Laundry Room Remodel

Darren Wright

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Springfield, Missouri
So last week I posted that I had removed the ceiling in our Laundry/Mechanical room to make way for a new hvac unit. In an effort to add some order to the room, we're going to plan on enclosing the furnace and sump pump to add some separation to the room's use. Currently we have a 40 gallon water heater, which somewhat sits in front of our washer's front loading door, then the dryer sits to the right of it. With the ceiling removed, we've gained some height to be able to stack those two machines. I've also got a new tankless water heater on order and should gain a few square feet to be able to give access to a new sink.

So I was at Lowes the other night and on their clearance rack was a stainless single bowl sink, marked down from $149, to $49. I went back to the kitchen area to look at what a comparable sink would be and cheapest new was $110 and wasn't made as well, so I snagged it up.
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http://www.lowes.com/pd_463779-59634-LSS25224_0__?productId=50067601&Ntt=

So my first stab at laying things out goes as follows, sink to the left, folding/hanging space in the center, and machines on the right. I might consider putting the machines in the center and folding/hanging to the right, but not had time to mock that up yet.
Laundry.jpg Laundry2.jpg

We've got concrete walls on the back and left side, so there is a half wall built out in front of each of them. I may finish out the one on the left up to ceiling height just to make it not seem weird having the upper cabinet off to one side like it is, at least next to the cabinet, but it is usable space none the less. I'm going to also try to fit the new tankless heater above that wall, but it will be a tight fit since I'll be adding a dropped ceiling down about 6" below the joists.
 
Sounds like a plan, Darren!

Looks like you're using SketchUp for the layout, which is what I did three years ago for our master bathroom remodel. When the contractor came to look at the job, I think he was shocked that I had a complete layout with dimensions.
 
Yeah Bill, I'm using sketchup, my wife is a visual person...so saves a lot of discussion and heart ache if I can show her how things will look. I started some 3d home software with our first house and really helped move things along in the decision process during remodeling. It's nice that they have so many appliance and fixtures already drawn in the sketchup 3d warehouse. She's gotten into using Pinterest, so she setup an album to share design ideas she finds with me and I can get a visual for what she wants too.
 
I like the idea of a sink in the laundry area. Congrats on the good deal.

The main thing I'd miss by stacking the appliances like that is the flat horizontal space for folding and stacking finished laundry. Had you considered making a removable cover for the sink (like you see in some motor homes and travel trailers) so you can use that countertop as a work surface?
 
I like the idea of a sink in the laundry area. Congrats on the good deal.

The main thing I'd miss by stacking the appliances like that is the flat horizontal space for folding and stacking finished laundry. Had you considered making a removable cover for the sink (like you see in some motor homes and travel trailers) so you can use that countertop as a work surface?

Adding that to the list! :thumb:

:huh: You mean the top of the washer/drier is not supposed to be a place to stack more junk :huh: Pretty sure there's no way you'd ever fold clothes on the top of ours at this point.... .... ..

LOL, it's when half the stuff falls behind them and you find them 6 months later I'm wanting to avoid. I did consider just a top over both, but they are already 39" tall, doesn't make for a comfortable working height for my short wife. :)
 
Still finalizing plans on the Laundry room, though my wife looked at the ones above and approved of them. I have an idea for adding some shelves opposite of the sink (facing the sink) that will be a part of the furnace closet. I'm thinking of making the shelving unit hinged to the wall, where it's an access point to get behind the furnace and to my sump pump, which will save me some room in the Laundry area.

Today I did some preparation for installing the tankless water heater. Currently my water lines are run in a pocket next to the short wall covering the concrete. I cut out a section of the wall so that I could save some space running the lines to the bottom of the heater. Opening the wall, I found the following...Can you see what may be wrong with this picture? :doh:

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Yup, that is copper lines just laying on top of a concrete wall, no shims, no straps, nothing, just a ticking time bomb. They run this way through the laundry room behind a linen closet, and through my downstairs bath, then exit into the crawl space below the front part of my house. I'll be connecting the new water heater to them for now, but when I do the work to move the washer water lines and drain, I plan to run new main lines across the ceiling where they should have been. My next project is the downstairs bath, which is getting a gut job, so will repair that portion when I start that project in a month or two. I may give the Pex stuff a go also.

Tomorrow I plan to get the new water heater installed, will be a long day, but think I've got everything ready to go at this point
 
Never ending suprizes whats next ...lol. Gotta keep a sense of humor doing this work.
Good luck on the water heater will be interested to hear the results as to how Momma finds it when wanting a bath. Linda is neurotic about hot water. Next home i would like same type of water heater, our electricity costs are set to go nothing short of sky high so every bit will help.

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Well, almost installed it today, but the parents stopped in for a visit, and by the time I got started, getting the gas line re-routed was all I felt comfortable doing today. Though I think I've got all the fittings I need, just didnt want to shut off the water on a Sunday night and something unexpected happen where we were without water tomorrow morning. I'm going to shoot for Friday night, but in the mean time get the back wall opened up and plan the washer's connections move at the same time, which will include moving the main lines off the concrete wall.

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22 years later the best thing for the laundry was adding a laundry chute. Mine is behind the missing toe kick under the vanity. It is safe for kids and pets and totally hidden. I can't imagine how many tons have passed thru it. Also I have a hose above the laundry sink to rinse out big stuff, cooler, diaper pail, storage tubs. A kitchen faucet with rinse hose would look more civilized than mine.
 
Last night I removed the old hot water heater after stripping it clean of the brass and copper. It took several days to drain down due to the amount of calcium build-up in the bottom. I removed the relief valve and it was completely clogged with calcium. Looks like we were only looking at a matter of time before it would need replacement, but it was 10 years old.

So when I removed it, it was a bit tough lifting out, even empty. Turned out they tiled and grouted around it. Luckily I've got a box of this tile, but can hopefully pull some from under where the cabinets will go anyway.
2015-06-24 21.29.38.jpg

It did give us the space we were looking for as it's always been tight getting things in and out of the washer.
2015-06-24 21.29.51.jpg

22 years later the best thing for the laundry was adding a laundry chute.

We have one actually, but it's not in a place that is convenient, which is in a corner of our master closet and will drop down directly where my stacked washer and dryer will be moved to. So long story short, it's got to go, my wife wants more shoe space. ;)
2015-06-24 21.30.08.jpg
 
Today I got some of the tile replaced where the hot water tank used to sit and the previous owner tiled around the feet.

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Luckily they left behind a box of matching tiles...
38531f7b4cb34fba0331af16f5eb310b.jpg


Now to find some matching grout. I need to look up at the shop and see if any of it got left behind too.

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No luck on finding any grout up at the shop, so have a piece of the old grout to take up to look for a match at the borg. If no exact match I'll get a close one and blend over the old, which might require doing the entire room, but will try to do a small area around the new first.

Darren
 
It did give us the space we were looking for as it's always been tight getting things in and out of the washer.
View attachment 90926


Hey, Darren, looks like you've got an LG washer that looks a lot like my LG washer.
How old is that unit? Have you had any issues with a musty smell?

Ours is somewhere around 5 years old and at times we've nearly heaved it out the window. It has an issue that there is a dip in the water lines in the unit (something like that, my wife has done the research) so that the water does not all properly drain, so every now and then you start getting a musty smell. Drives us nuts. Need to drain the unit, run an empty load with borax and the like, and then it's good again for a while.

...art

ps: oh yeah, nice looking sketchup. I'm not a fan of stacking these. First that is a huge job to do, and second you need to buy a stacking kit. sure you couldn't just put them side-by-side and still squeeze in the sink? I know I know, shut up, the designing part is done! ;) Glad it won't be my back when it comes to stacking!
 
Art, we've had them about 5 years now. We were having issues with the smell and mildew just this spring. We ran an empty load with gallon of vinegar and hot water, and then another with about half a cup of baking soda and hot water and things seem to be better now. Also, we read that leaving the door open when not in use helps prevent the mildewing. I also check the drain's trap every few months to make sure it's not blocked.

We may be changing away from stacking them or at least reversing the plan as I realized our washer only opens to the left. It might not be a big deal as the door does swing mostly out of the way.
 
My wife hates her front load machines for that reason! We had a Frigidaire set and now a GE set and they both smell musty if not diligently cleaned and operated. Rule #1 (That's terrible because our new house the laundry room is a hallway to the garage...) is NEVER shut the door unless you're washing a load. You already mentioned the other, use the clean tub cycle with either vinegar or HE washing machine cleaner as instructed by the manual. Good luck, I'm not sure what my wife will eventually tell me to do but I'm betting our next set has a HE top loader..... :-D
 
We may be changing away from stacking them or at least reversing the plan as I realized our washer only opens to the left. It might not be a big deal as the door does swing mostly out of the way.

Same issue here... house was built in '84, which is before anyone thought of front loaders domestically, so it is plumbed (and vented for the dryer) such that the dryer is on the left and the washer on the right. However ALL front loaders are hinged on the left. We flipped the door on the dryer, but you cannot flip the door on washers. Sigh.

We also try and keep the door open as much as possible but it can be an issue as our laundry is the mudroom, which is a traffic zone to the garage.

Is there not enough room to flip your entire plan left-right ??

...art
 
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