If You Have A Tiny Laundry Room, A Broom Closet Is Just What You Need

When it comes to cramped spaces in the house, laundry rooms are at the top of many people's lists. In addition to cleaning materials, laundry detergent, and an ever-evolving pile of laundry, this space is often used for storing vacuums and carpet cleaners, brooms, mops, and more. All of this household inventory is unpleasant to look at, but beyond that, this kind of chaotic clutter can be overwhelming for your mental health, creating a feeling of powerlessness over your own home. Fortunately, there's a simple solution that can free up space in your laundry room and help you get organized: a broom closet.

While newer homes are often built with large laundry rooms, older houses may have a compact room for washing clothes and no additional storage space to speak of. If you've never heard of a broom closet (or cupboard) before, it's not your fault; the reality is that they are less common today than they used to be. Broom cupboards were a popular solution in older homes that often lacked built-in closets for storage. Nevertheless, this old-fashioned kind of cupboard is making a comeback in modern homes.

Before ordering the first broom closet you see, it's a good idea to take stock of what items you'll need to store within. Broom closets generally will come with one side that is tall enough to accommodate brooms or vacuums; the other side will likely have shelves or storage compartments that can easily fit bottles of cleaning liquids and various cleaning tools such as rags and dusting wands. It may be smart to measure larger items that you want to store in your new closet and purchase accordingly. Now could also be a good time to declutter your cleaning supplies and only keep what you need.

In addition to making sure that it is functional, you'll want to choose a broom closet that you enjoy looking at. You'll find broom closets that range in style and material, as well as cost, with some having that simplistic "locker room," metal construction feel (such as this steel storage cabinet from Amazon for $130), and others presenting a more charming country home look with white wooden doors, or a softly modern aesthetic, such as this white asymmetrical cabinet (which sells for under $140 on Amazon). You can't go wrong, so long as you go with your gut and take into account the existing style of your home. Finally, to guarantee that you'll be content with the footprint that your new storage unit takes up, use painter's tape to visualize the space it will cover.

The goal of a broom closet in your home is to free up space, improve the functionality of your laundry room, and decrease your stress levels. All of these objectives are, therefore, important to bear in mind when transitioning to having such a niche storage space. While many individuals will want their broom closet in the laundry room, you can absolutely place yours in the garage, kitchen, or another corner of the house if it fits better there. Of course, to keep your broom closet looking fresh and clean, you'll want to routinely remove all of the contents and wipe down the shelves and surfaces, inside and out.

If you choose to store a mop in the cupboard, remember to either air dry it fully before placing it inside or hang it over a bucket to prevent water damage to the cupboard itself. Like many storage solutions, a broom closet will only be as useful as you make it, meaning that it is imperative to keep the inside of this space organized. Clutter can just as easily make a home for itself in your new cupboard, so fight against the downward spiral with organizing bins for your cleaning supplies, as well as using Command strips and hooks to hang brooms, Swiffers, and the like.