Ditch the Dirty Clothes Basket

Ditch the Dirty Clothes Basket

Problem: You're constantly tripping over the laundry basket in your walk-in closet/bathroom/laundry room. It's something you need to catch the dirty clothes until wash day, but can't it be less troublesome?

Solution: Design Basics' plan customization specialist, Tricia Baker, developed a handy and attractive design amenity, the Laundry Solution. It can be incorporated into your closet, bedroom, or bathroom, integrated into your cabinetry as a tilt-out or pull-out drawer. On laundry day, simply lift the clothes basket out of the drawer to transport to your laundry room.

Another concept is a pass-through from your closet, bedroom, or bathroom (see cover image). If your home's design facilitates a shared wall between one of these rooms, the Laundry Solution conveniently "drops" dirty clothes into your laundry room!

Design Basics' plan #35038 - Arturo Timbers - includes both types of Laundry Solutions:

  • A Laundry Pass-Through style in the Owner's Suite walk-in closet
  • A Laundry Tilt-Out/Pull-Out style in Suite 2's walk-in closet

Let our Plan Customization Specialists help you incorporate a Laundry Solution into your favorite home plan!

For more resources on thoughtful design:

Think Storage

Think Storage

Storage. It’s a much-needed element in any home. And, we rarely hear homeowners say they have too much storage. But, that square footage costs money, and now averages upwards of $150 per square foot. Let’s say you have a 6’ x 10’ closet space; that’s 60 square feet, or approximately $9,000. That means storage space is expensive. One way to mitigate the expense is to include a well-designed storage system. They not only maximize space; they help you organize your stuff—and your life!

Areas where you can maximize storage space without adding square footage include extra shelving over your washer and dryer, under the stairs, or in the garage – again, storage systems are an excellent way to organize and contain items; also, think suspended shelves or shelves above your garage door tracks.

Specialized Storage. Do you dream of a huge kitchen pantry? How about a cedar closet for your households’ off-season clothes? Where will you stash the 36-roll package of toilet paper? Do you have room for the grand-kids’ toys and games? Is a wine room in your future? Wouldn’t it be great to have a handy place for your Christmas tree?

Over the years we’ve often heard homeowners requesting specialized spaces to accommodate their own unique needs. Gathering up all the ideas, we created what we call a Signature Space® – a small flex space/room measuring 6’ x 8’ that can be used however the homeowner wishes. The Serena (#42282) plan’s Signature Space could be used as a craft room, toys/games room, or customized storage.

Our Livability at a Glance™ color-coded floor plans help home buyers focus in on the elements they desire most in a home: Storing, Flexible Living, De-Stressing, and Entertaining. As in the Tillamook (#43038) plan, the different areas of the home are identified by color (Storing is orange) so you can visualize where storage is located/could be located. Using our Livability Search Tool, you choose which area(s) of the home are most important to you and those plans identified as being strong in this area(s) will filter into your plan search. Which of these four areas are most important to you? Take our Livability at a Glance Quiz to find out!

 

For more resources on thoughtful design:

Cover photo: Note the electrical outlet in the pantry; handy for charging small appliances. Photo by Renee D. Calvin Photography.

There’s No Need to Vent…

There’s No Need to Vent…

Whirlpool Vent pull outSometimes placement of the laundry room presents a unique situation for venting the dryer. Maybe your vent needs to run up before it can exit the home. This can cause energy and safety problems as lint can become trapped in in the vent and more frequent cleaning is needed. Introducing a ventless dryer!

The new breed of ventless clothes dryers not only use less energy, they also eliminate Whirlpool Vent cleanthe need for a dryer vent. Even if you are disciplined in cleaning out the lint filter regularly, dryer vent hoses/pipes typically clog over time, lengthening dryer cycles, wasting power, and shortening the life of your dryer. Some vent hoses snake around the home’s framing and are very hard to clean out, a leading cause of the 2,900 home clothes dryer fires reported annually (U.S. Fire Administration). Whirlpool’s HybridCare™ True Ventless heat pump dryer offers a large, 7.4 cu. ft. capacity and dries clothes in about the same amount of time as the company’s traditional vented models.

For more information, visit: www.whirlpool.com

Note: Product spotlights are for informational purposes; we do not formally endorse any product or service.

Laundry Room Design

Laundry Room Design

Laundry rooms - we all need them, but have varying thoughts on placement and amenities.

Location, Location, Location

Laundry/mudrooms have fallen out of favor with most of today's buyers. After a long day, it's not very pleasant to open the door from the garage only to be greeted by piles of clothes, "It's like I'm starting my second job when I get home and find dirty clothes taking over the laundry/mudroom!"

Direct Connection

If you haven't seen it before, the thought may have never occurred to you of having a direct connection between your master bedroom closet and your laundry room. What could be more convenient than grabbing clothes straight out of the dryer and in just a couple steps they're hung in your closet?

Cutting Laundry Time in Half

Some home designs have (or can be modified to offer) a spacious enough laundry room for dual washers and dryers. Two laundry pairs use no more water or electricity and help you get more done in the same amount of time!

More than Utilitarian

Having a deep sink in your laundry room is more than just a handy solution for hand-wash delicates. You'll discover a plethora of uses for such a sink, from bathing small animals to washing out paint brushes and indoor gardening projects. Choose a faucet with a pull-out spray-type head so you can direct the water where you want it to go.

Storage

Storage shouldn't be an option, it's a necessity. How much storage is enough? At a minimum, you need storage for laundry products such as detergents and fabric softeners as well as laundry hampers or baskets. How about for hanging clothes? And the bulk items such as the mega packs of paper towels and toilet tissue from the warehouse stores? The bottom line--you can't have too much storage in your laundry room!

Use our Plan Search feature to find a plan with a laundry room design that fits your needs!

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