Asked on Jan 31, 2018
Storage in between washer & dryer
by
Mills
+3
Hello,
I need to have storage in our small laundry room and I’d like to build it. Strong preference for non-plastic ones. Essentially, a rolling cabinet in between the machines. I’m 5’ Tall and it’s difficult to Reach above machines, hence my Line of thinking. Any ideas you can share please? I’ve found a few on this site, but I need details like measurements and somewhat of a building plan. My vision is a concealed (with a door?) in between machines cabinet with sto Strictly for detergen and such. please note that I’m a novice, but patient & meticulous.
Some examples I’ve found Online. Need to keep things simple though and some look more elaborate than I can handle.
Thank you in advance for your help
An old, very sturdy bookcase that fits between the machines could be your answer. Just put a set of wheels on the bottom & a handle about three feet up on the side so you can roll it in and out. Look at "antique" stores to find one made of wood (not sawdust & glue type material) with a solid back, or replace a thinner back with a solid piece of wood. Your lumber or home improvement store could cut it to size for you.
You would be building a kitchen base cabinet with a pull-out. It would have to be anchored to the floor to keep from tipping over when the drawer is open.
You could purchase a 12" ready-to-assemble kitchen cabinet from a company like RTA Cabinets (on line) and an 8" wide pull-out drawer from Rev-A-Shelf.
Less expensive is one of those plastic carts. You would not have to worry about the cart getting wet or dripping detergent ruining it as you would with a laminate cabinet or even wood.
I took a look on Pinterest but my computer is blocked for most of their stuff. The links say that there are instructions on how to build.
Those are really great ideas! For measurements, you would have to get those, as you would want to carefully measure the space between your machines. For the rest, once you got those measurements we could help you figure out materials for the actual cabinet
Bookcase sounds like a good idea. Hard to find very narrow ones though.
Before you start this project will current detergent box/bottle fit between washer and dryer? Measure the area side to side and subtract 1/4 inch so it does not scrape. Measure floor to top of machine and subtract height of caster(varies). Measure back to front so it sits flush with machine front. Decide on type of wood, I recommend 1/2 inch thickness because I know some bottles/boxes of detergent get heavy. For wheels you will need small casters(4). Type you need will have a mounting bracket and use 4 screws each. Some places will cut wood for you for small charge. Not sure but you may be able to find kit to use. You will need screwdriver/hammer for construction. Small can of paint to match machine. I'd use semi gloss or even gloss, if you want shine, latex paint. Easy clean up, easy touch up.
Put together placing shelves between the sides and use 2-3 nails(easier than screws) to fasten. Make sure caster screws are not too long so they don't go through bottom board.
For sides like example 1 you can use a thinner wood(be sure bottles fit).
I have something similar between fridge and cabinet but plastic.
Hello, I am 5'2" and I know I tower over you, but this may help you until you get your cart built. If your machines are the traditional design that have the controls on the raise piece on the back, you can put 2 boards together in an L configuration and place them on top of the control panels. It is an easy way to use wasted space and put your laundry needs right at the machine. Plus nothing can fall down behind the machines with these in place.
Thank you. It’s going to take me a bit before I finish it, but I’ve started this project with the drawing (thanks hubs!) and measurements. It’s going to be tight, so triple measuring before any other steps. Thanks so much everyone!