House Digest Survey: Which Laundry Room Feature Is The Most Important To You?

If you're usually the one who tackles the laundry in your household, perhaps a custom laundry room sounds like a dream come true. Creating the layout from scratch that would perfectly fit your needs and desires would make cleaning, drying, and folding clothes a breeze. 

When designing this space, Stock Cabinet Express says to begin by thinking about your requirements. Do you need a large place to fold? Would having a sink be beneficial? Then from there, you will need to find an ideal place in the home for it where rattling noises or a mess wouldn't be bothersome. 

To find out the feature that most people want in their dream laundry room, House Digest surveyed 612 respondents. The possible answers included a sink, a drying rack, storage space, counter space, an ironing board, and great lighting. The most popular option was chosen by 216 people and received 35% of the vote.

216 people chose storage space as their most important laundry room feature. That's not surprising, as it's essential to keep everything from detergent to stain removing products accessible and well-organized. Some people also use their laundry rooms to house other items like linens, towels, or tablecloths.

One of the most common storage solutions in a room is cabinets, which can be placed above or beside your washer and dryer. Another option is installing floating shelves, which would make everything extra accessible. Bins could also be placed on the shelves to keep things organized. Home Selfe recommends using a ladder shelf if you're limited on space, as they aren't bulky and take up minimal room. Hooks or bins could even be installed on the inside of doors.

You could also reconsider the layout to add more space to keep things. Perhaps choosing a stackable washer and dryer would provide you with a larger place to work, and a foldable table, hamper, or ironing board could help you organize your laundry room.

The runner-up survey answer was a hanging or drying rack, which received 22% and 136 votes. According to BC Hydro, having one can save you money as the dryer typically uses over 10% of a home's energy. Further, this appliance can cause clothes to shrink or wear down, so using a drying rack can help you maintain your clothes for longer.

The next most popular option was counter space, which got 19% and 118 votes. This option is important because it makes folding extra easy. The Spokesman-Review says that counters can be placed on top of front-loading machines or beside your units. When designing this feature, you should also think about the height and size that's most convenient for you.

A sink garnered over 15% and 95 votes. West End Plumbing recommends adding a sink to your laundry room so you can clean delicate items or rinse off especially dirty clothes. This feature could also be a great place to water your plants or bathe your pets. The final two options weren't very popular, as great lighting only got under 5% and 29 votes, and an ironing board received about 3% and 18 votes.