Newton Mearns, East Renfrewshire
Utility rooms in Newton Mearns
Once a kitchen goes open-plan, the washing machine becomes a problem. A spin cycle in a room you are also sitting and eating in is the single most common complaint we hear after an open-plan kitchen is finished, and it is entirely avoidable if a utility is planned in from the start.
Where the space usually comes from
In most Newton Mearns houses there is a candidate already: a back porch, an oversized downstairs WC, a garage with a metre or two to spare at the front, or a walk-in cupboard off the hall. Converting one of those is almost always cheaper than extending, and the plumbing is often not far away.
What actually needs to go in it
- Washing machine and tumble dryer, ideally side by side rather than stacked
- A deep sink, which is the thing people forget and then miss
- Worktop long enough to sort and fold on
- Tall storage for the hoover, ironing board and the brush cupboard
- Somewhere for coats and boots if it doubles as a back entrance
- Space for the boiler if it is being moved out of the kitchen
Ventilation and drainage
A utility generates a lot of moisture in a small room. It needs proper extract, and a condensing dryer needs somewhere for the water to go. Getting the drainage and the vent right at first fix is straightforward; retrofitting either into a finished room is not.
Spend less on it than the kitchen
A utility is a working room and nobody is looking at it. Laminate worktop rather than quartz, simpler doors, and the saving goes into the kitchen where it is visible. The one thing worth spending on is the sink, because it is the reason the room is useful.