Laundry/Show Room Ideas

[potatochips]

Ive lived in my house for a year now and after finishing lots of work, its time to think about building a laundry room. I have four rooms I can work with. Keep in mind my breaker panel is FULL and Im not keen on adding more for dryers.

 

The garage: No access to plumbing other than cold water, but lots of plugs.

 

Laundry room: Currently able to fit a washer and dryer plus laundry tub. If I move the set 90 degrees I can fit in another washer, HOWEVER, Id have to move one of the heaters and get a narrow 18 inch laundry tub. I also wouldnt be able to put a Kenmore/WP BD set side by side.

 

Utility Room: 12x10, and in one corner is the water heater and HRV, the same wall the HRV is on also has the heater for the room, and a peg board wall. Total access to plumbing and electrical, and can tie in to the sink drain from the kitchen. However, this is currently my work room for appliances.

 

Den: 7.5x14, heater is right in the middle on the longest wall... no access to plumbing other than another drain clean out. This room is NEW carpet too, but I have a lot of left over carpet to put under machines if I use this room. Its too narrow, only leaved 24 inches between machine fronts.

 

I could, and have thought, about moving my tools and everything to the Den after removing the new carpet, underlay, and saving it for later OR putting all the tools and everything on top of the spare carpet. I could then turn the utility room in to my show room.

 

Tell us your story of your laundry room(s)? How many do you have? How did you do all the electrical and plumbing? Did you leave the dryers out of the functional realm as they are 220? Or did you do a daisy chain 220v and only use one dryer at a time? Extra panels? How did you do your plumbing?

 

Post pictures of before, during, and after. Extra points awarded to show rooms with bling.

 

[washerlover]

Hi Kevin,

I have faced similar issues. I have my collection housed in a detached two-car garage with cold water only. Plan to add an “on demand” tankless water heater in the future, but for now, it’s all cold water wash. Have not bothered to add 220V for dryers, just let them “stage” next to the matching washer. I do, however, have a small apartment-size dryer in the garage that works really well and operates on regular household current. This all in addition to the inside laundry shown here with the temperamental Whirlpool washer that refuses to spin...have to get to that soon. My “outdoor” collection also shown sans latest Amana addition...

 

[turquoisedude]

Sounds like you have all kinds of possibilities!  Perhaps swapping the 'work room' into the den might be an idea.  I sure wish I had the space for a work room chez nous... It can be trying when working on a washer that's smack in the middle of the active laundry area!  I don't know how kosher it is, but I found a Bosch 240v extension cord that plugs into a standard dryer outlet but has two regular dryer outlets.  I've never seen one before and I'm tempted to make another one myself - like you I've managed to fill up the new panel we had put in when we added the garage and did the kitchen with true 'full housepower' wiring.  

 

I had to share some photos showing the progress of the Ogden Laundry over the years.  Lordy, I've been through some machines!!  In order, the laundry from 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017 are shown.  Note the huge increase in machines in there after 2013...  Retirement rocks!!  LOL 

 

[ken]

Paul

How are your supply, drain and dryer ducting laid out? Do you have one continuous cold and hot line with shut off valves at regular intervals for the washer supply hoses? One continuous waste line with stand pipes at regular intervals for the drain hose? Do the flexible dryer ducts all attach to one main duct that exits the building?

 

[potatochips]

Nice set ups Paul and Todd! I wish I had bigger open space like you guys. I think Ill move all the tools in to the smaller room, and use the bigger room for the show room. 

 

[gansky1]

Great pics everyone, finding space for large "collectibles." Over the last couple of years, I've pared down my numbers by 1/3 and have strived to contain most of the machines in the roughly one half of my home's basement.

It's been 10-15 years since I've cobbled together a space for the machines so a refresh and renew project is now overdue. New paint, downsize the clutter all on top of a new floor. This is the "north" room right after getting the paint and floor done. I've since added the 54 Speed Queen washer next to the Thor.

The water systems are supply pipes along the floor and drain line running a foot or so along the wall. There are two dryer vents in that room, but one is rarely used.

 

[turquoisedude]

Ken:  The drain line is one continuous ABS drain pipe with standpipes (with elbows) at regular intervals; there are 4 in total, plus the laundry tub.  I wish I would have added more drains though...  I had envisioned 4 washer and dryer sets but I wound up storing a few dryers in the garage to make room for more washers.  The subsequent problem with that is that I have to manually swap drain hoses - the 'problem' is when I forget to hook up the hoses...  At least the floor gets washed... 

 

For the water supply, it's not something to be proud of... I used standard washer hoses with garden hose 'Y' adapters with shut-offs.  It's easy to add or remove washers but it's hardly professional!!  

 

The dryer vent is a standard 4-inch exhaust duct that goes along the ceiling (hidden by suspended ceiling panels) with 'T' connectors that are connected to flexible metal dryer vent hoses.  I have to add an air booster to this setup, though, to help pull air towards the vent flap on the outside wall.  I get 'blowback' of warm humid dusty air sometimes during the winter months.  'Cept if I use the Filtrator... LOL 

 

 

[pierreandreply4]

potatochips

how about a big room like this one that was my grandmother laundryroom before she sold her home in 2014 where you could put on all side your collection of washer dryers