Many people dream of having a laundry room at home. The inspirations we present in this article will help you arrange this utility room in a functional and elegant way. We guarantee that finally, your home will have enough space for storing cleaning supplies, a washing machine, a tumble dryer, and other appliances.
What will you learn from this article?
A laundry room is an extremely practical solution in a single-family house or apartment. It is best to allocate a separate room for washing, drying, and ironing clothes. From this article, you will learn:
How to arrange a functional and aesthetic laundry room.
What equipment a home laundry room should have.
How to arrange a laundry room in a house or apartment with a small area.
Why is it worth having a home laundry room?
A home laundry room provides high comfort of use. It allows storing clean and dirty laundry, drying, and also offers space for storing cleaning supplies. Even at the design stage, you have the option to designate a room for the washing machine and dryer. This will provide the following benefits:
No unsightly drying laundry on a rack in the living room, hallway, or other open spaces in the house. It’s easier to maintain order.
The noise of the washing machine is muffled — there is no need to enter the laundry room as often as the kitchen or bathroom during the washing process.
You can choose a different, more elegant bathroom design because there's no need to allocate space for a washing machine. It is usually placed under the sink countertop. The bathroom immediately becomes larger and more spacious.
You have everything in one place — cleaning products, laundry baskets, bathroom racks for drying and storing, a washing machine, dryer, and other equipment.
The best place for a home laundry room
If a laundry room is to be included in the home, the designer should consider it at a very early stage. It is necessary for maximizing space and correctly installing plumbing and electrical systems. There are two main locations in homes chosen for a laundry room. Although they may seem associated with storing unnecessary and forgotten items, you can arrange them functionally:
Basement. It allows effective separation of the washing and drying area from living spaces. However, you must ensure to get rid of moisture from the lowest level of the house.
Attic. Home laundry rooms are most often located near the bedroom or wardrobe, to easily transfer already clean clothes. It is worth using low furniture or custom-made pieces to effectively build around the slopes and maximize every centimeter of space.
You can also plan a home laundry room in living spaces, next to the kitchen or bathroom. This makes it easier to run plumbing installations. An alternative is a hallway, without a separate room, in a built-in form.
A home laundry room — inspirations for organizing the utility area
To properly set up a laundry room, you must follow several design and technical rules. Below, we discuss the most important ones.
Space requirements for a laundry room
The laundry room should be planned already at the house design stage. Its final appearance depends on the size of the property and personal preferences. Ideally, a separate utility room is available for a laundry room in the house. If you have limited space, consider locating it in the bathroom, kitchen, or hallway as built-in.
Organizing a home laundry room requires about 2-4 m2. This space should be able to accommodate a washing machine, dryer, shelves for cleaning products, and laundry baskets.
A convenient solution is to locate the laundry room just below the bathroom at home. You can directly drop dirty laundry from the upper floor to the utility room.
Don't forget about proper ventilation. You can choose mechanical or gravitational. The main thing is to effectively remove moisture and unpleasant odours.
What colors and materials for the laundry room?
Walls and floors in a modern laundry room usually feature glazed stoneware tiles. They offer high resistance to moisture, stains, and abrasion, and are also durable against mechanical damage. An advantage is the easy cleaning of the smooth, glazed surface. Check how to calculate the number of tiles for a wall, so there's no shortage of material during the renovation.
It's also worth investing in vinyl panels. They are highly resistant to moisture, with some being waterproof products.
On the wall in the laundry room, you can apply fibreglass wallpaper. There are also ceramic or latex paints resistant to moisture, fungi, and bacteria. It's a good solution as they are washable.
If you want the home laundry room to be timeless and modern, choose light and neutral colors such as white, grey, beige, wood.
What lighting for the laundry room?
In daily use of the laundry room, regardless of the time of day, appropriate lighting helps. It's worth choosing ceiling, spot lighting. Ideally, natural light should reach the room. If the arrangement is in the basement, this is usually not possible.
Decorative accents for laundry room arrangement
No matter if the laundry room is on the ground floor, in the attic, or in the hallway, it's worth considering its aesthetics. Buy decorative laundry baskets and bathroom accessories that facilitate space organization. Decorative detergent containers will make even a small laundry room charming.
It's worth hanging posters or framed phrases on the walls, and placing potted plants that thrive in challenging conditions and moisture on shelves or windowsills. The popular zamioculcas develops well in dark rooms and doesn’t require frequent watering (a small amount of water every 3 weeks is enough).
Equipment for modern home laundry rooms
The equipment of the laundry room must be functional and ergonomic. It's essential to cater for necessary appliances and accessories.
What washing machine and dryer to choose?
In the laundry room, it’s good to conceal the washing machine and dryer, so built-in models are the best. It's also worth opting for equipment set vertically, meaning the washing machine at the bottom, and the dryer on top.
What should be in the laundry room?
To arrange the laundry room functionally, you need more than just a washing machine and dryer. Here is a list of accessories and other devices that you cannot forget.
Utility sink — allows washing delicate fabrics, rinsing clothes, and filling the steam iron with water.
Hanging and standing cabinets — they are ideal for storing cleaning supplies and dirty laundry baskets.
Baskets for dirty clothes — it's worth buying several. Separate for coloured clothes, white, and mops. There are freestanding models or those adapted for closed cabinets.
Ironing board, iron, and steamer — the laundry room equipment should also include ironing appliances. You can afford this if in a single-family house or apartment, a large room is allocated for the laundry room. You can freely set up an ironing board and steam iron in it.
A small laundry room in a small apartment — inspirations
A tiny laundry room can also be functional and practical. Just use a few tricks to maximize space. You can arrange equipment in a column, with cabinets hanging over them. There are systems of sliding baskets from built-in cabinets, suspended clothes dryers, and foldable ironing boards.
Washing machine for a small apartment
When you have a small laundry room, the arrangements should consider a top-loading washing machine. Check how to wash towels in this type of appliance. It takes up less space than a standard one. An alternative is a 2-in-1 device, i.e. a washer-dryer. A good solution is also classic front-loading models but with a smaller depth, below 50 cm.
How to arrange a narrow laundry in the house — inspirations
A narrow laundry room in a single-family home is a big design challenge. Above all, a vertical arrangement, meaning a dryer placed on a washing machine, will work well. The home laundry room equipment should include a foldable dryer and multifunctional laundry baskets. Check also useful accessories for your bathroom that will also work in the apartment laundry.
The furniture for a narrow laundry must be hanging, not taking up valuable floor space. You'll have a space for washing agents and other detergents.
Functional utility rooms in your home, including the laundry room
A large, as well as a small laundry room in an apartment and house, is a convenient and functional solution. When arranging it, remember to place all necessary equipment and accessories, such as an ironing board, clothes dryer, dirty laundry baskets. You can set up a home laundry room in a separate room, or, for example, in a hallway. Use all the tips contained in this article to make washing and drying laundry easier for yourself.