Need Your Opinion

[roo1582]

I have a little alcove upstairs on our second floor (with all the bedrooms).  DH and I are trying to figure out what we should do with it.  We've come up with several options, but I'm at a loss of which we should do.  The options are:

1.)  Move our washer and dryer upstairs.  They are currently in the basement.  This is currently my #1 choice since it would be nice not to lug laundry up 2 flights of stairs, but it has several drawbacks.  First, its probably the most expensive since we'd have to run water up to alcove.  Also, the washer and dryer would just fit, so we wouldn't be able to put a door in front of them to hide them and/or and messes (though we would put cabinets above for storage).

2.)  Put in a built-in desk.  We no longer have an office since that became Andrew's room.  We have a big desk in the guest room currently, but it is a bit cramped with everything in there (although I could just get a smaller, nicer desk for the room).  It would be a nice area to keep the computer and have a place for the kids to do homework.

3.)  Move our linen closet to that location.  The current linen closet is right behind our master bedroom closet.  We already have a small walk-in, but if we move the linen closet, we could then extend our closet so that we have a nice sized walk-in, which means more storage

So, if is was you, which would you choose?  Or do you have any other suggestions?  What do the interior designers think?

[britbratjf]

Laundry for sure. We vetoed a couple houses when we were looking bc the laundry was in the basement. Even if the machines couldn't be hidden it would be so worth it to not go up & down 2 flights of stairs with all those clothes!!

[origamimommy]

2

[aylafsu1881]

I would do the desk. I think it would get a lot of use in the future and be a great space for the kids. I would not do #1 because of cost. The laundry would be nice but plumbing can be expensive. Plus if your washer every leaks/a pipe bursts it can ruin the second and first floor. I prefer to have the laundry on the ground floor in general.

[ThePinkSuperhero]

I say laundry, if you can! The expense will be worth it (would be an attractive option to buyers if you ever sell, too).

[jodielyn10]

The fact that you couldn't hide the laundry would be a deal breaker for me - it would drive me crazy to see a washer and dryer on my second floor every day - especially considering there is always a stack of clothes or jeans drying or something sitting on them. Having that out of site is more important to me than carrying the laundry up and down stairs.

Also, aylafsu1881, makes an excellent point about the leaking water. Ours got backed up on christmas two years ago where the hose connects to the wall and water got every where. If it had been upstairs it would have been a nightmare.

[summergirl1211]

As nice as the laundry option would be, I would keep it as it is. I agree with jodielyn10 that I wouldn't want it out in the open like that. I voted for the closet so you can expand yours. You can never lose with more storage!

[starfishy]

Apr 8, 2015 6:59:02 GMT -5 aylafsu1881 said:

I would do the desk. I think it would get a lot of use in the future and be a great space for the kids. I would not do #1 because of cost. The laundry would be nice but plumbing can be expensive. Plus if your washer every leaks/a pipe bursts it can ruin the second and first floor. I prefer to have the laundry on the ground floor in general.

I agree with all this. Exactly what I would say.

[somethingcleverer]

I have a second floor laundry and while it is convenient it makes everything so dusty from the dryer. If you can't cover it and the expense is out of your budget I would go for the desk.

[roo1582]

I have to say I'm not uber concerned about the washer leaking onto the first floor since the alcove is actually over the garage. While it would be super sucky for it to leak, at least it wouldn't destroy any of our actual living area. The really big issue I'm having is not being able to hide them, especially since the alcove leads into our guest room.

We originally planned on putting a desk there, but then DH got these other ideas and of course, all of them sound enticing...hence my dilemma

[cbear]

I would do the desk option as well!

[lainikins]

I would do the desk. I would not want the laundry out in the open.

[tribute17]

I agree with previous posters. Mike Holmes (he was on a show called Holmes on Homes that fixed houses) always says that the laundry on the second floor is a bad idea. I realize it is over the garage but it would also be so much louder because it would shake the whole house and the chances of the floor being level would be slim. I would also still be super worried about leaking. He had to replace structure beams because of it multiple times and even in a garage that is expensive. I wouldn't risk it. I also agree with somethingcleverer, the dust would get out of hand and the risk of fire would scare me.

I would vote desk but the closet would be tempting.

[aimeefarrahfowler]

I vote desk too. Our laundry is in the basement and it really isn't a huge deal. I'd prefer more "living" space upstairs if we had the room.

[trixi282]

I'm torn between the desk and the closet. Without seeing it I'd be tempted to just get a smaller desk for the guest room and expand my closet in the master, which you can't go wrong with, and is always a good selling point. That said the desk open is definitely worth considering, but think about possible clutter when the kids get older and maybe start using it... When I in school I never sat at a desk to do homework.... And most of my friends who did had a small desk in their room. So think about future furniture too and if you and h or even the kids would actually use a 2nd floor desk often enough to make it worthwhile.

All that to say I voted the closet option, you can never really go wrong with additnal storage and a bigger master br walk in closet!

[pinkluna]

I'm a big fan of storage so I would do linen closet/walk-in master. I love having a large walk-in and my dream is to have it customized one day with built-in drawers and shelves.

[traceyt07]

Definitely closet. Oh how I wish I had a walk-in closet.... a girl can dream!

[huskiefanuw]

I like 2, I wouldn't like not having a way to close off the laundry.

[MissMusic]

Laundry on the 2nd floor is the best. It might be the pricier option, but its so worth it!