Should I put my washing machine and dryer in the cupboard under the stairs?

[WhereToPutTheLaundry]

I have a small kitchen, in a not tiny but not generously sized house. I want to redo the kitchen this year, and maximise storage. Currently the washing machine and dryer are in there, both under counter. I hate it because they take up valuable space, spills get on the front of them, and I just think it's a bit yuck moving clean and washing out of the machine in a kitchen.

Kitchen is 3.8m x 2.4m. I considered having them stacked one on top of another in the corner by the door, but I also have a tall fridge which I cannot do without, and a boiler on the wall in another corner. The room is north facing so I wouldn't want any of the tall stuff near the window at the other end as I want to maximise light. But having 2 tall things, one next to the other, will make the room feel smaller.

I have space to put them under the stairs in the entrance hallway and it's right next to the downstairs loo so plumbing would be fine.

They would fit next to one another, leaving space beside for coats to hang, and space on top for bags/shoe rack etc. I also have a coat rack on the wall in the hallway and in practice the shoes people wear daily are lined up under the radiator for ease of putting on and off, rather than put away in the cupboard.

The hallway is narrow - I think approx 1.1m wide along its whole length and the under stair cupboard opens onto it halfway along.

Would this be a mad idea? Should I suck it up and leave them in the kitchen?

Can post some pics later when I'm home.

I thought fire risk - but I never run either machine overnight (washing machine on in the morning, any tumble drying after school) only when we're awake and downstairs in the house, so it probably wouldn't put me off ultimately if it was the best place.

I mainly use the machines during daylight to maximise solar input from panels. Sure I could at least line cupboard with fire rated plasterboard.

Several flats that I have seen recently have the washer and dryer in a cupboard in the hallway.

The townhouse we rented when we lived in the US in about 1990 had them in a cupboard - clearly designed for the purpose - on the upstairs landing. Given that hanging washing out simply wasn't a thing there, this was excellent - no need to carry baskets up and down the stairs.
Obviously most homes don't have room for that and I'm not sure I'd want to do it with a front loading washer.

We have ours under the stairs, at the highest point, so that the dryer can be stacked on top of the washer. Washing machine is plumbed in there, and we have an extractor fan which we run when the dryer is on.

I would do it as I’d hate the washing machine and dryer in the kitchen. But I’d get the entire cupboard lined with fireline board (the pink one) and have a smoke detector in there.

This was going to be my suggestion too.

I used to have a condenser dryer in a cupboard. No issues at all

Ours are both under the stairs (but the cellars stairs). it's a condenser dryer. Never had any issues.

That's an interesting point about the fire risk. Our old house was a new build though and the washing machine was in the cupboard under the main stairs. So assume it's not a "regulation".

@APurpleSquirrel it was a video I saw quite some time ago, possibly on local news and our local fire service was doing an awareness campaign of the dangers of white goods under the stairs. I can't find the exact video now but there are multiple fire and rescue services with their own White Goods electrical safety campaign including London Fire Brigade. It stands to reason if white good are prone to catching fire having them under wooden stairs is unsafe.

However obviously you can mitigate the risk, clear out lint, register appliances so you know about faults, don't leave them running unattended.

We had ours in a cupboard under the stairs in our previous house. We lived there for 10 years and it never caused any issues. I’d do it again.

I'm so glad I started this thread! I think I'll do it, with fire lining precautions. Yay!

I've thought out two placement options - machines to the left gives more space for shoes. Machines to the right gives more space for longer coats and a home for the hoover. Any opinions?

Which do you have more of, long coats or shoes? Where will you be your hoover if not in there?

Definitely more shoes than coats but shoes that aren't worn weekly can be stored elsewhere. Hoover has no other home so I guess the long coat option is the better one

Yes guess that's what I'd for then!

If you can't stack them, and if you need a long space (ironing board, etc) I'd definitely go for the right-hand option.

I think it's a good idea as long as you do regular maintenance checks and allow for ventilation as it could get damp and potentially mouldy in there

Sounds like a good plan to me. We did something similar and it works really well. I love not having laundry in the kitchen.

Agree with pp about ventilation - we put an extractor fan into the laundry nook to ensure it didn't go moldy because my cousin made a laundry appliance cupboard in their house which promptly filled with mold when they didn't do this.

Could you get any power to a shed? I’d put washing machine in the cupboard suggested but have the tumble outside

Do you wash or dry overnight? I think either are not recommended due to fire risk, regardless of where they are in a house. If you only used them during the day that would remove the risk of being asleep upstairs and the stairs catching fire.

Our wm is under the stairs but in the downstairs loo and not covered by a cupboard door.No tumble drier although the previous owner had one next to the wm.
DD has wm in a cupboard in the bathroom... no td.
D sis had wm in understairs cupboard for years but again no TD which is probably the more problematic of the appliances.
I would look at making it work but I have never had a td so am not sure about the extra risks.

We have our washing machine in a cupboard upstairs (that we carved out part of the bathroom) and it's brilliant.

I'm not putting the TD outside because I use it too much in winter. Extractor fan is a good idea. The underneath of the stairs is curved so tricky to line with fire rated plasterboard and cutting the board to fit the curve would stop it working properly. I have found fire proof material, which is used to lime kilns and other hot things, which I can use, and also fire proof plywood for the shelving and doors.

I talked the idea through with my parents, who are the most risk averse people you could meet, and they think it's a good idea so I feel confident about it now 😂

Honestly - if either machine started to smoke the alarm right outside would be blaring in every storey immediately so everyone inside the house would be out looooong before the stairs had time to catch fire even without any fire precautions inside the cupboard. Also I have single storey flat roofs at front and back that are accessible from 3 different windows so alternative escape routes abound.

I wonder if putting a dehumidifier inside would eliminate the need for an extractor?

We had this in our last house. Worked really well and was very handy to have them out of the kitchen. They were stacked, with a condenser dryer on top. No real noise issues that I noticed but didn't use them late at night. Then a second small door for the hoover and other bits. We had an alcove opposite though where coats were hung so that didn't need to be a consideration.

What's irritating is I'd block access to the kitchen when emptying anything but it's brief.