Tag: Laundry Room

Our Basement Laundry Room Makeover

This post is sponsored by Lowe’s. Thank you for making this renovation possible!

The laundry room in our Victorian is in the basement, and the space has its limitations. The ceiling height down there is low, there are pipes running overhead and along the back wall, the sole tiny window overlooks storage space beneath a porch, and the walls are a mix of drywall and stone foundation. None of those things have changed, but the laundry room is far better after its makeover!

The home had been split into apartments before we lived here, and the previous owners had a coin-operated washer and dryer that didn’t convey with the sale. We were thankful to have a relatively finished laundry room compared to the rest of the basement, but there was definitely room for improvement. We didn’t do anything when we first moved in besides add a washer and dryer.

I kept the same footprint and layout for the renovation. Tiling over previously painted concrete floors proved more challenging than expected, but I’m so glad I went for it. The hot water tank was replaced a few years ago with a more efficient (for a house heated by radiators) indirect water heater. I added new cabinets, replaced the old basement fridge, upgraded to the Samsung FlexWash washer and FlexDry dryer that can each do two loads at once, and replaced the gross plastic tub with a beautiful and functional cast iron sink.

The Design

The laundry room was pale gray when we moved in, and I repainted it beige. BOLD CHOICE, RIGHT? Honestly, it’s a great color for the room. The drop-ceiling is low and stayed white. I chose white floor tile to brighten the room, plus classic white cabinets. Ceiling, floor, and cabinet colors: done. On to the appliances!

A second fridge in the basement has been useful and the replacement options were between black, white, and stainless steel. I chose white for the new fridge to blend in and match the cabinets but was undecided on the washer and dryer, which are available in black or white.

I didn’t want an all-white space. That works well in a room with beautiful natural light and interesting architectural details, but when done in the wrong space, it can look either dull or sterile. My laundry room needed some contrast.

I painted all of the doors on the second and third floors black, and I liked the idea of continuing that downstairs. I had initially thought I would choose laminate counters with a marble or soapstone look, but ended up going with wooden countertops inspired by elements elsewhere in our house. With those two pieces of the design puzzle decided upon, I thought black would be the best choice for the washer and dryer set.

Why beige for the wall color? The lack of natural light ruled out white. I already had the contrast I needed and wasn’t interested in any more dark colors. I like a grayed-out blue and strongly considered it, but only if I would be painting the cabinets to match and I liked those in their factory finish. Do I love wallpaper and bold colors on walls and cabinetry? Absolutely, but not for this project. A light neutral would keep the overall space feeling open and visually calm. The pipes and different wall textures were all being painted in the same matte finish, and Canvas Tan from HGTV HOME by Sherwin-Williams’ at Lowe’s is a warm beige that doesn’t read too pink, brown, or yellow. It’s just right.

• Canvas Tan Paint, HGTV HOME by Sherwin-Williams • Whirlpool Top-Freezer Refrigerator • Stock White Cabinets • Octagon and Dot Tile • Samsung FlexWash • Samsung FlexDry

Tiling!

So easy breezy with that exclamation mark. Tiling! This first step in the renovation took the longest. The floor needed a whole lot of work before even getting to the satisfying step of adhering tile. We had to scarify the concrete (rough it up and get all of the paint off) with an angle grinder. I also chose to lay Ditra as an underlay to hopefully ensure a long-lasting tile job, free of cracks.

Octagon and dot tile is inexpensive and period-appropriate for older homes. I like the contrast of dark grout for a black and white look, but true black is too harsh. The grout I chose is actually a mid-tone gray, but the small scale of the tile and busyness of its pattern give it the contrasting effect I was looking for.

Tiling up to the uneven stone foundation walls was tricky. We used our new angle grinder to even out the concrete as best we could, but it sloped and waved along that edge and I kind of just picked a line and went with it. I was nervous, because of course the trickiest spot to tile would be visible from the back door.

I used a scoring knife and tile nippers to cut individual tiles, making a smooth (somewhat arbitrary) line. I smoothed grout between the outer edge and the wall so the tile wouldn’t be sharp or raised, and later taped, caulked, and painted to finish.

• Octagon and Dot Tile • Sanded Grout (Light Pewter)
Posts with More Info: Removing paint from Concrete with an Angle Grinder • Laying Ditra to Prep for Tile • Tiling the Basement Laundry Room

Lighting

The sconces are super cute, and they’re affordable at $60 each! They can be installed facing up or down, and that schoolhouse-inspired shape is a charming detail. I kept the can lights that were already in the basement, but those can be harsh (and they’re uncomfortably close with the ceiling being so low). It’s nice to have lighting options and the new sconces give the room a softer glow.

• Huntley Sconces

The Sink

Ooh, that pretty sink! Ooh, that heavy sink. My husband and I got it into place with the assistance of a jack borrowed from the back of our minivan. We were concerned about dropping it into place and damaging it, the counter, or ourselves, but we made it. The faucet is so pretty I want to steal it for our kitchen, and the sink itself is 13″ deep. I clustered a few apothecary jars with a matching soap pump because why not? I like to pretend my things are old-timey. Fresh flowers are a nice touch but I’ll replace them with fakes after those die — they’re blocking the view of the washer and dryer hookups (shhh). The vintage ironstone platter was there as a backsplash for the old plastic tub and I thought it was only fair to bring it back post-renovation.

• Kohler Cast Iron Utility Sink • Brass Faucet

Cabinets

We had a plastic utility tub with no storage, and a treasure chest left behind by the previous owners. While the latter is pretty magical, it wasn’t terribly practical and the old tub was gross! I replaced both with cabinets and also added them along the opposite wall. They add a ton of closed storage and also give us a nice spot to fold laundry. White shaker-style cabinets are simple and classic, and they’re stocked in Lowe’s stores to bring home right away.

The cabinets came with finished sides and I bought the matching toe kicks, but I also added quarter round base shoe, tying it into the baseboards I installed in the room. Caulk covers any gaps, and paint makes everything cohesive. I’ve saved and repurposed hardware from other projects, but Lowe’s carries similar brass pulls and knobs.

• Stock White Cabinets • Brass Cup Pulls (Similar) • Brass Knobs (Similar)

Making the Counters

I got it into my head that I should have wooden counters to echo the materials and design choices used in other parts of our home. Great! How does one go about making a wooden counter when you’ve never done that sort of thing before? I detailed my experience in this post. With some plywood, some trim, a lot of elbow grease and some stain and sealant, I made perfectly adequate counters.

I don’t love them, I don’t hate them. Once everything was in place, they looked fine. If they ever bug me enough to make a change, I feel like I learned enough through the experience to make something far better next time (but I don’t actually anticipate changing them out).

Post with More Info: Making DIY Plywood Countertops

The Washer and Dryer

Each are two machines in one! The Samsung FlexWash and FlexDry function as a large capacity front-loading washer and dryer, but there’s also a smaller secondary washer and dryer on top. They can be run independently or at the same time, and they are making our laundry life easier!

The ability to do a second, smaller load has been so nice. I like to wash a few delicate things in there, or use them if the kids get especially messy or need some specific clothes quickly. The added dryer is especially handy because it doesn’t tumble the clothes; it’s great for things that need to lie flat to dry.

• Samsung FlexWash • Samsung FlexDry

Finished!

A crummy 125-year-old basement laundry room can be made better, and ours has been! I painted the exposed pipes to blend in, brightened a space that receives very little natural daylight with white tile, and kept the walls light and neutral to keep the shell low-contrast, punctuated by black here and there. Everything looks and functions nicely now, and you should see me bringing guests downstairs like the proud weirdo I am. “Have you seen our laundry room? Come check it out!”

Thank you to Lowe’s for sponsoring this project and supplying all of the tools and materials I needed. I’ve loved sharing every little bit of this project with all of you, both here and on Instagram. I’ve heard from so many of you that were inspired to take on your own laundry room or tiling projects after seeing me jump in (especially on IG Stories), which makes me so happy! I have a pretty solid DIY skill set, but still, I didn’t know how to do all of this from the start. I got in there, figured it out, made it work and come together, and I’m thrilled with the result. I hope you’ve enjoyed following along!

November 28, 2018
Making DIY Plywood Countertops

There are a few options when it comes to wooden counters. Let me just say right now that I’m not sure I picked the best one (given a do-over I would make the counter with solid wood), but it was among the least expensive and not a bad choice. This was my reasoning…

Butcher Block

Butcher block is a great choice in a kitchen, but it does say “kitchen” to me and felt like an odd choice for a laundry room. (I’m sure that is my own weird reaction.) I didn’t want the striated effect, and I don’t always care for the way it looks when stained as opposed to oiled. Of course now that I have plywood counters that I also don’t love the look of stained, this was a foolish reason to rule out butcher block, but at least I saved a lot of money in comparison?

Faux-Wood Laminate

I’m not a laminate snob — it can be a great choice and was something I had considered — but I’m not into the fake wood options.

Reclaimed Wood

Ideal! Lovely and with history and character! It felt beyond my woodworking abilities though, for pretty much the same reasons I avoided wooden boards.

Wooden Boards/Planks

Turning boards into counters seemed daunting. I don’t regret using plywood because I haven’t done a whole lot of woodworking projects and I learned a lot, but I wish I had the confidence I’ve now gained because this would have been prettier.

I would have needed a biscuit joiner, biscuits, and plenty of 36” long clamps. Maybe a planer, too? Lowe’s is sponsoring the laundry room reveal and they would have provided any tools and materials I needed, but I approached this project as I would have on my own, keeping in mind a budget and a level of appropriate finishes for a 125-year-old basement laundry room. It’s way nicer than before, but I can’t make the room into something it isn’t architecturally and I didn’t want to hoard a bunch of specialized tools I might never use again just because I could. Still, I have minor regrets. This would have been far nicer.

Plywood

Winner, winner! I figured it would be easy to work with since it’s already a large, flat pane, and plywood is inexpensive. I don’t love the end result, but I don’t hate it either. If you’re considering this option, I hope it’s helpful to read a positive but not glowing experience with it.

Plywood comes in a variety of wood species, thicknesses, and grades. I chose pine over oak or maple because while it is softer (and susceptible to gouges and scratches), it takes a mid-tone stain nicely and doesn’t blacken with water exposure. I was planning to stain and seal my counters, but with wet laundry and a big sink both having the potential to ruin them, I’d rather see wear with age than black spots.

Two of my cabinets end against uneven stone foundation walls. I used a compass to scribe the edges onto a piece of cardboard, then cut the edge with a razor and tested the fit. Once I was happy with that step, I used the cardboard as a template, traced it onto my plywood, and then cut those edges with a jigsaw.

I used two sheets of plywood (a nice 3/4″ thick pine for the top and a lower grade 1/2″ for the bottom) to make a strong counter for the sink cabinet. After cutting the top sheet to size, I dry fit it into place before centering and tracing the sink template.

I don’t use our table saw very often (and whoops, I didn’t clear the cobwebs on the base), but the blade we had in it would have chewed up the plywood. I picked up an inexpensive new 10” blade with 60 teeth that cuts plywood cleanly. I picked up a jigsaw blade with more teeth (12) for the same reason and it left fairly smooth edges.

I used a different technique for the other two counters. I didn’t need a full second sheet of plywood for more strength, I just wanted to raise the counters up a little to make room for trim pieces while leaving clearance for drawers to open. I added 1/2″ thick pine boards around the perimeter of each counter. Each piece was glued, clamped, and then screwed into place.

Plywood edges are ugly, so I added simple 1-1/2″ pine trim around each counter. They were glued, clamped, and held in place with finish nails. I used a nail set to countersink the nails and then fill them with stainable wood filler, but here’s another lesson learned: get pine wood filler if you’re working with pine because I didn’t and the filled holes took stain differently.

I filled nail holes and any imperfections, then sanded the counters with 200-grit sandpaper. I wiped the surface clean with tack cloth and applied wood conditioner, followed by two coats of Ipswich Pine stain. I finished with three coats of polyurethane applied with a natural bristle brush, lightly roughed up with 320-grit sandpaper between coats, and buffed with 0000 steel wool after fully drying.

The photo below on the left is from when I applied the second coat of poly (still wet), and on the right is the finished counter. I chose a satin finish, which I’m happy with.

They were dry to the touch after sitting overnight, but I left them alone for three days before putting anything on top. They’re attached to the counters with simple metal L brackets and wood screws.

The pine trim took stain differently than the pine plywood. You can see the filled-in nail holes. The counters are smooth, but not a perfectly glassy finish, and the wood grain is nothing special. I don’t want to seem so down on them, but I don’t want to encourage anyone to do this and think it’s going to be the most! amazing! project! ever! They’re good, utilitarian counters for a good, utilitarian space, and they’re cheap. I give them a B+.

November 8, 2018
Laundry Room Mockups and Floor Plan

Imagine the cardboard box is a wooden counter. Imagine I’ve installed the sink and faucet, caulked the gaps along the foundation wall, and faced the toe kick. You can see it, yes?

I shared a preliminary design when I first started planning the laundry room. Now that it’s nearly complete, I wanted to share the floor plan and mockups in their own post. I stayed fairly true to the original vision.

I go back and forth between SketchUp and Photoshop when designing. Sometimes I think I should learn to render for SketchUp with Podium too, but should I really? (Anyone with experience there, is the learning curve steep?) I did learn how to make my renderings look like line drawings, and I’m like great. That’s one cool trick for now, let’s move on.

I can touch the ceiling easily (I have to pay attention when folding big things like bedding). It’s a weird old basement, not an ideal space, but the worst of it is in the corner by the gas meter. We have a secondary fridge downstairs and to the right of it, there are lots of pipes coming out of the wall, hooking up to the meter, and then running across the ceiling. It’s not the prettiest spot, but adding a cabinet instead of the antique treasure chest left behind from the previous owners is an improvement in storage. (Kind of a downgrade in terms of creepy magical items though.)

I’ve added more cabinets to the other side of the room and a pair of sconces above. There’s also an adjustable-height stool because I like to include a seat in the laundry room when possible. Sometimes we like to have a chat while one person is down there moving laundry from the washer to the dryer, or folding clothes. Or maybe there’s five minutes left in the washing cycle and I want to sit and scroll through Instagram? I don’t know. A seat comes in handy!

I could hang this abstract landscape painting above the counter and be done. But I got it into my head that I should paint my own thing because why not. Yay? Nay? It’s a laundry room. I may be overthinking the importance of its decor, but it makes me happy when it looks nice.

I’ll tell you what I was convinced I didn’t want, which is a sign that said “laundry” or “fluff ‘n’ fold” or “drop your pants” or whatever, until I saw this 8-foot vintage sign and I wanted it real bad. There are always exceptions.

I’ll share the counter-making process, and then it will be reveal time!

September 26, 2018
Choosing Countertops for the Laundry Room
The laundry room is so close to being done! I just need to sew a shade for the window, and the sink installation is being held up by the countertop selection. Originally, I was thinking I would go with laminate in either a marble or soapstone look.

Lowe’s is sponsoring the reveal, so I grabbed a million little swatches from them to see what I liked. These were the ones I had narrowed it down to; Marmo Bianco and Basalt Slate are my favorites.
The laminate options on the market today look amazing, and I still stand by them as a solid choice, but I’ve realized that it isn’t what I want for the room.

I’ve shimmed and leveled the cabinets and they’re secured in place, and I laid a faux-marble tabletop across so we would have a surface to use while I decided on the real counters. It’s pretty! But I like continuity throughout a home and I’m not planning on adding Carrara marble to the house (other than on furniture — love that table in my office), and it feels out of place. The dark soapstone look was becoming less appealing to me too as other elements came together. I got it in my head that butcher block might actually be the way to go, but that didn’t seem like the perfect solution either.

What I really wanted, I realized, was to do a wood counter like in our kitchen, or the tops of the cabinet sections in the library. And you can’t just buy them in the store because you have to make them. Eureka. I need to make my counters.

Because what is this house missing? Unpainted wood. Nope, none of that to be found here.

It’s going to be great. It’s certainly going to have continuity (ha)!
September 10, 2018
The Accidental Geyser

We washed a load of laundry last night! In our own house! Oh, function. How I’ve missed you.

The sink cabinet is in place, and the washer and dryer are up and running. I ran into a few problems along the way, but mostly things like needing a gas line that was 5′ instead of 4′ long. Easily fixable, just necessitating another trip for supplies. And I did have a water incident last night, but all is well now!

Here’s what happened. I finally had everything hooked up. Gas line to the dryer. Semi-rigid dryer duct all hooked up. Hot water to the washer, and cold water split to both the washer and steam dryer. The last piece of the working laundry room puzzle was the drain hose.

I replaced my washing machine with a Samsung FlexWash — a relatively new option on the market with a secondary washer. (Sounds useful, right? I’m pretty excited about it! Lowe’s is sponsoring the laundry room reveal, so they provided materials and appliances for this whole project.) There’s only one water inlet each for hot and cold and that installation was straightforward, but it has two separate drain hoses. They meet together at the end with a Y-shaped adapter, and that part goes into a standpipe drain. Ours is behind drywall with access through a washing machine outlet box.

I was about 12″ short, so I figured I would just hook up a universal washing machine hose extension and be good. Nope! I wasn’t thinking about the logistics until I read in the manual not to do it, but of course it makes sense. Water would flow into one hose, be pumped out, but then backflow into the other section if the adapter wasn’t right at the drain. OK, so plan B. Instead of one extension hose, I used two — in between the machine’s hoses and the connecting piece. There were no instruction and it wasn’t the easiest thing to figure out, but I bought reducing couplings and clamps and hoses and messed around until I got it. YAY! Ran a test cycle and thought all was well. Kind of loud while it was draining, but eh? I was watching the drain hoses and all of my connections, feeling pretty good about solving my problem and not seeing any leaks. Meanwhile, water was flooding into the cabinet two feet to my right! Wonderful.

I took out the old utility sink two months ago and never capped the plumbing. I turned off the water supply and left the remainder of the drain pipes alone, not thinking that it would be a problem. The utility sink and standpipe from the washer are connected behind the drywall where it’s out of sight, out of mind. So of course when the washer was draining, water flowed down the pipe and plenty came up and out of the old, uncapped utility sink drain! Secret cabinet geyser! I realized the problem pretty quickly, stopped the machine, and soaked up the water.

Back to the store before they closed. I bought a J-pipe, 12″ extension, and a cap suitable for high-pressure (something important to note, because not all PVC components are). This is a temporary fix because there will be a new sink in place soon enough, so I wrapped the pipe threads with plumber’s tape as opposed to using glue/cement before wrench-tightening the connections. I probably could have just used a cap alone, but I thought it would be best to raise the height to above where I assume the standpipe and sink drain meet behind the wall. I am not a plumbing professional! Take my solution with a big shoulder shrug and fingers crossed, but it worked! And somewhere around here I have a leak detector from when I went to visit Delta’s headquarters last year. I think the laundry room is a great place to set that thing up.

July 27, 2018
Tiling the Basement Laundry Room

Today, I grout! But first, let’s take a look at the tiling progress I’ve made.

I started by finding the center of the room, then going out from there to see how square (or not) the room was. The laundry room is 10’x14’ and surprisingly not too wonky, at least as far as right angles go! Next, I dry laid sheets of tile to see how they lined up with the edges of the room. I don’t think this step is as important with small mosaic tiles as it would be with a larger format, but I felt better seeing some of the flooring in place before continuing.

I mixed my mortar to the consistency of peanut butter and was ready to affix the tile. (Tip: add powder to water when you start, not the other way around. It’s easier to mix without forming a dry clump at the bottom that way.) You can prefill the little waffle squares in a Ditra underlay (more about why I used Schluter Ditra right here) so that’s why you see some patches already filled in and dry — I was using up whatever mortar was in the bucket after adding the KerdiBand strips to waterproof the floor.

I started in the center and worked my way toward the wall where the water heater goes. I want to get that thing back in place! (Hot water, I miss you. So much.) By the end of day 1, I had made it to the wall and close to two corners.

Day 2, I started back at the center and worked my way toward the opposite wall. Then, leaving a path around the perimeter, I went back and got the two corners I had almost made it to the previous day. I didn’t want to start in one corner and work all the way from there because the tile sheets give a little, and you can get really out of square really quickly over longer distances. If I would radiate out from the center, I figured I had a fighting chance at doing this well.

I ended the day with staggered seams. I’ve seen mosaic tile installations where the seams between tile sheets is super noticeable, and I would be pretty mad at myself if I did that. There are a handful of spots where I feel like the spacing is slightly off, but I don’t think they’ll be very visible once everything is in place. I’m also looking at it far more critically than most would. Such is my way! My next tiling job is going to be the bathroom, also with a small mosaic tile, so I’m glad to have this space as my learning experience. Obviously I want this room to look good, but the stakes are ever so slightly lower.

Day 3! I had left all of the hardest cuts for the end, so I got all of my little tile pieces in place before mixing up my mortar again.

I experimented with a few different techniques for cutting tile. A snap cutter is difficult because the scoring wheel stops at every individual tile. It works, but you have to scoot it along, piece by piece. I found it easier to use a scoring knife and tile nippers. Best of all though was the wet saw! Mine has a laser line that I found very helpful (I didn’t use the optional guide rail), and the guard kept most of the water from splashing me. I wore leather gloves and safety goggles to protect my hands and eyes from the little shards of tile that would fling off occasionally, but I found the wet saw easy to use and great for precise cuts.

I added blue tape to mark the perimeter of previously laid tile that were safe to walk/stand/sit on. You don’t want to put pressure on the freshly laid tiles because they’ll shift around or mortar will squeeze up through the gaps. If you look for the patch of flooring that looks whiter than the rest, you’ll see where I was using too much mortar in the beginning. It oozed up through the gaps and I had to scrape it out of there after it dried with a grout saw, razor blades, and a stiff-bristled brush. It will be fine once I grout the floor, but it was a mistake I wish I hadn’t made.

There’s still a lot to do before I can call the room finished, but this tiling job was the most time-consuming part of it. I’ll grout today and let that dry overnight. Tomorrow, I’ll clean the floor with haze remover and then I’ll need to use a grout sealer before I can call the floor done. But the finish line is in sight! Hot water, ahoy!

July 11, 2018