Could I ask you why the tool box is in the laundry room and not the garage? I read that you said you use it a lot. Is it storing household things in addition to tools?

IMO a place to fold clothes is a must move the tool box to the garage where it belongs. Then W/D sxs with a shelf spanning both for folding. Cabinets above a stacked W/D are completely useless unless you add a ladder to the room.

Thanks to you both! We are grabbing stuff from the tool box frequently, and the garage is cold, dirty and crowded with two cars. We also generally fold clothes after taking the basket upstairs to the relevant bedroom (lots of hanging clothes), or sometimes in front of the TV.

I would indeed prefer sxs W/D, as I'm not tall. Maybe we could design a smaller spot for frequently used tools? I'll think about it. Regardless we will need an easily accessible ladder, that's a good point too.

I am also redesigning my laundry using Ikea cabinets. We are slowly redoing the house and have a little tool box to hold our most frequently used tools and the rest live in the garage on a shelf close to the door so they are only a few extra steps away. Is that fridge there in addition to one in your kitchen? I'm planning on two tall cabinets that go from floor to ceiling to hold a vacuum, vacuum hoses, brooms, mops, etc to keep it all out of sight. I have no sink, so I'm planning on a lower cabinet with storage for other things and a hanging bar or maybe a drying rack above it. I'm also putting a 40" tall upper cabinet above my side by side washer/dryer with 30" doors on it located at the top so the detergent, fabric sheets, bleach, etc is easily accessible on a "shelf" at eye level. Hopefully this gives you some ideas and I recommend playing around with different designs. Perhaps you can store your ladder in between a tall cabinet and fridge or even in a cabinet. Good luck!

I wouldn’t stack units if you have the room. So much better side by side. Move the tool box to the garage but get a small box to store behind a door for things you use frequently. I like symmetry so would match the cabinet widths to what you have under them. But I find deeper shelves than the standard uppers not as useful as you would think. I would put standard size above except for above the fridge. What do you plan on storing in the cabinets?

Having lived for 16 years with a stacked w/d, I never liked it. I am average height and still had issues reaching things on the shelf I had above the dryer. Still, if you decide to go that route, consider buying a foldable step stool and storing it in the space between the w/d and the sink to access the cabinet above the w/d. I would not just put a standalone sink in the space-just for appearance install a single sink enclosed by a cabinet. You don't have to spend a lot on it. Are you planning on buying a new w/d? I can tell in your photo that you could not stack what you currently have, but I would not replace them unless one or both are on the way out mechanical wise.

I totally get wanting the tools at hand. Can you do a smaller toolbox that fits under the countertop, and holds just the ones you use most frequently? The rest can go in an overhead cupboard, or in the garage. Or, design a base cabinet for the tools, but honestly Craftsman is probably better.

Do you need a full size refrigerator in the laundry? What do you use it for? Can you get by with a smaller one? If you have a second fridge you might also have a second pantry somewhere, could the full-size fridge go there?

I just have one word for your laundry room. Glitter! :D My laundry room is such a happy place to be now ;)

https://imgur.com/Ij3eOsE

OMG Monicakm, that is wonderful! It does look like a happy space. bpath, this is an old fridge that we have no where else to put. armjim, the do make a stacking kit for these models, so I assumed they could stack. I'll have to look into that more as we are not buying new appliances until these ones die!

Unfortunately my husband HATES the idea of moving the toolbox to the garage. I floated the ideas of keeping more heavily used tools in the laundry room, but that would ruin his organization scheme. Every renovation is a similar battle...one of us likes change, the other does not.

A small tool box IMO is all that is needed for any tools you use on a regular basis . There are just two tools that come to mind you might need on a regular basis, a hammmer and a multi end screw driver, put them in a cabinet even in the kitchen.

this is an old fridge that we have no where else to put

An empty spare? Sell, dump or donate.

But this seems as much a clash of perception as anything else. (I've long given up mrs. worthy's kitchen "organization", the guiding principle of which is countless multiples of everything everywhere.)

You can only stack units that have the operating controls on the front of the units. You can’t stack that dryer.

I like all of your ideas. I need hanging space - or a hanging area - far more than I need folding space. I cold water wash/hang dry sooooo many items. In the miniscule laundry room I have now, I have no room for that so all hanging things get taken to the upstairs bathroom and hung on the shower curtain rod. (I'm very old school and iron clothes.)

I had a Maytag stacked set for 11 years and loved them. Now I have front load w/d on pedestals, which is expensive but lessens the bending over which is important now. Not sure what I'll get when these die, which is soon because I'm not going to spend another $200 for any repair, as has happened several times in their 12-year lives.

My husband sounds just like yours and for those who are saying "make him move his tools," I say it's not a winnable argument. Mine is a hoarder and just makes piles and will not throw away anything. I had a major, major breakthrough yesterday when he admitted that yes, when the Elfa system I'm ordering arrives, he will keep/organize what fits in that as opposed to trying to design a storage area to fit his piles. Of course, I'll believe this purge of his when I see it. In other words, I'm trying to say that I understand the tools in the laundry room and nothing anyone says here is going to change your husband's mind.

So what is your husband's "organization scheme"? Is this room really his storage room with a WD or a laundry room with storage? Looking at your Laundry Ideabook it looks to me like you want a laundry room that looks nice. You are trying to cram too much in a small space to accommodate a toolbox that belongs in the garage. I might consider them in a very large room, SxS with counter on top, but you do not have that space. You need to map out what will be stored in this room before proceeding. Where do you store vacuums, lightbulbs, batteries, etc - stuff you need easy access to? You have a very small cleaning accessories space. Will you be happy having to pull out a step stool every time you need to access a cabinet just to have too many tools a few steps closer? After assessing your storage items consider cleaning and organizing your garage. You may be surprised at how much you can store in a two car garage. I've just ordered some of this system to reorganize mine.

You can have a nice space with that additional 30" with W/D SxS and cabinets at accessible height.

I’m also in the process of redoing my laundry room using IKEA cabinets. I love having my detergents right above the washing machine and the pantry has hidden all the stuff that used to be out and is easily accessible. The space fills up quickly!

Stephanie, it looks to me your dryer has the controls for it mounted at the rear. How would you reach them if you stack the units?

I would love to see your garage and how it is arranged. Maybe enough us can make some suggestions that your husband might see how this benefits you each. Trust me, we think differently in my household too, and there have been some battles royal.

Since this room has entry from the garage, it could be a great mudroom/laundry combo. I'm assuming you have kids. Where do you store their sports equipment, outside toys, shoes, jackets, etc?

bbtrix, we have the same system in our garage, minus the enclosed cabs. Are those made to attach to the railing system?? We have the hangers for hoses and large yard tools and 3 baskets. We have a broom, leaf blower, rake and hose hanging on it. Mounted to a brick wall. It's great organization!

@monucakm_gw - Gladiator has Gear Wall and Gear Track which both support the wall cabinets by attaching to the track. They also have the tall freestanding and below counter cabs and a variety of organizational items. I ordered mine from Home Depot. They should arrive any day. Can’t wait to get the garage organized. I’ve got quite a few battery powered lawn tools and bikes that I need to get on the walls!

There are several garage systems to choose from. I chose Gladiator for its price point and the wall cabs.

We redid our laundry this time last year and I love it still. We do not want folding space in laundry at all and we do want toolbox. Do what works for you.

I use the overhead hanging all the time and love the mix of closed and open shelving. We have bin for each kid to the left of the sink where they drop their homework etc. Each has a shoe bin on right of room and space for boots. Two hooks per kid. Love it all.

bbtrix, we got our Gladiator tracks from Lowes a few years ago and recently added more. I don't recall seeing the cabinets. Humm, I think we need one of those. Thanks!

Thanks to all of you for your time and thoughts! I will definitely revamp, as since many of you pointed out, we can't stack that drier. I will also consider how to better organize the garage as many of you suggested. I will need another place for the bikes, as they currently block the laundry door.

it is interesting to hear how everyone had different priorities! The toolbox is very important to my husband, so I'd like to try and make that work. He has it organized just the way he wants it! And his handiness has saved our family many $$ over the years.

Oh,, and we use the fridge, absolutely. For stuff that doesn't fit in the kitchen fridge, or staging for larger meals.

Our bikes are hung on the wall. A hook per bike. Super handy

ah! so you don't really need that door to the laundry. I'd be almost tempted to close it up and then you could build storage on the end wall as well. but your plans all look like good solutions.

Knowing the complete story changes the suggestions. It is uncommon to see a garage with 2 entrances to the house. I looked at it as your only access from the house so didn’t instant how blocking the door worked at all. In this case it does make sense. I’ll post some pictures from my desktop computer later it’s just easier

it is a strange garage. On the wall you can't see (by blue car) there are also 2 windows, which interfere with wall storage potentials. Sorry I wasn't clear in my original post!

I understand that the tools are useful and necessary for your family, but, with a little organization in the garage, it still looks like the toolbox could be moved to the garage. A handheld tray of his most used tools could stay in the house. The rest is just on the other side of the door. Marriage is a two way street...give and give :) He can give you much needed space and and nice looking laundry room and you can give him room for a tray of his most used tools.

Why are you all obsessed with the tool box? Who cares? I love our toolbox in the mudroom.

the first picture is my hall to the garage laundry a work still in progress

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this reminded me of your space just because it is on 1 wall. I would put your fridge close to the house entry with the laundry pair and a small sink in the center with a hanging rod above tor drying and a utility closet and tool storage by the garage entrance

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I'm still not getting the bizarre attachment to keeping that garage toolbox inside the house.

Can your husband articulate why it needs to be inside?

I (we) just spent over an hour dragging bankers box after bankers box out of the attic, all full of corporate papers. Some dating from 1984. So jammed full of papers that I had to literally drag them to the attic lift.

He (hoarder husband) (retired since the Great Recession) says he's "going to go through them" just in case there's something he might "need to hang on to." When I ask for specific, definitive examples of those things and why he might want to keep them, I get: "Because I want to."

How do you argue with that? Believe me, I've tried every angle.

Edited to say: And there are still more up there; this is Day 2 of this project and I am speculating there will be a Day 4.

Thanks Cheryl, AS, and bbtrix for the photos! And all of you for your comments, as they've really helped me re-think my approach.

I'm going to start with reorganizing the garage so that we can use the laundry room door. For those of you wondering about why it's so hard to convince my husband to move the toolbox- the garage is cold (we live in the northeast), dark (not enough lighting) and dirty (we aren't slobs, but garages get messy). Maybe some reorganization efforts and some improved lighting might make the toolbox move more palatable? Still an uphill battle, likely, but it certainly can't do any harm.

stephanie, you have so much unused wall space, and upper space, in that garage!

my husband has so many tools, I can't even tell you. his stuff takes up an entire bay for a single car in the garage.

What you need are stackable shelving (those heavy duty steel ones) and a work bench. (any way those trash cans can find a place outside? they take up valuable space in the garage)

for that empty L corner you have right off your garage door, here are examples he could do. (and put those tools to use)

very simple, build a bench with storage below and above. make a space for his large toolbox (my husband has two of those, so I know what it's like)

these are just quick examples for getting the tool box out of the laundry room. sorry, but there's no reason why he can't walk a few more steps and grab what he needs in the garage. If it's dark, put in some overhead florescent lights. they hang easily from the joists. If it's cold, get a little space heater while he works out there. I have one for the garage and it gets toasty.

take seldom used items and store them up top. we've built 3 of these in our garage.

easy to do w/plywood and beams too.

So this is probably a function of never having had a sink in the laundry room... what's it for? How often would you use it? From your sketches, it looks like if you didn't have the sink, you could put the tool chest on the same wall as the appliances, still have room for the washer and drier to be side by side, and still have space for the cleaning supplies.

If you're using it to wash the dog or something, that makes sense. If its main purpose is to dump dirty water, or to have a water source for filling a mop bucket or something like that, I wonder if you could accomplish your objective with a drain in the floor and/or a sprayer on a hose? I can almost envision something along the lines of a shower pan, or a trough with a tiled facade and a hinged shelf over it to make another storage space for a cleaning caddy or something.

Also, don't forget the space above the door! Your note about idea#2-- that you'd have more storage space but would limit options for a future fridge replacement-- makes me think that storage space is a priority. You could run upper cabinets or open shelving all the way across the top of the door.

And as far as the door goes, does it bother you that you can't use it? If it doesn't, get a couple of boards that are similar width to the doorknob, tack them up, get a couple of sheets of bead board panels to nail over them and voila! Fake wall. Keep hubby's organization system intact (seriously, the space needs to work for both of you), get your sink and your cleaning supplies nook, use the space above the door for more cabinets. All objectives accomplished. (and hubby probably has all the tools he needs to do it right there in that handy tool chest)

I did the bead board thing as a temporary solution to horrible wallpaper in an old house and it worked well enough that I left it until I moved. A little spackle down the seam and a single coat of matte finish white paint made it look less like the low-budget solution it was. I think the panels were like $8 apiece or something. You could also do it with pegboard and have an even more functional storage space.

The thing with homes, and with people, is that we have to work within the limitations. I get the toolbox. We use our hand tools inside the house more than we do outside! I accept that you need a second full-size fridge. TBH, I’d keep the toolbox and get rid of the fridge or replace it with an undercounter fridge or freezer, but I don’t know all your needs. And a fridge doesn’t function properly in an unheated garage in the northeast, so it can’t go there.

Can you absorb some of that garage space into the laundry room? That’s an expense, though, but perhaps you could “sort of“ add it, using electric baseboard heat?

And, btw, the laundry room is one thing. There are a lot of opportunities to organize the garage better. Use the walls, the ceiling.

That corner with ladder and trash bins would be a great work bench area with the toolboxes underneath. I keep a basic hand held tool box in the house with things I need like a hammer, electric screw driver, level, nails, screws, etc. I don't think I'd necessarily use the laundry door and would prefer the wall space there for the fridge.

Just wanted to close the loop on this remodel! Here's the before and after. I really appreciate all of your comments. Each one helped me consider what I was really trying to do. Perhaps one day when the washer/dryer gives up I'll revamp again, but for now we are loving the extra storage.

Great work! You made it all fit on one wall. You even have some storage for quick access to items on top of toolbox. It is also pretty.