Utility Space - what would you do?

[sel2223]

Our original plan had been to completely convert the downstairs wc to a utility room but now having second thoughts about that.....

Maybe a 'lootility' instead with a nice built in unit for the washer and dryer so we didn't completely lose the downstairs toilet? But then I'm not sure I like the idea of clean laundry drying in the toilet.

Or we could reconfigure the upstairs bathroom to include the toilet then make the current upstairs separate wc into a utility cupboard? This would make the bathroom pretty tight but it's do-able and would leave a toilet on each floor.

We are a family of 3 with another on the way so will have 2 young children and lots of laundry.

What would you do? Which would be more cost effective? Would either impact a future sale significantly? (This is probably a 5 year house) Which option do you think would work better for a young family?

(My personal pet hate is having the washing machine in the kitchen so it's a must for me to find a utility space somewhere else and there's no attached garage)

Completely understand that it’s your house and your preferences and if it was your forever home I’d say do what works for you. BUT - you’ll be selling again relatively soon and I think you’re right to consider future buyers.

For me, the downstairs/second loo is way more useful than a utility. I think the house is actually too small to have a separate utility. You’re not open plan so the machine noise isn’t going to intrude into your living space. The bathroom already looks small so I don’t think you should compromise that.

I’d honestly leave them in the kitchen with the longer term picture in mind.

I prefer laundry downstairs. So you can hang outside if you want without dragging wet washing downstairs.just make a nice lootility. Have a hanging rail if you can too.

Upstairs laundry seems clearly the best solution here.

What’s that space to the right of the upstairs loo on your floorplan? Is that just empty landing ?

The main question is how do you dry washing? If it's all tumble drier then I would do the upstairs one, but bear in mind that you won't be able to run them overnight because they will be noisy.

If outside then stick a washer in the downstairs loo if you can fit it in.

Thank you for your reply, I'm definitely keen to consider a future buyer as don't imagine this will be our forever home (too small although location is perfect) so that's what's made me change my mind about losing the downstairs toilet.

Come hell or high water I'll find room for a utility space somewhere though as can't stand it in the kitchen with washing hanging on dryers everywhere and over radiators 🙈

The floorplan isn't really to scale as, although still small, the bathroom isn't quite as small as it looks on there. There's room to put a sink and toilet side by side without moving the bath.

Generally i would also think the same about having the utility downstairs and I've seen some nice inspo pics of lootilities but I've still got some concerns about having the clean washing drying next to the toilet.
My brother has a lootility in his house but it's a much bigger room

It's just the double height of the stairs coming up if that makes sense, not usable space.... and the cupboard between the toilet and bathroom has the boiler in it

The reality is they're probably only 10 days a year when ill be hanging washing to dry outside in the north east of England 🙈

It'll be mostly tumble dryer or hanging dry on an airer so i don't suppose upstairs or downstairs really matters.

I had thought. if making it an upstairs utility cupboard, i could have the washing machine and tumble dryer side by side then a clothes rail going across the top to hang things to dry. If I did it like a cupboard with sliding doors or double wardrobe type doors, I could have them open when drying then closed at other times.

Lootility is fine, I've seen several and it's never given me pause for though, effective use of space if anything.
But I wouldn't air dry in there, just from an odour point of view... Wash and Tumble dry would be fine in a lootility.
If you want to air dry, I'd find a space elsewhere.
A friend of mine has a rack above the stair well which works really well so to the way the hall railing runs alongside it, she can stand on upstairs landing to load the rack and when it's elevated it's really out of the way and if course lots of circulating air there due to the height, so clothes dry really well.

I would have a lootility. I've recently lived in houses with washer upstairs and downstairs. Wet washing carried diwnstairs is a no no. Could you possibly make the lootility deeper/hall smaller by having a hangjng/sliding door on lootility?

Yes it's the air drying that makes me think twice about a lootility as I do prefer to air dry clothes rather than have the dryer on constantly......
that's an interesting idea about a drying rack you can elevate above the stairwell, I'll look into that although not sure if that would workhere as there isn't a landing next to the stairwell so you'd have to be standing on the stairs to load and unload.
I'll have to have a think if there's anywhere else that could work

Thanks for the advice, I can't make it any bigger as that's the front door next to the downstairs wc and it's just right at the moment to get a pram inside without dragging it further into the house

can't stand it in the kitchen with washing hanging on dryers everywhere and over radiators

Ok so if your pet hate is washing hanging around drying (rather than eg the noise) then I don’t think a lootility solves the issue anyway. As there would likely not be enough space to hang a full load out in a lootility and it will still end up hanging elsewhere.

Could you think about just finding a new space to hang the washing rather than a new space for the machines? This will be a lot cheaper/ easier also. I am wondering if you could use the understairs cupboard??

Or is there space to build a cupboard in the hallway, just next to the loo opposite the front door?

The upstairs loo is surely way too tiny to be drying washing (if you're talking about hanging it out). It's going to turn into a damp musty cupboard.
Clothes need airy space to dry properly, so if that's what you're looking for space for, neither of those options would work.

Is this the house you're living in now, or are you buying it? If the former, where do you dry washing now? If the latter, I'd be questionning whether it's the right house for you (for the way you want to live in it).

Yes it's an option to find an alternative space for the drying if we can't decide on a solution.

The space opposite the front door is where we will be parking the pram initially so don't really want to lose it.

It's the house we are buying and the best we can afford in the area we want unfortunately. Not the forever home (which will have a huge utility room 😉) but at least a 5 year home.

That's the estate agents floor plan and not to scale. The upstairs wc has enough room for a washer, dryer and clothes rail for drying plus laundry baskets.... it would need sliding or double wardrobe type doors which would be left open whenever washing was up air drying but it would mean we could close it off if we had guests staying.

Yes this isn’t a bad solution IMO.

I don’t think there’s space in your upstairs bathroom for a WC though (unless again it’s bigger than shown) so you’d need to incorporate the boiler cupboard to get the space. Where would boiler go.. or can you fit loo into boiler cupboard??

Bear in mind sliding and wardrobe type doors are poor at soundproofing. I would try to find a way to put proper thick doors on.

It's the out of scale floor plan - there is space for a sink and toilet side by side in the bathroom without moving the bath.

Thank you for the input about the doors, I hadn't considered the soundproofing aspect

Stack tumble dryer and washing machine in that upstairs loo. Sheila's maid hanging over the stair well. That would be my preference.

I know your plan is not to scale but I would create a drying space on the nook next to the downstairs WC. You could have wall mounted, pull down racks.or even just pop your normal dryer there with a dehumidifier plugged in nearby. Keeps washing out of the living spaces at least.

I would store your buggy in the understairs cupboard. I think removing the toilet downstairs would be a great loss as guests and potty training will all be done upstairs which from experience is a pain! I love our downstairs loo and think most buyers of a house that size will prefer a second toilet over a utility space

The upstairs wc is actually big enough to have the washer and dryer side by side with a clothes rail across the top for drying

I'm not sure a Sheila's maid (never heard of that before today) would work as there is no landing next to the stairs. If you were using the higher bit of the stairwell to dry clothes, you would need to stand on the stairs themselves to load and unload. Not sure how practical that is?

I do agree about the downstairs loo....we have one at the moment and I think potty training would have been a struggle without it. If I can keep that AND get a utility space somewhere I'll be a very happy girl!

That space opposite the front door is about the size of a buggy, not much bigger so would be a cupboard at most. The downstairs wc itself is actually quite big so there is scope to do something there.

Looking at your floorplan, it looks like the soil stack is in the middle of the house? (can't see why else the upstairs loo would be there). Just need to bear that in mind before you move the loo into the bathroom, if that's the route you go down.

I would keep the WM and TD downstairs, in the lootility, and then maybe convert upstairs to a large airing/drying room/cupboard. You could incorporate the boiler storage into that.
I don't think either space is right/suitable for WM, TD AND drying space. And upstairs utilities will be noisy in a house that size.

Thank you for your reply and advice, I hadn't considered that about the soil stack.

On Japan people have heated pads they put on top of the bath and then have an airer above it to dry clothes. Would you mind an airer in the bathroom? Even without the heated things it would at least be tucked out of the way?