Utility room...where should it be?

[Willowwood45]

Where is the best place for a utility room? We are buying a house that has one but we think we want to knock it out to make a more rectangular kitchen. Its all stud walls so we don't think it would be too bad knocking it out and realising that space to make a kitchen diner. So we have two options...

1. Should it be off the kitchen? We have the option of adding a small extension to the side of the house. So there would be a door off the kitchen to the utility area and there would be direct access to the garden from there.

1. We could have one added by converting part of our double garage which is attached to the house. You enter the garage via a door which is next to the front door. So the entrance to the utility room would be off the hallway. This option would be cheaper as we would just need to convert about 1/3 of the garage. This option would also give direct access to the garden.

But is a utility room not off the kitchen weird?

Interested in this because I'm also having this debate...

My thoughts are a room would be good for coats, laundry, shoes (crap) even if not next to kitchen, although that would be ideal.

I don't have a utility and I cook a lot atm... not sure I'd mind not having a prep area so long as the kitchen is a good size

Yes this was my thought. If it was off the hall, it could be a laundry room / space for coats and shoes. But if it was off the kitchen it would prob be just for the washer and a sink etc. The coats and shoes storage would stay near the hall.

Ours is off the kitchen and we use it to store the microwave, toaster etc and bin to have more space from the kitchen. So it would be weird to not have it there, if that’s what you were using it for.

PILs utility is more like a laundry & boot room, so they have theirs as part of the converted garage, that is accessed next to the bathroom (bungalow).

It really depends on the usage!

We’re having a utility added next year by putting it into the old kitchen and the new kitchen is going into the current dining room and an extension.
It’s not specifically a utility though. It’s going to be for laundry, shoes, coats and junk.

Our utility is accessed through the hall but is next to the kitchen. Previous owners had converted the garage into a bathroom & double bedroom then we changed the bedroom into a large utility room. Works for us

I'd do the garage option. So a laundry/boot room. A small extension is likely to be quite expensive.

we were going to do the small extension of the kitchen - but we would have lost too much of an already small garden - it was also the bit of the garden that got the afternoon sun.

I would say garage as my parents bought a house recently with the utility in the huge 3 car garage. It has lots of wall to ceiling storage and hanging space, a bulit in ironing area , worktop, 2 washers and dryers, a double butlers sink and a sort of shower area the previous owners used for dog washing. There are lines for drying indoors as well.
It is utility utopia.

Ours is in the cellar - for laundry, wine storage, cleaning stuff, tools, clutter that we don't want in habitable parts of the house. I don't really understand why you would want it next to the kitchen? There's no connection in my mind between food preparation and anything you might want to do in a utility room. If you're using it for the microwave etc that just means your kitchen is too small! But the premise of the original post is that the kitchen is being enlarged to take in the current utility room, so I don't really see that as a problem.

We're putting ours in upstairs. Handier for where the washing accumulates and needs to be put away.

This is fascinating! So many options. An upstairs utility room actually names so much sense! Not an option in this house but why on earth wouldn't you do the laundry next to the bedrooms?! Genius!

Ideally my utility would have a sink, space to dry washing and the washign machines etc.

If big enough, being able to store coats and boots is great, but mch better if accessed from the outside. eg we have a dog. I'd love to be able to come in from dog walk directly into the utility room.

I'd also worry if the washing was drying would it make the coats damp etc.

My utility is off the kitchen however the only thing that connects my utility to the kitchen in terms of use is the recycling is in there as is the container for dirty kitchen towels and cloths. I am sure I could put these into a cupboard and then move them to the utility if it wasn't so close.

However, we did convert a double garage for a playroom for the children which is accessed from the hall, it would be no issue to walk these things to the utility if it was off the hall.

The garage conversion would give you free reign to carve out whatever space you want, Pinterest has a million utility or laundry room photos to inspire. Also far cheaper than building on an extension. Think folding table/area, hanging things up to dry, storage for all the cleaning stuff and maybe a sink.

Mine is off the hall and it's great. I don't keep coats there because it gets quite humid with the tumble dryer but we keep wellies and the hoover in there and have loads of space for drying clothes and ironing. It doesn't have an external door which some people like it doesn't bother me, we have hard flooring in the hall so just come in the usual way if we've been on a muddy walk.

Ours is off the kitchen. It houses the washing machine/dryer, freezers, a sink, dog bed, bikes, tools and wellingtons.

OnTheBenchOfDoom, that was out other idea...converting more of the garage into another room. Did you have this down recently by any chance? Was it expensive to do?

My preference would be off the hall, no idea why it's connected to the kitchen functions. If you've an abundance of upstairs space then upstairs is good but I'd make jolly sure it's water right just in case the washing machine floods. Off the garage seems like the best option.

Mine is #1 off the kitchen, but it’s too much money to only get by building an extension. You’d spend a lot and not increase your house value. So I recommend for you #2 converting part of the garage.

My utility room is off the hall which is behind the kitchen. All of our rooms are access off the hall. It also has a door to outside

I love it. No need for it to be off the kitchen imo

Oops posted too soon. Adding that ours has a large freezer in plus large sink and shoes/boots etc so maybe more of a laundry/boot room. It's not massive but it's a decent size and I wouldn't be without it!

The ideal utility is off the kitchen and has a door to outside.

This means you can come into the utility from outside and remove dirty boots etc before getting into house. Laundry can be taken into garden. Anything in the kitchen that needs to go into utility can do so easily.

Best ones seem to have a large sink for dirty jobs, space for washing machine and/or tumble drier and drying space. They also have space for boots/shoes/coats of the dirty variety at least.

I have both. I love it.

The one off the kitchen is a v small room, which is really a food pantry with space for food mixers, stock pots, etc. It means we needed fewer kitchen cabinets (because no food stored in them) which greatly reduced cost and makes the kitchen feel airy. It was cheap to put shelves in the pantry. We can see what we've got in easily.

The other one is a laundry room / mud room. It has a sink, a washing machine, tumble dryer, lots of hanging space, ironing board, hoover, all the cleaning products etc. It has access to outside. Muddy people must come in through that door. I love it.

How big would your utility be? Is your garage heated?

If it's big enough for a washing machine, tumble dryer, spare freezer, drinks fridge, sink, coat closet, and to hold and clean muddy boots, sports kit and dogs: definitely the garage. Grocery shopping straight from car to fridge/freezer, sports kit from car or garden straight to utility, walkers and dogs enter through garage and use utility as a mudroom before entering house. Rubbish for drying clothes, though, unless your garage is heated and you can ventilate the utility. The hallway door would need to be a fire door if you're in the UK.

If the room is going to be too small for a spare freezer and fridge, and coat closet, then I'd just put it off the kitchen. Easier, no fire door required, and better for drying clothes. You'll just have to cope with mud in your house .

I live in a city where houses have small washing machines/tumble dryers upstairs and big ones (for duvets, towels, sheets etc) in the cellar. Genius.

I'd love a utility room. If I had one, I think I would want it off the kitchen so I could use it as overflow for storage and extra space for food storage space when entertaining/Christmas etc and for storing kitchen gadgets I don't use often.

I think it depends what you need the utility for. If it's for things which won't fit in your kitchen then it makes sense for it to be off the kitchen.

Ours is on the half floor below the kitchen in the cellar, although it has steps up to the back door so it's easy to get out with the wet washing. It's more of a utility suite in that it's three smallish rooms - one a cloakroom for coats and shoes which also has the cupboard under the stairs, one is a laundry/utility room and the third is a dog room with her bed and dog-related paraphernalia.

In the US it is not uncommon to have the utility room upstairs. Dirty laundry goes straight from bedrooms into the utility room.