The laundry room can seem like a tricky part of your home to remodel, but it’s probably also one of the most frustrating rooms to use. There may be a lack of space or poor overall design that has you irritated every time you step in the room. If you’re looking to remodel your laundry room, we have a few tips that can help make it easier and ensure that turns out like you want it to.
Plan Your Path
In the early planning stages of your laundry room remodel, you want to think about how you’re going to move through the room. You want enough space there so that you can do what you need to do. There should be more than enough room for your appliances in there, as well as room for you to open and close appliance doors, bring in laundry baskets, and other actions you might need to do in that room.
You may want to consider a pathway all way through the laundry room, giving you access on both sides of the space. You may also want to consider moving the appliances out from the wall a little bit so it’s easier to clean behind them and maintain them without having to move them.
Set a Budget
When you’ve determined what you’re going to have in the laundry room, you want to figure out what your budget is. Or, you may want to reverse those steps. You may already know what kind of budget you have to work with, and then you can plan your laundry room renovation around that. Keep in mind that your budget for the renovation project should include not just the cost of any appliances, fixtures, and parts you want to add or change out in the laundry room but also the cost of the construction crew who will be doing the work. You may be able to save money by doing some or even all of the renovation yourself, but be careful about getting it over your head and ending up with a laundry room you’re not very happy with.
As you set your budget, be sure to shop around to get the best prices. The first price you see may not be your only option, and comparing rates can help you save money and take your budget farther for the project.
Most people pay about $6,000 for their laundry room remodel, but yours does not have to cost that much. You could probably do it for under $1,000, if you’re very economical with your planning. You could also spend a whole lot more than $6,000, if you’re not careful. The budget for any kind of remodel can balloon out of control when you’re not setting limits for yourself.
Buy the Tools You Need
Whether you’re doing the remodel yourself or with a construction crew, you’ll probably want some tools on hand for the job. You may not have all the tools necessary to do the work yourself, so buy those in advance so that you don’t have to keep stopping and starting the project to go buy new tools. Even if a construction team is helping you with the remodel or doing all of it, you’ll probably want a few things on hand that they might not have brought with them. Depending on where your laundry room is located in the house and the kind of setup you have in there, you may need pipe wrenches, ladders, drop cloths, plastic sheeting, buckets, and a quality broom and dustpan.
Be Prepared to Be Without Water
A lot of laundry rooms allow you to shut off the water to just that room and not the rest of the house, but not every home is set up like that. You may lose some or all of your water access during the times of day when the renovation is happening. Be prepared for that, based on how easy it is to lock off the water in the laundry room alone.
If the water lines in the laundry room cannot be shut off from the rest of the house, you may want to hire a plumber to do that for you before the renovation project begins. That can make things a lot easier for you and allow you to go on with your daily life while the renovation is happening.
Do It in Parts, if Necessary
You may not be able to do all the bathroom renovation right away. Maybe you don’t have all the money together to do everything you want in there. Or, maybe it’s too much of an inconvenience to have everything done at once. It’s okay to do your laundry room renovation in parts, but plan to keep the room usable after each step and plan to make it easy to move on to the next step when you’re ready.
However, if you’d prefer to finish your renovation project in one go, you may consider applying for a personal loan to pay for your renovation costs.
Plan the Cleanup
After the remodeling is done, you may have quite a mess to clean up. The construction crew may not take care of all the debris, and they likely won’t do a very good job of sweeping up or wiping down, in most cases. While you may be able to do the tidying up yourself, it also may be a big project that you don’t have time or energy for. It’s not a bad idea to hire a professional cleaning service to wash your place after the construction is done. That can save you a lot of work and ensure that the cleanup goes smoothly. You’ll probably be really pleased with the results they give you and be glad you chose that option, especially if the construction team left a big mess behind.
Closing Thoughts
Remodels can go smoothly, even in a difficult room like the laundry room. However, you want to plan everything out in advance and make sure you’re being smart with your money and your renovation strategy. If you follow the tips we’ve given you, everything should go a lot better for you and you should be able to get the laundry room you want.
