How to Move Your Washing Machine Out of the Kitchen
Want to create a laundry area in your bathroom, hallway cupboard or even home office? Take advice from the experts
Freeing up kitchen storage space, reducing noise in an open-plan room, having laundry facilities closer to the areas where clothes are removed… There are plenty of reasons to consider shifting your washing machine from your kitchen to a more convenient space in the house – but what are the options, as well as the practical and safety considerations, when doing so? Here, three professionals answer key questions.
Professional advice from: Lorraine Sakharet of Decorbuddi; Eva Byrne of houseology; Brian O’Tuama of Brian O’Tuama Architects
More in this series: See examples of washing machines in various rooms around the home in 7 Alternative Places to Put Your Washing Machine
Professional advice from: Lorraine Sakharet of Decorbuddi; Eva Byrne of houseology; Brian O’Tuama of Brian O’Tuama Architects
More in this series: See examples of washing machines in various rooms around the home in 7 Alternative Places to Put Your Washing Machine
Where’s the best alternative place to put one and why?
A dedicated laundry room is ideal, Eva says. “You can then design the space around the functions of sorting clean and dirty laundry, airing wet laundry, organising the ironing and storing all the associated products and equipment.”
You would of course need the necessary space for this option. “One possibility is to partition a wall, taking space from the kitchen to house a utility room,” Lorraine suggests. Again, this may take advantage of existing plumbing, depending on the design.
The floorplan here, created by James Bernard of Plus Rooms, shows how a reorganised ground floor layout freed up the necessary space – an idea to keep up your sleeve if you’re extending. Part of the original rear reception room (now in the centre of the house) was used to create a utility room, while the other part was given to the front living room to enlarge it.
More: How Professionals Would Design a Utility Room
A dedicated laundry room is ideal, Eva says. “You can then design the space around the functions of sorting clean and dirty laundry, airing wet laundry, organising the ironing and storing all the associated products and equipment.”
You would of course need the necessary space for this option. “One possibility is to partition a wall, taking space from the kitchen to house a utility room,” Lorraine suggests. Again, this may take advantage of existing plumbing, depending on the design.
The floorplan here, created by James Bernard of Plus Rooms, shows how a reorganised ground floor layout freed up the necessary space – an idea to keep up your sleeve if you’re extending. Part of the original rear reception room (now in the centre of the house) was used to create a utility room, while the other part was given to the front living room to enlarge it.
More: How Professionals Would Design a Utility Room
What if you don’t have space for a utility room?
“In theory, you can put a washing machine anywhere,” architect Brian O’Tuama says. “We’ve never had significant issues locating a washing machine anywhere, including a cellar.”
“A deep closet will suffice,” Eva says, giving the example of the room pictured. “Here, an attic room happily functions as an office, laundry room and yoga room as needed,” she explains. “The plumbing was easy as it’s next to a shower room.”
To see more from any of the designers whose photos are featured in this article, click on the image, then on Learn More if you’re in the app, and follow the links to the professional’s profile.
“In theory, you can put a washing machine anywhere,” architect Brian O’Tuama says. “We’ve never had significant issues locating a washing machine anywhere, including a cellar.”
“A deep closet will suffice,” Eva says, giving the example of the room pictured. “Here, an attic room happily functions as an office, laundry room and yoga room as needed,” she explains. “The plumbing was easy as it’s next to a shower room.”
To see more from any of the designers whose photos are featured in this article, click on the image, then on Learn More if you’re in the app, and follow the links to the professional’s profile.
There are drawers for detergents and space above for folding and sorting, as well as for the printer. The machines aren’t integrated; instead, the cupboards are just deep enough to contain them. The MDF of the units helps to muffle the noise of the machines.
Though the cupboard doors aren’t fire-rated, the door to this room and all the others are fire doors (more on this below).
Though the cupboard doors aren’t fire-rated, the door to this room and all the others are fire doors (more on this below).
What are the key requirements of a new location?
It’s important to consider functionality, easy drying and safety. These are the five main requirements:
1 Appropriate plumbing and power You’ll need a cold water pipe. “This is quite small in diameter and generally quite simple to run somewhere new,” Brian says.
You’ll also need a pipe for the waste water. “This is easier than if you were repositioning a loo, for example,” Brian continues, “because it pumps the waste water.” This means pipework doesn’t need to be on a gradient to aid flow to the outlet. It can also be up to four or five metres from the home’s existing waste pipe. “Details would need to be discussed with a plumber, though,” he adds.
Bear in mind that trickier plumbing will generally add to the cost of the project. “The further away a machine is from an existing kitchen, bathroom or cloakroom, the more likely you are to require extra plumbing to connect it to the waste pipe,” Brian says.
Another factor that can make the job more expensive is if the pipework needs concealing – for example, behind a stud wall created to hide pipes or chased into plasterwork. In some cases, this can be avoided by running the pipework on the exterior of a building.
But it’s not only about plumbing. “A drier may need to be vented to the outside, depending on the model,” Eva adds. “Both [machines] will need electrical sockets.”
It’s important to consider functionality, easy drying and safety. These are the five main requirements:
1 Appropriate plumbing and power You’ll need a cold water pipe. “This is quite small in diameter and generally quite simple to run somewhere new,” Brian says.
You’ll also need a pipe for the waste water. “This is easier than if you were repositioning a loo, for example,” Brian continues, “because it pumps the waste water.” This means pipework doesn’t need to be on a gradient to aid flow to the outlet. It can also be up to four or five metres from the home’s existing waste pipe. “Details would need to be discussed with a plumber, though,” he adds.
Bear in mind that trickier plumbing will generally add to the cost of the project. “The further away a machine is from an existing kitchen, bathroom or cloakroom, the more likely you are to require extra plumbing to connect it to the waste pipe,” Brian says.
Another factor that can make the job more expensive is if the pipework needs concealing – for example, behind a stud wall created to hide pipes or chased into plasterwork. In some cases, this can be avoided by running the pipework on the exterior of a building.
But it’s not only about plumbing. “A drier may need to be vented to the outside, depending on the model,” Eva adds. “Both [machines] will need electrical sockets.”
2 Space “60cm wide is sufficient for most UK washing machines,” Eva says, though she advises adding more depth to a cupboard that will house a washing machine. “They tend to move around as they go through the various cycles,” she says.
3 Fireproofing As appliances are considered to be fire risks, Brian explains that, to meet Building Regulations, you’ll need to have fire-rated doors if the machine is on the ‘escape’ route – typically, on a landing or in the hall that connects to the front door.
4 Noise management “Ensure the floor is even to avoid noise generated from a rocking washing machine, and [consider] how the noise of a machine running will impact neighbouring bedrooms,” Lorraine advises.
As a side point, if you’re going to stack machines, remember you’ll need to manage their vibrations. For this reason, Brian advises a specialist stacking kit or, for older models where this may not be suitable, putting a worktop between the machines.
As a side point, if you’re going to stack machines, remember you’ll need to manage their vibrations. For this reason, Brian advises a specialist stacking kit or, for older models where this may not be suitable, putting a worktop between the machines.
5 Drying space and ventilation “Do you have enough space to hang washing if required, or could you house a dryer close to the washing machine?” Lorraine says. She also highlights the need for space to load and unload washing. “I love a pull-out shelf to sort and fold fresh laundry,” she says.
The idea illustrated here shows a space-saving and discreet way to add a clothes horse to a utility cupboard. However, you’d need to ensure a cabinet like this wouldn’t get damp. Brian recommends a two-pronged solution.
“We’ve previously put an electrical tube heater in the base of a cupboard, controlled manually, and an exhaust [extractor] fan to get the air out,” he says.
In a utility room, he suggests underfloor heating – controlled independently to other areas in the house – and a ceiling-mounted, pull-down drying rack.
“If you do a lot of washing and drying with the machines in almost constant use, a dehumidifier is a good idea,” he adds. “It means your extractor won’t have to work as hard.”
Even without drying clothes to manage, a laundry room or cupboard should have at least passive ventilation, Brian says, such as “a window trickle vent or a grille in a door”.
Tell us…
Would you consider moving your washing machine out of the kitchen? If so, where would you put it? Let us know in the Comments.
The idea illustrated here shows a space-saving and discreet way to add a clothes horse to a utility cupboard. However, you’d need to ensure a cabinet like this wouldn’t get damp. Brian recommends a two-pronged solution.
“We’ve previously put an electrical tube heater in the base of a cupboard, controlled manually, and an exhaust [extractor] fan to get the air out,” he says.
In a utility room, he suggests underfloor heating – controlled independently to other areas in the house – and a ceiling-mounted, pull-down drying rack.
“If you do a lot of washing and drying with the machines in almost constant use, a dehumidifier is a good idea,” he adds. “It means your extractor won’t have to work as hard.”
Even without drying clothes to manage, a laundry room or cupboard should have at least passive ventilation, Brian says, such as “a window trickle vent or a grille in a door”.
Tell us…
Would you consider moving your washing machine out of the kitchen? If so, where would you put it? Let us know in the Comments.
“Moving your utility area makes space in the kitchen and – if it’s moved upstairs – potentially reduces the journey from laundry basket to washing machine,” designer Lorraine Sakharet says.
Architect Eva Byrne highlights another benefit of moving the machine out of the kitchen: it will reduce noise in what is usually the busiest room in the home.
However, there can be drawbacks. “The kitchen is normally close to the garden and clothesline, handy for airing clothes, and the kitchen area is already plumbed,” Lorraine says.