Nifty Ways to Organise and Conceal Your Laundry Area
Many modern apartments and small houses don't have room for a dedicated laundry room or clothes washing area. It complicates the plumbing, wastes valuable space and can be unsightly. Many existing home and apartment owners may not have a dedicated laundry area in their living space. Renovating to add a traditional laundry is very expensive.
But with some clever ideas and lateral thinking the laundry can be down-sized to free-up valuable space in a home for other purposes. Similarly you can add a laundry space to an existing structure in simple ways that are inexpensive. Simply hiding the kitchen appliances in cupboards or using screens and moving bookcases is a good idea. Like kitchens, modern clothes washing equipment is now much more compact and there is seldom any need for twin laundry sinks and other equipment.
Many modern clothes washers also dry clothes and so there is no need for a separate drier. Modern driers are now much more compact anyway. So the modern laundry consists of a compact washers, a drier and a sink. You don't really need a separate laundry room for this equipment. If you have a laundry in your home, then placing the equipment in a cupboard can free up valuable space for other purposes, especially in small dwellings. Relocating the equipment can free-up your laundry room for other uses.
Adding laundry facilities to an apartment or dwelling that does not have them can be greatly simplified if the task is down-sized to simply installing a washer/drier in a kitchen or bathroom, or a hallway cupboard close to the plumbing in the kitchen and bathroom. Using these concepts you could shift your laundry in this way, freeing up the existing laundry room for other purposes. The plumbing is of course a major consideration requiring the equipment to be placed close to the kitchen or bathroom areas to connect to existing pipes and drains.
Tidying up your laundry is good for your peace of mind and is a worthy investment as many laundries are unsightly and messy places. Much of the equipment can be placed in cleverly designed cupboards screened my folding doors, screens, rolling bookshelves and in other ways.
It is time to re-think your laundry location and its design for utility. This article explores some nifty ideas to consider.
How Can I Use My Laundry Room in Other Ways?
The laundry is often located near the back-door and it often has a utility sink and floor drainage. It is a good spot for washing the dog and for transitioning from indoors to outdoors with storage for coats and boots. You may even consider installing an extra shower space using the existing plumbing. The area may even be suitable and an extra study area once the laundry equipment is tidied-up and hidden away. It can also be used as a storage area for suitcases and travelling equipment. It may also be suitable for storing bikes and other recreational equipment. The floor drainage makes it easy to keep clean.
How To Tidy Up and Expand the Use of a Laundry Room?
You can easily remake your laundry space and use it for multiple ways apart from washing clothes by installing clever built-ins, cupboards, shelves and cabinets. Equipment and supplies like clothes baskets, irons, detergents, even washed and dried linen and towels can be stored in laundry cupboards. Drop down tables and ironing boards can be packed away behind cupboard doors or curtains when not in use. The doors or cupboards or shelves on wheels can be used to store all these items. Smart storage and cabinets means that your laundry functions can be compacted into a half or a third of the existing space, freeing up the area for other uses. Installing doors, cupboards, screens and other devices for hiding the laundry means that the extra space becomes more usable.
Options for Relocating Laundry Equipment or Adding a Laundry Unit
This may sound radical, but it can be done with some simply renovations. Try to use the plumbing in the bathroom and kitchen for connecting water supplies and drainage to the washer and dryer equipment. This may mean installing the equipment in an area that adjoins these spaces or even within the kitchen or bathroom!
► Cleaning Closet - Install or modify a closet that can hold the washer/dryer. Shelves, fold-down tables, and deep shelves built into the outwards opening closet doors can be used to store the laundry items. Consider using sliding bookcases or other options for hiding the laundry unit when not in use. Solid doors are better than soft curtains or screens as they reduce noise.
► Kitchen Cupboard - Many modern smaller apartments now have washing machines installed in kitchens. This makes sense. You may even consider replacing your dishwasher with a washing machine as the plumbing requires is identical. Install a clothes washing machine under the bench top, beside the dishwasher is easy to do. The washing machine can be hidden away behind cupboard doors. You may also want to install a laundry cabinet in the kitchen.
► Hall Closet - modifying and existing hall closet or adding a new one for housing a mini laundry makes sense, even deep within the living area. Attractive doors and enclosures can be used to hide the equipment. Make it an attractive feature in the room. The washing can be done when the living area is not being used for other purposes.
► Bathroom Cabinet - the bathroom is an ideal location for a mini-laundry due to the availability of the plumbing and ventilation to deal with moisture. The washer and dryer can be stacked within a cabinet and hidden away when not in use.
► Outside Cabinet - A mini-laundry cabinet can be installed in an outdoor entertainment area, close to the kitchen area.
► Walk in Wardrobe - If you have a large walk in wardrobe you may consider adding a mini-laundry cabinet to it. This makes sense as you can easily fold and store the clothes once they have been washed and dried.
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