number.

Thanks
essiemac

[BigCal]

I had a 1 bed apartment on the goldcoast a couple of years back, it had the laundry in a tidy little cuboard in the bathroom, also lived in a larger apartment with the laundry in a cuboard in the kitchen. Of these 2 options the Bathroom i think was better, like someone else said most dirty clothes come off in the bathroom so they can go straight in the cuboard if not the machine...

But it depends on how the house is setup, when we do the place we're in now the kitchen and bathroom may get done at the same time, it will be a toss up where the laundry goes, the kitchen has lots of room available and is right next to the door to the washing line, the bathroom doesn't have much room available and is a walk thru all living areas to get to the washing line... so it could end up near the kitchen - altho probably not in it...

But if it suits your place definitely consider putting it in the bathroom.

[CrankyFranky]

Hi Polly

We converted a linen cupboard and pantry which were already in my kitchen into one cupboard to house our laundry tub, washing machine and left some of the pantry shelves for storing wine. It works great. It is at one end of the kitchen with two regular size sliding doors so you are either loading the front end loader washing machine, or slide the doors the other way and you use the laundry tub. This room being in the middle of the house with no outside windows keeps the wine nice and cool as well.

I love my laundry and if I built again I would not bother having a whole room for a laundry - it is a waste of space. Being at one end of the kitchen it is not a problem.

[dazzler]

:2tsup:

Just do it! Laundries are wasted space IMO :)

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

Wot dazzler said. :yes:

Kitchen & "Laundry" under construction (that's it on the right with the w/machine still in the box :roll:)
67710
A bit later, with doors on...
67709
...and no-one picks it as a laundry until they go to raid the pantry. :U (Sorry... no wider view of the finished area. :shrug:)

[Ozpom]

When i built an extension on the back of my house, to give me more room i "stole" the laundry. I put it behind doors that actually open into the family room, but by using fire doors you dont even hear it.

[Buggermedumplings]

hi polly

The laundry in the kitchen is very common in Europe and one option you should consider is a two in one combo . Personally i (correction the misses ) hates front loaders they take four times as long to wash as a top loader .

And at present with the washer dryer combos that are LG i believe that you have to do a rinse cycle before you can dry which is redicules . I put one in for this reno but it was purely for looks and resale .

rob

We have a 2yr old Samsung 1200rpm front load and it will do a full load in 30mins, uses 60 litres of water and none of our clothes cop any wear/tear like top loaders do. One of the best appliances I think we have bought... Dunno if I'd ever buy a combo unit, just another point of failure.

As for the laundry, prefer the seperate room. Considering our house is 42 squares, our laundry is only about 6m2, enough to work in and with plenty of cupboard space. The 1st 3 doors in the bottom of the cabinet are all baskets for dirty washing, the washing machine is out of shot, on opposite side in an alcove. During winter we can close the door, turn that heating zone on and the clothes can dry in there too.

PS Sorry for the photo, only have this one from when we were building.

[FukuroLady]

I am currently renovating our home (OK, actually we moved an entire house from Perth to a country town :o ) and we've encorporated the large out back verandah, laundry and sleepout in to the house to make it a 4x2 instead of a 2x1 with sleepout. What was the laundry will now be our second bathroom with a laundry in a cupboard, its actually an ensuite off the main bedroom (which used to be the verandah).

Not sure if anyone can make sense of that besides me :doh: But I think the laundry in a bathroom is a great idea. We will have a front loader and separate dryer, laundry tub and linen cupboard plus the bathroom vanity along one wall, and the toilet and shower on the other wall. I think its a smart idea, and in this day and age, if you want more room/s in a house you have to be creative!

[autogenous]

Too right plenty of places in Europe have the washing machine in the Kitchen.

Many Australians are spoilt in regards to Laundries. :p

The best one I have seen to date is that the washing machine had the kitchen cupboard door attached to the front of it so you don't even know its there.

I can appreciate its not for everyone but in especially a small unit it makes very good sense. The actual washing basket is located elsewhere most of the time in another cupboard, under stairs etc.

Nice laundry Buggermedumplings (http://www.woodworkforums.com/member.php?u=20567), Australians seem to lack the use of overhead cupboards in laundries (http://www.woodworkforums.com/member.php?u=20567)