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This clever laundry renovation involved moving a door to make better use of limited space.
The project
When we bought our house one of the first things we said was "The laundry needs to be upgraded." Our laundry was bare-bones basic with just a standard trough and zero storage.
We set out to upgrade it with more storage, more bench space and ultimately make it a practical working environment.
The first issue we ran into is design. As you can see in this picture, it isn’t the best:
The door opened inwards on the side that all our plumbing is on, so you had to walk around the trough to get outside to the clothesline. We made a number of different designs that incorporated this layout, but we were never really satisfied. That was until we said "Why don’t we just move the door?"
So this is the new layout:
And this is what we came up with in terms of the laundry space:
My Dad took the lead from here, being a qualified carpenter and handyman. We took the wall out and built a new doorway. The old door was flipped to accommodate its new positioning.
We then had some custom shelves made by an associate of my Dad’s. These were built and delivered within three days.
While the building took place, an electrician friend installed four power points in the laundry: one in the tall space, one on the bench space, one specifically for the washing machine and one for the dryer.
After the cupboards and bench were installed, the sink was put in and our plumber friend came through and hooked up the washing machine and sink. The washing machine itself fit great and we had a fully functioning laundry. Lastly, our subway tiles were installed.
After that, things came in pieces, I installed a hand towel rack next to our sink so we can dry our hands
We also bought and wall mounted a dryer for the space we left open specifically for it.
We then bought a clothes hamper from Bunnings and installed it in one of our cupboards.
Finally, we bought some cheap retractable, mountable clothes indoor clothes lines for when it’s raining.
In all, we’re lucky to have not paid for trades, with all the materials in total only costing us $1700. It has made our lives infinitely easier and added so much value to our home.
The clotheslines were a big debate from the very start of the project. We originally envisioned either a bar underneath the cabinets or a long black pole running along where the current ones are now. But we determined that there wasn't enough space under the cupboards to fit things like large shirts or pants and a black bar would become too much of a focus if it were in there.
We discovered the Daytek indoor micro retractable clotheslines by complete accident on one of our many Bunnings browse days – it's saved us so much hassle on many rainy days.
Before and after
How to plan a laundry renovation
With research and planning you can turn your laundry into an efficient and even welcoming space. Check out the guide How to plan a laundry renovation by experienced Bunnings Workshop member Adam Woodhams for renovation tips and space-saving ideas.
More laundry project inspiration
Bunnings Workshop member housetohome created lots more storage with this stunning farmhouse laundry renovation.
Bunnings Workshop member Rufaro gave his laundry a fresh new look with this clever budget laundry makeover.
There are also plenty of great ideas in our Top 10 most popular laundry renovation projects.
Let us know if you need a hand with your project – we're here to help.
