The laundry room is making progress finally! Here’s the “before”:
And from the opposite angle:
The goal is to move the washer and dryer down by the window and create a locker-type unit where the washer & dryer currently sit. The door in the middle of the room leads to the garage, so when you come in it makes more sense with the flow of traffic to have the washer & dryer out of the way on the right and a mud room type area on the left.
That way when the kids come in from school, as they are passing through into the family room they can dump hang their backpacks up and have a place to take off their shoes instead of piling everything on top of my washer.
I want a long bench as well so when they are getting their shoes on they have somewhere to sit.
I scooted the washer and dryer down the wall a few weeks ago just to try it out while I waited for the stacking kit. After a few weeks of no bench or shelving or any type of organization at all it was looking a little rough.
Yikes, right?!
Once the stacking kit finally arrived I shoved everything into the hall so we could begin the mounting process which was relatively easy.
This crap ended up sitting in the hall for a few days making it um, interesting, when we needed to go in and out of that room. Oh, and yes, poor Chase is in his crate. He was super naughty and we caught him on top of our table licking a plate clean. He thinks he’s a cat. So he was in “time out” (which isn’t even a punsihment considering he LOVES his crate, but we try).
So anyway, we cleared the room out so we’d have space to stack the dryer on top of the washer.
Here’s the stacking kid we bought. I found it on Amazon. Just search for your brand of washer and dryer and then “washer stacking kit”. They are surprisingly more expensive than you’d think. After shipping I paid more than $40 for it. Ouch.
My LG brand washer and dryer are white but I got the chrome kit because it was all Amazon had when I placed my order. The chrome doesn’t look bad with the white though and I’m happy with it.
We attached the kit to the washer and Ben double checked that the washer was square to the wall. It’s hard (and not safe!) to move and adjust the location once the washer and dryer are stacked.
I don’t have any pictures of us actually stacking the unit because well, the dryer was heavy and it took all our hands just to get it on top of the washer.
Ben’s showing off his dryer stacking abilities as well as his newly formed guns.
So hallelujah! the washer and dryer are one unit now! This has single-handedly made the room so much bigger!
Yes, it is now blocking the window, but I decided after living for two years with the washer & dryer right smack in the middle of my walkway, blocking the window was a small price I was wiling to pay for a better laundry/mud room layout.
There is a little wiggle room with the window though. I left enough space to the right of the washer & dryer for my laundry cart to nestle right in. It’s on wheels so when I do laundry I pull it out and it’s right next to me as I load the washer.
There are still plenty of things I need to do to this room. I’ve only just stuck my big toe in at this point. For starters, this needs to be dealt with:
Before I was certain I was going to stack the unit, I considered leaving it side-by-side, so when I installed the dryer vent through the window I cut the vent so it wasn’t so bulky behind the dryer. Well, now it’s too short, so I need to buy a new one. It works for now, but it’s on my list.
Also, we’ve got a little bit of a cord issue going on:
Trust me, this deserves an entire post all to itself. And I swear I will come back to this with a full update on what the hell is going on here. But in a nutshell, when I moved the waster and dryer none of my cables were long enough, so I had to buy all new ones.
I have reasons for not moving the plumbing itself (cost, for starters) that I will get into in my next laundry room post. Also, I already have a solution for corralling and taming these cables. When I’m done with the room you won’t even know they are there. Promise.
Way Before:
Progress:
And that’s where we’re at right now. We are about to start on the mud room area, which I’m most excited about! I can’t wait for this room to be finished!!
I remember the dryer vent issue 😉 You’ve come a long way! It all takes time, and unfortunately, usually money too! Dang.
Look forward to your next post.
I see why you’ve moved the w/d as you have. It does open up the walking area, especially the doorway that leads to the family room. I would SO miss the window though–in 4 laundry rooms, I’ve only had 1 window and I really enjoyed it and really miss it! (And it was 8 years ago!) If you’ve moved the w/d this much, I’m wondering would it be feasible to move it next to the window, where the clock/bulletin board are? There likely isn’t plumbing in that wall to tap into, and of course that is an exterior wall. I guess I just hate to see a wonderful window blocked!
I totally agree! Why cover such a big beatiful window?? I would have paid to move the plumbing to move it in that open corner next to the window, so the W/D would face the door, thus opening the whole room.
Hey, I was going to say the same thing as Kathleen! I think it would be awesome if you found a money fairy so that wouldn’t matter, and re-route stuff so they could stack next to the window. I think it would look much better too.
But I totally understand the reality of the price of moving plumbing!
If you’ve already got the cords extended, why not move the stack to where your clock and bulletin board are. Would it stretch to there? That way you still have the stack close to the window for venting, and could eventually get a professional vent put in next to the window. The stack would also sit well in that corner without blocking the window or the door.
We have a stacked washer and dryer in our upstairs laundry room. One thing we’ve noticed is that because of the stacking kit, it’s actually quieter than our downstairs laundry room, where the washer and dryer are side by side. So, more room AND less noise! Enjoy!
I really want to get a stackable washer and dryer! We have a window in our laundry room and I could stack them right next to it and make everything all pretty!
Found you through your guest post over at PrettyHandy Girl today. Loved the cloche idea there and your laundry room exploits here. I am now following you as well. Good luck with the mudroom, can’t wait to see how that turns out!
I think it’s going to work out great when you’ve got it all whipped into shape, Allison. Can’t wait to see how it turns out.
I’ve just found your absolutly wonderful blog. Love the things you create. I’m moving in less than 2 weeks & can’t wait to try some of your ideas as soon as I can. Ya Hoo! Perfect timing.
Wow! I’m amazed at how much room that opened up. Looking forward to seeing it all finished. Wishing you a grand evening. Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse
For anyone else that might be interested in stacking their front loading washer and dryer… you might check home depot for the kit, that is where I got our second one. 1st one was ordered through best buy.( mine were also LG) Also… if you are NOT on a concrete floor you will still get some vibration from the washer, we found this stuff called Elephant Bark Rubber flooring.( amazon has it) it absorbs all of the vibrations! Our laundry is on the main floor of our house ( basement under it) before we stacked them and put the flooring under it you could hear the washer pretty bad… now you dont even know it is there!
Good Luck Allison on finishing the laundry room project.. it is awesome when you find more useable space in your home!
Before I finished your post, I found myself thinking…oh, she’ll move it to the wall with the bulletin board and clock, right? Now I’m wondering why you don’t leave it as soon as you walk in the door to your left? Will it fit without being in the door way opening? (This coming from someone who does laundry in the dungeon aka basement.)
I didn’t know you could stack those appliances! That is a huge space saver!
I just now stumbled across your blog and love it. If it were me, I would turn the stackables 90 degrees and put them where the bulletion board is. It looks like you’re going to have the lines moved so that’s what I would do! Love your house and suggestions!
I know this post was awhile ago, but I’ve been waiting with bated breath to see what you did with the chords! Is that coming soon? I plan on doing almost the exact same thing in my laundry room, so whatever information you give will be very much appreciated!! (where you found the long chords, how they are working out, etc.) By the way, I live just north of you on 35 – in Belton! 🙂
I think before was safer and was hiding ugly cables from a sight, and you where able to utilize the top of machines as well. It was matter of cleaning and organizing the “STUFF”, that was not addressed by just stacking washer and dryer and will reemerge again. In general space was not a problem, but organization.