Mudroom in the laundry room?

[SusanBAnthony]

Has anyone done this, or seen pics somewhere?

The entrance from the garage into the house for our new house, is the laundry room.  We are talking a washer and dryer side by side, no extra space.  Then once you enter the hallway it is beige carpet ( ) so I need two adults and two small children to get out of their wet/snowy/muddy stuff ASAP and not drag it all over the house.  

My plan is to get a stackable washer and dryer, and then I will have about 3ft x 3ft of space to put coats, boots, etc.  but how to best organize?  The lovely gigantic mudrooms I always see (boiler!) are gorgeous but that is not too helpful since I need to pack stuff in like sardines.  I am thinking I may need to build it myself, in fact.  

[My]

Our entrance from our garage is into our hallway, but immediately to the left is our laundry room, which I have turned into a mudroom/laundry room. It is a small room, enough for our washer and dryer to sit side by side and still have a small empty area in front of them. It is just my husband and I, but what I did was install hooks for coats/hats/sweaters along the empty wall across from my washer/dryer and bought a shoe rack bench from Ikea that sits below the hooks. I couldn't do anything too wide because the space is so small, but the bench fits perfectly and still allows for a walkway between the bench and washer/dryer. We can hang up our things and store our shoes neatly. I wish I could do a fancy bench system with baskets, but my space is too small, so what I have works and looks really cute!

[minniebee]

I would do stackable machines. They aren't like the old-school apartment ones anymore, pretty much any front-loading washer and dryer pair can be stacked so it's not like you'll sacrifice on quality or size of laundry machines.

Use vertical space as much as possible ... even one shelf like this one would give you a place to keep backpacks/purses, hats, mittens, etc. The kids can use the lower shelves for their stuff, adults use the top shelves.

www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40085709/

Or maybe use one of those over-the-door shoe racks to store things like hats, mittens, and maybe even shoes (if they're dry) ...

www.target.com/p/over-the-door-shoe-organizer-espresso/-/A-11187080#prodSlot=medium_1_40&term=shoe+rack

[McGavin]

The stackable machines sounds like a good idea.  I'd do a small bench with storage for hats and mitts but also some high shelves with baskets so I could rotate the winter stuff with summer stuff. Lots of hooks, low and high.  Maybe also a place for keys and mail.

[SusanBAnthony]

These are good ideas.

Minniebee, my understanding was like yours, that any full size front loading washer can be stacked. The bummer is that I won't have a palace to fold clothes, but it is right near the amster bedroom, so I can just fold on our bed.

[lightbulbsun]

Can you put something in the garage right by the door instead? It would be a little chilly when taking off snow gear, but it would keep everything outside and you could throw it straight into the washer. Here's an example: www.eastcoastcreativeblog.com/2012/09/diy-mudroom-lockers-garage-mudroom.html

Personally, I would avoid a stacked washer/dryer.

[simpsongal]

We used to have that set up (laundry/mudroom) but knocked it to open up the space. I'm planning on making a mudroom area in the garage outside the entrydoor to the house. Stackable W/D sounds a little claustrophobic in that space. Plus, I like having places to rest things on my W/D - clothes baskets, piles of laundry, delicates, etc.

[statlerwaldorf]

A lot of the newer builds are like that around here. Most people I've seen put in racks and stuff in the garage near the door.

[VeryViolet]

My setup sounds just like yours and I don't have a basement so I also have the HVAC and water heater in there. This is a personal thing but I hate stackables. Even though the new ones are bigger, better, etc. I am short so I can't ever get up high enough and I just am not a fan. I have seen on pinterest where people have turned a part of their garage into the mudroom. I think I might do this eventually but of course you eat into some of your garage space doing this.

ETA Sorry I thought I was on ML when in fact I was just lurking for some good house ideas. I hope you don't mind me giving my two cents over here! 

[ktzmoh]

Feb 8, 2013 10:45:02 GMT -5 asdfjkl said:

I actually have a "board" of these on Houzz.com.  Space is at a premium here and I figure I'll probably end up with that as my system in the next house.

Let me see if I can figure out how to link some of the examples or the whole board or whatever.

Okay, see if this works.  

www.houzz.com/ideabooks/2038817/thumbs/Mudroom-laundry

They might just be for inspiration you know, and you would have to scale it down, but maybe it will give you some ideas.

I would seriously commit many crimes for a mudroom like any of those. We have zero space for a mudroom either  - we are planning on adding a coat rack/bench/cubby sort of thing to the garage, right beside the door into the family room. Our washer and dryer are in the garage too.

[wawa]

Feb 8, 2013 11:52:35 GMT -5 VeryViolet said:

My setup sounds just like yours and I don't have a basement so I also have the HVAC and water heater in there. This is a personal thing but I hate stackables. Even though the new ones are bigger, better, etc. I am short so I can't ever get up high enough and I just am not a fan. I have seen on pinterest where people have turned a part of their garage into the mudroom. I think I might do this eventually but of course you eat into some of your garage space doing this.

ETA Sorry I thought I was on ML when in fact I was just lurking for some good house ideas. I hope you don't mind me giving my two cents over here! 

We take all types here.  Even MLers.  

[simpsongal]

I love those houzz mudrooms! Definitely seems like a new build thing. Sometimes old houses have them, but I definitely wouldn't want the mudroom at the front door.

Seriously, if you had a need for a mudroom that size, would it be anywhere near that organized and neat??

[Deleted]

Homes here have the mud/laundry room at the garage entrance standard. Mine is definitely bigger than you are describing since it has a closet and counter, but it works just fine for both functions, IMO. I always fold laundry in my bedroom watching TV. Laundry that needs to be hung to dry hangs in our master bath or the closet.

For your home, I think stacking them would be a great idea. Then put lower/upper cabinets with a counter beside them for stuff, and across from them a narrow bench and coat hooks. (assuming there's enough room for that!)

Here is a pic of my laundry room. The only thing I'd change about it is having a counter-top installed over the w/d so that we don't lose stuff behind them.

The first picture is looking into the mudroom from the house- the w/d on the left, the door from the garage on the right.


The second picture is what you see when you walk in the garage door.

[wawa]

I agree with PP's that it sounds like your best bet is to use the garage for at least some of this stuff.

Maybe just a simple bench with a big welcome mat type thing in the garage for boot/shoe removal and hooks on the wall opposite the w/d for coats once you come inside. Do you have any free shelf space above the w/d that you could add a bin or basket for hats and gloves? I don't know how tall your kids are, but I imagine this could get annoying since they probably won't be able to reach their own stuff. And you'll have to go outside with your jacket and gloves and THEN put gloves on after you've tied shoes. Less than ideal for sure.

I'd not want to do the whole kit and caboodle in the garage because wet/snowy coats and gloves are never going to dry in an unheated garage. But getting the boots off out there would be a big help.

[SusanBAnthony]

Feb 8, 2013 10:45:02 GMT -5 asdfjkl said:

I actually have a "board" of these on Houzz.com.  Space is at a premium here and I figure I'll probably end up with that as my system in the next house.

Let me see if I can figure out how to link some of the examples or the whole board or whatever.

Okay, see if this works.  

www.houzz.com/ideabooks/2038817/thumbs/Mudroom-laundry

They might just be for inspiration you know, and you would have to scale it down, but maybe it will give you some ideas.

Yes. It worked. Thank you!

[SusanBAnthony]

Our inspection is this afternoon, so I am going to check out the garage and see how that might work. I foresee the kids revolting and refusing to do any part of it in the garage in the winter, though, bc it will be freezing cold. But, it is worth at least trying, as that would definitely give us more space.

[SusanBAnthony]

Yup, I think hooks n the wall will work best. We only need one or two coats, each, out in the mudroom. I ink maybe a bench with space for shoes underneath, then hooks for coats. I need some way to put kids mittens and hats down low, maybe just a basket under the bench. Then DH's and I can go in high up shelves or cupboards.

I don't love the idea of a stacked w/d either, but there is just not enough space otherwise, unless I moved everything into the garage, and like I said earlier, I don't think anyone would be happy about that when it is 20 degrees in the garage.

[boiler717]

In our old house we didn't have much space. I had planned to stack by it didn't work on install. We ended up doing side by side and having a table top built which was really nice. It was off the kitchen so it gave extra counter space for parties and stuff. I just did a small rack of hooks by the door. The way the room was laid it out it was better not I stack because it made it seem more open. Let me see if I can find a pic.

[boiler717]

Oh we did a cabinet over the non stacked for storage