Laundry Room Organization

AUGUST 1, 2021

Laundry Room Organization

With kids home from school, it is likely there is going to be a lot more laundry being done in your house this time of year. Little ones might need an outfit change after a spill at lunch, and college kids are coming home from school bringing all the laundry they were doing with them! The laundry room is a space that needs to be primarily functional. However, spending as much time in it as we do, it doesn't hurt if it happens to be pleasing to the eye as well.

This month, we have combined our eight best laundry room organization ideas, tips, tricks and hacks so that you can find a way to make your room work perfectly for the space you have, your budget, and what exactly you need for that space to do.

Top laundry room organization ideas:

• Recycle old, empty containers, and ditch any laundry products you don't like to make some space.

• Decanting laundry supplies into other containers is not necessary to create a lovely, organized space. Just corral the assorted containers on a tray or in a bin. This serves the double purpose of looking nice and making it easier to move everything aside in order to clean.

• Adding a triple-sorter laundry basket can help to avoid the dreaded laundry room floor pileup.

• Give each family member an individual basket so you can keep clothes separated, making it easier to sort afterward.

1. Counter Space

This is something you don't really think about until you have to treat a large blanket spaghetti stain or fold what feels like 900 towels. Counter space is one of the most easily forgotten laundry room needs, but there is a really simple solution. The top of your washer and dryer can serve as the perfect work surface although they often go unused to their full potential. This is valuable counter space that you can use for treating clothes, folding towels, or stacking clothes that need to be hung up. Many washer/dryer sets come with pre-fabbed tops that will slide over them to create a work surface. If you want a more stylish look (or are trying to DIY this top) a plywood waterfall countertop is just the thing!

2. Detergent Hacks

Detergent is a messy thing, no matter how many times you think that setting it right above the washer's designated detergent compartment will solve this problem. There are two great solutions for this! First, try elevating your bottle onto this holder , or attaching these drip guards that also hold the measuring cup to the valve of the bottle to prevent spills.

For powdered detergent, try pouring it into a glass jar and adding a scoop to make the area more visually appealing and equally as functional as leaving the open box sitting on top of the washer. This also allows for you to easily see how much is left and when it is getting closer to the time you need to stock back up.

3. Hampers

When you have an organizational system in place, you are less likely to allow clutter to build. There are a lot of great hamper solutions out there, but a few are really tried and true. A long time favorite is the three piece hamper. This allows for you to sort your laundry as you throw it in the hamper. You can separate it into whites, darks, and colors at the end of each day so that you can skip that task during laundry day. We recommend one with an ironing board doubling as a top this way you don't have to figure out how to store your ironing board as well.

4. Drying Racks

Hanging space is one of the most helpful things you can have in a laundry room. A wall-mounted drying rack can save some major space in a small room. There are accordion style ones that come out from the wall but will lay fairly flat when they are pushed back. A great option for hanging clothes is pop-out hanging storage that also runs flush with the wall when not in use but does not take up as much wall space as the accordion style hanger.

You can also get a pop-up drying rack (also called a drop hanger system). These can be set up when you need them, and taken down when you do not. Many can hold up to 32 pounds of wet clothes and can easily fit under your bed or behind the door of your laundry room or closet. This is also a great solution if you have laundry in your basement with walls that don't really allow for hanging storage to be put in place.

5. Wall Storage

Everything from a drying rack on the wall, hooks, shelving, basket storage, or even a peg board are great options for giving everything a home. Wall hooks are great for things like dry cleaning, cleaning supplies, or shoe bags. A pegboard is great for cleaning supplies as well as lint rollers, dog leashes and other small utilities. Don't forget behind the door, either. If you aren't using the back of your door to hang your ironing board, hang some over the door hooks on the back instead of hanging them on the wall. If you have room, shelving systems are a great way to add a lot of function to your laundry room. If built-ins aren't an option, you can hang shelves on the wall or even bring in a small bookshelf.

Consider storing small utilities such as batteries, light bulbs or shoe cleaning supplies in your laundry room as well. These items don't quite fit with the garage storage categories, but don't really make sense in the kitchen. The laundry room is the perfect place to store them! (However, if you need to cut something out, these are an easy option. You could also store them in a basket in your closet or a hallway coat closet - depending on the available space you have.)

6. Hangers

A lot of laundry rooms will have some sort of cabinets above the washer and dryer, but many of them leave an awkward space between the edge of the cabinet and the wall. This is a perfect place for either a dowel or tension rod for you to keep your hangers within reach. This way your empty hangers aren't taking up valuable space where you have designated to hang clothes.

7. Step Ladders

Most of the laundry rooms that I have used in my life have had cabinets above the washer and dryer. While this is a great use of space, they can sometimes be tricky to get to. Long gone are the days of bulky step stools with nowhere good to go - get yourself one that folds and can fit upright in the crevice between your washer or dryer and the wall (or even in between the washer and dryer!)

*Managing Laundry Itself:

Laundry is definitely something that can pile up really quickly. The best advice I have heard is to make it an on-going task rather than a chore you dread. By turning a big laundry day into a series of smaller laundry tasks, it will seem much more manageable to you. There are a few ways that you can do this:

• When one of your hamper compartments is full, put it in the machine.

• When a load is dry, fold it and put it away immediately.

• Put a load in before you begin to complete other household chores. This way, when you are done with that task, your laundry will be ready to switch. Letting it do its work in the background allows for you do be more productive.

We hope these laundry room organization ideas will help you declutter and create some great systems! Share this post if you know someone else who could benefit from an organized laundry room.