Laundry Room Design and Floor Plan Tips for Wisconsin Homeowners

For many of us growing up, the laundry “room” was a corner in the basement. It wasn't so much a room as it was a utilitarian workspace. Fast forward to today, and many homeowners are opting to create a productive and attractive dedicated laundry room that improves the atmosphere of the home and removes the stigma of this boring daily chore!

To create a super-efficient, functioning laundry room design and layout, you must consider several factors like your choice of washer and dryer, wall finishes, storage and organization, and flooring. However, the two most important factors when planning on adding a laundry room are location and room layout.

In this post, we're going to take a look at the best place to locate your laundry room as well as the best room layout and laundry room design to meet your family's needs and situation.

Achieving the Perfect Balance

When planning your new laundry room, a common dilemma for many homeowners is where to locate the room. Its location must strike a perfect balance that may seem contradictory. 

It should be conveniently located for easy access, but far enough from your main living areas, so noise doesn't become an issue. 

It should be big enough to house large appliances and handling clothes, yet not so big that it “borrows” space from your home's living areas.

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Most importantly, it must be easy to tap into a range of utilities and access points that can be difficult or costly to move or extend. Yet, you still want maximum flexibility when it comes to your laundry room's placement.

Main Considerations When Choosing Your Space

While achieving a balance is important, there are some special considerations to consider that can drastically affect your decision. The fact is, if you have an unlimited budget, you can place your laundry room almost anywhere in your home. However, few of us enjoy that luxury, so you'll need to consider some factors. These include:

Utilities

Of all the factors you'll consider when planning your laundry room design, your utilities' placement is the most important. To control costs, it's important to locate your laundry room at or near easy tie in points for electrical and plumbing, plus you'll need to consider a venting location. Doing this will save you considerable amounts of time, money, and aggravation.

Electrical: All dryers, whether gas or electric, require electricity. Gas dryers typically require a 120V standard 3-prong outlet, while electric dryers require a 240V, 30-amp outlet. Washers need access to a 120V, AC only 15 or 20-amp, fused electrical outlet. Hookups should be no more than 6-feet from the appliance. All power must be grounded.

Plumbing: Washers require both hot and cold water valves that are clean and corrosion-free and within 6-feet of the hookup location.

Drainage: Washers require some form of drainage, whether it's a floor drain, wall standpipe, floor standpipe, or laundry tub.

Ducting/Venting: All dryers, whether gas or electric, must vent through an exterior wall or the roof. Some rigid metal ducts with no bends can extend as far as 120 feet; however, the best rule of thumb is to keep the dryer duct as short and straight as possible. 

Gas: A Natural gas dryer requires a natural gas line. No liquid propane is allowed.

Physical Space

You'll need at least 30-inches of width and 35-inches of depth per machine. You'll need to add another five and a half inches behind the dryer for the dryer vent.

Convenience

A laundry room located too far away from the home's working areas, like the kitchen, is inconvenient and adds work to laundry day. Try to keep your laundry room within a realistic distance of your home's living spaces. 

Five Laundry Room Design Layouts That Maximize Efficiency

With large appliances, countertops, and often a sink, laundry rooms share a lot with kitchens and can borrow much of their inspiration for kitchen layout planning. Think L-shaped, galley, U-shaped, and open plan kitchen styles when thinking about your laundry room layout. Basically, your laundry room design needs to work within its given space, and it also needs to be efficient and maximize your efforts while reducing your overall workload. 

Here are five great laundry room design layouts for you to consider.

1. The Galley or Corridor Layout

This is the most basic, economical layout since it fits into even the smallest of spaces. Often called a galley or quarter style laundry room, this layout fits best in long, narrow areas found off the side of kitchens or in mudrooms. Because they are typically a narrow space, sometimes only 5-feet wide, the appliances and other large items like the utility sink and countertops are along one wall. The other wall may hold hooks or narrow shelving.

2. The L-Shaped Laundry Room

This is similar to the galley layout in that the appliances and large items are along the one long wall. The short leg might have the washer and dryer, a countertop and cabinets, or a laundry sink. Much of this layout depends on the placement of utilities. If they are located on the L's short side, it's a smart design choice to place the washer and dryer here as it gives you the maximum space to open and close the washer/dryer doors.

3. The U-Shaped Layout

The U-shaped layout is perfect if you have a wider space. Like the galley or L-shaped laundry layout, most of the work is carried by two legs. The second long leg is a bonus area. It can be used for additional storage, organizers, shelves, hooks, or clothes racks. This layout should be at least 90-inches wide to accommodate countertops on both long walls and a 42-inch wide aisle.

4. Open Plan Laundry Room Design

This design is the most flexible layout of all. To begin with, you'll need a large space. Appliances and storage are located at any point around the room's perimeter and are dependent on the location of windows, doors, and utilities. Like an open concept kitchen, open floor plan laundry rooms can include a table located in the room's center.

5. Hidden or “Invisible Layouts

If you have no dedicated space but still want a laundry room, one alternative is to tuck the laundry away in an existing room. Laundry rooms and kitchens share much of the same needs, so hidden laundry rooms are often found off of the kitchen. Bathrooms also have water supply and drainage, so they are also a common room used for a hidden laundry. 

While your laundry room might not be the most important, or most used room in your house, creating an efficient workspace can make this chore much more enjoyable. Having a dedicated space opens the door to numerous tasks and uses beyond laundry. Your laundry room is a perfect place to store winter coats, shoes, boot, sports gear, a vacuum, dog food, and other items if you have space. 

The bottom line is that having a functional, comfortable laundry room can make spending time doing laundry not only productive but fun! 

If you live in the greater Madison, Wisconsin area and are looking for the right team to help with a laundry room design, give the award-winning design team at Degnan Design-Build-Remodel a call at (608) 846-5963.

We can help you make the right choices to meet your needs and fit your budget. Call today for a free no-obligation consultation to discuss your project. 

This article was updated by Abe Degnan on 9/13/2022.