AIBU to argue a tumble dryer is more important than a downstairs toilet

[user1471462428]

I have a three bed townhouse. Top floor has en-suite,middle floor has a family bathroom and ground floor with a small toilet. I would like to rip this out and replace with a small laundry washing machine, tumble dryer and a pulley maid. My mum thinks I will devalue the house doing this and it will be inconvenient for the kids. I’m looking to move in the next five years but don’t want to be running to the laundrette to dry clothes till then. AIBU

Put a removable high table / like a computer table about the toilet and put the tumble drier on top of it.

Today I learned that people have tumble dryers.

It is hard to imagine, but I expect your pre-schooler will be having play dates aplenty when he gets to Reception age. I'm just thinking about little boys needing a wee and trekking upstairs in search of a loo.

I'm trying to remember where it was (might have been Oz?), but places we rented had their washing machine & dryer up with the bedrooms, some right alongside the bathroom. Could you do that?

I had somebody build a stacking unit in my utility to put the dryer on top of the washing machine; is that possible?

I agree with getting a washer-dryer. There are good ones these days (I had one in a flat) and it means you get to have both the dryer and the downstairs loo. Win/win!

Keep the toilet and find somewhere else to put a dryer if you really need one.

@mike3 I don’t

A downstairs loo is crucial for me- I hate guests having to go upstairs and I don’t like it when I’m a guest either.

My parents self built their house and have an upstairs utility room and it makes so so much more sense than a downstairs one - your bedrooms with your laundry baskets are upstairs anyway so fewer trips lugging laundry up and down. Is there a small space you can convert upstairs instead? In my flat in London we had a washing machine and then a dryer on a reinforced shelf above it, you only really need a cupboard the size of the machines to do it, plus a bit of ventilation. We had to hang non tumble dryer items elsewhere but we had a great system of retractable washing lines you can pull out over the bath that you could pull away when not in use, much tidier than a big drying rack. It was from Brabantina, they’re only about £20. Could that work instead?

I've potty trained a child without a downstairs toilet.

I've done the laundry for a family with no tumble dryer.

I have both now, and would absolutely sacrifice my downstairs loo for a tumble dryer, especially given you have two other bathrooms.

However... most people do look for a downstairs loo when buying a house. Could you re jig an upstairs bathroom to fit your washing machine and tumble dryer in?

Tumble dryer every time! If you already have two loos that's plenty. We had three loos in our house when we first moved in. We ripped out the downstairs loo and made it into a cupboard. Much more useful. Yes it was a bit more difficult when I was toilet training my daughter but honestly in the grand scheme of things you are toilet training for such a short time.

I don't have either, but top of my list would defo be a downstairs loo. I can live without a dryer.

Also – out of choice I would always go for a proper tumble dryer as opposed to a condenser one. They are much more efficient

Madcats the OP said her living room is upstairs on the same level as one of the toilets. Why would playdates be in the kitchen/dining room?

@duckalemon

People without driers. Where do you dry your clothes, towels and bed linen in the winter?

On an airer, on airers that hang on a radiator and from clothes hangers on the curtain rails!

I haven't had a tumble drier for over 30 years. I didn't bother bringing mine when I moved in 1991. It was so expensive to run, I rarely used it.

I'd bloody love a downstairs toilet though.

I'd prefer the extra toilet but I don't really like tumble driers.

Tumble drier every time - it’s life changing! - like my quality of life increased dramatically - no washing slowly mouldering around the house, no steamy windows and mouldy walls, no mad scramble to push your pants out of the way if someone stops by unexpectedly, no crispy towels or pulling on damp jeans, just nice, clean, fresh smelling clothes and house. And I have a laundry room in the new house and I love it!

I would prefer a laundry room

I’d rather have the laundry room. Going upstairs for a wee has never been a massive inconvenience to me. Unless you anticipate frequently having guests with mobility issues, I don’t think you desperately need one.

Keep the downstairs toilet

I have had a washer dryer for 10+ years, it works well.

Otherwise, I can tell you that you can definitely potty train with no downstairs loo, you just need to keep a potty downstairs for the first days and then for emergencies.

I wouldn't have a tumble drier.

I line dry outside for most of the year.

@Comefromaway

You don;t have a tumble dryer at all?

Yes, I'd say thats pretty essential.

Really? I've not had one for 10 years. IME they shrink stuff. Have they improved?

I don’t understand how people sleep if they have an upstairs laundry! I could get rid of the en-suite as I never use it ( have taped up the door so I don’t have to clean it). I do the majority of my washing overnight when the electricity is cheaper I couldn’t sleep with it churning away next door.

I have been married 20 years and have 3 teenagers. Even did washable nappies for a while and have never had a tumble dryer. However you do either need a sunny spot with a folding airer, or if you have a good over stair area, get an old Victorian style airer with pulley system. Had that at previous house and because heat rises, an evening load would be dry next day. I would keep the toilet.

Currently thinking of stacking the washing machine and tumble dryer and get a toilet with a Basin on top. But still thinking about it
That's a good idea. But don't get too tiny s sink. We made this mistake with my sons' bathroom and the water bounces out of the sink if they turn it on fully. I'm forever cleaning up water!

We do spend most of our time on the middle floor. Kids don’t play in their bedroom as all their toys are in the living room. Eldest has a potty by the bed as I worry about him falling downstairs going for a wee.