FINDING AN IDEAL FIT FOR LAUNDRY ROOM
Efficiency is paramount when planning your space and choosing appliances
It sure seems like there’s a national day for everything from high-fives to chocolate chips — and even a lost socks day. Sunday, April 15 marks National Laundry Day — I pick this day to write about because laundry is like death and taxes; we all experience it. That seemingly neverending chore that takes up all of your free time. Fold, switch, rinse and repeat. And don’t get me started if you’ve got a family. When my kids were home, we ran the washer and dryer every day. Not to mention that, as a contractor, my clothes get dirty — not kind of dirty, but really, really dirty!
While having a well-thoughtout laundry room may not help lessen the mountain of clothes you need to wash, it can take some sting out of the chore and be more efficient.
When planning your next laundry room renovation, here are some tips you can follow, so you’ll have a space where laundry won’t rule your life.
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION?
Does your laundry room need to be in your basement? Not necessarily. While many homeowners prefer having a dedicated space in the basement that doubles as laundry and storage, this doesn’t have to be the case.
For example, those who plan to age-in-place in your home, a main-floor laundry room can serve another really important purpose. By keeping it on the same level as your kitchen, bathroom, living room and master bedroom, you’ll be navigating less stairways, which can become a challenge as you get older and mobility becomes a concern.
If you do locate a washer and dryer on the main or upper floors, then I recommend putting additional blocking in the framing of the floor below to carry the added weight and reduce vibrations. I would also put the units on acoustic pads for further vibration reduction. You don’t want the rinse cycle to shake the whole house so a little extra strength is always a good thing for laundry rooms.
UPGRADING YOUR WASHER AND DRYER
If you are getting a new washer and dryer, I say definitely opt for high-efficiency washer and dryer units. These units use less water than the regular models, and extract more water through a faster spin, which also reduces drying time. Anything we can do to reduce our water usage, and shorten our reliance on the dryer (which uses lots of energy) is a good thing in my books.
Should you go with a toploading washing machine, or a front-loader? There are pros and cons to each.
If the space is tight, then go for top-loading machines. They tend to be less wide and take a little less space to open and operate. I find the top-loader to be easier on the back and knees for guys like me who move up and down a lot. High-efficiency top-loading washers also tend to be less expensive than their front-loading counterparts and usually have a larger drum, which allows for more laundry to be done at once. That makes these perfect for big families with a seemingly endless pile of clothes to wash. However, as a trade-off, the wash cycle tends to take a little longer timewise than in front-loading units.
With either choice, I like to make sure the units are near, but not on, a perimeter wall. You want to be able to direct a vent to the outdoors for the dryer. The washer, though, will need to have water pipes connected, so you don’t want those in an exterior wall where freezing could occur. I also recommend lifting air vents (registers) out of the floor and into the wall a foot or two (30 to 61 cm) above the baseboard; should accidental flooding occur, it will not allow water to go into your ducts and throughout the house.
STORAGE WARS
Think about the way you do your laundry. Do you wash, dry, fold and hang things right in the laundry room, or do you dump the clothes onto your couch and fold while watching Holmes + Holmes? Do you have lots of items that need to be air dried?
Answering these questions will help dictate what kind of fixtures you’ll need for the space.
You want to plan for storage that will facilitate doing the laundry — a spot for soap, a place for bleach, and so on. A must for me is a folding table.
With many items that need air drying, you might want to invest in some clothing racks. And while the basement often provides more space, it often has less ventilation and musty smells — thus, mildew can become an issue.
So when planning your new laundry room space, think function over form. As well, take some time to select a durable and reliable washer and dryer — don’t worry if the machines look “sexy;” I say get what works.