Renovation Advice for Designing Great Laundry Rooms
How to design a laundry room that looks great and makes it easier to get your chores done
If you're like most people, the laundry room is probably not your favorite room in the house. More than likely, you do not spend a ton of time in your laundry room if you can help it, but the time you do spend in there needs to quick and easy. Despite the fact that we must all do laundry at some point, there are few common threads in laundry room design. Some are little more than utility closets crammed in an area beside the kitchen or bath or located in a basement. Others are large rooms with counters for folding and organizing clean clothes. If you are looking to renovate your laundry room, here are a few tips.
Make Sure You Have Storage Space - Laundry detergent, fabric softeners, irons, ironing boards and steamers all have a place in standard laundry rooms. You can use open shelves or closed cabinets for your storage, just make sure you have enough. Don't forget hanging racks if you will be hanging clothes up to keep them out of the way or letting them drip dry.
Add Some Light - In many cases, laundry rooms are built in basements or dark corners of the house without any windows or natural light. If you only plan on dropping laundry into the washer and leaving, you may only need a small light, but if you plan on sorting, folding and ironing clothes, you will want to be sure you can see what you're doing. Natural light is always preferable, but a large overhead light or recessed cans can keep laundry rooms open day and night.
Don't Forget the Water - One of the most under-examined parts of laundry rooms is the water. Not only is it necessary to do the washing in the first place, but it also poses the danger of damaging your home if there is a plumbing problem. A well-designed laundry room will keep the drain and emergency shut-off valves accessible to the homeowner. We never plan on having a flood, but if you do, you want to have the proper precautions in place.
Ventilation - Your dryer relies on good ventilation to function, usually through a hose that runs to the outside of your home. However, ventilation fans and windows can also be useful for your washer. The combination of water, heat, and action in your washing machine can create a significant amount of humidity in the air. Poorly ventilated laundry rooms can be susceptible to mold and mildew, even with a modern sealed washer.
Work Flow - The design of your laundry room should assist you in getting things done. Before you lay out the room, consider how laundry will flow in and out of your workspace. Will you have enough room for multiple laundry baskets? Will things get piled up in front of the door, making it impossible to move? Think about how you normally do laundry and what kind of layout would work well with your natural order of processes.
Laundry rooms are an interesting part of any home. They prioritize functionality above all else, but even so, some renovated laundry rooms manage to exude beauty with their clean cabinets and shiny appliances. The most important thing to remember is that your laundry room needs to make it easier to get your chores done and provide you with plenty of space to do it. When building a new laundry room or remodeling an existing one, be certain your design team has the experience and process in place to ensure that your laundry is a space you enjoy working in.
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