Now that our thoughts are turning again to outdoor living, it’s a
great time to think about making room this year for what may be
one of the most practical places in the house: the mudroom.
Never mind that we may associate mudrooms with images of country houses, English wellies and walking sticks – the premise is the same in our modern lives. Every home must find a way to manage that transition that its inhabitants make between life outdoors and life inside. A mudroom is perfectly practical – and can also be perfectly pleasing.
The Struggle For Order
It’s funny how the whole house can be thrown into chaos by all those indoor/outdoor transition problems. Where to put backpacks, skis, muddy boots, litter box, dog leash, wet mittens, bicycle helmets, sunscreen, rain slickers and wild bird seed? The mudroom is the perfect answer – and it can be either grand or modest in scale.
Find Some Space, Or Make Some
You may be able to design a mudroom using space you already have: in a front or back porch, in an underused main floor laundry room, in an attached garage, or perhaps in a back hall. If you can’t find the necessary square footage for this marvelous utility room, it’s a great time to think seriously about making a mudroom part of a home addition; there’s never been a better time to finance that kind of project.
Not only is it an energy saving airlock, but also — penny for penny, inch for inch — it’s space that will add ease and comfort to your daily routine.
Think High-School Locker And Go Vertical
Each family member gets his or her own space fitted with hooks (for outerwear, caps, backpacks, skates), shelves (for sweaters and sweatshirts),and baskets (for mittens, sunglasses, gloves, sunscreen, keys, etc.) Put pegs at different levels for various ages of family members.
A Place For Everything
This should be one of the best-organized spaces in your home. Think about how you will use the room. Consider, for example, finding an antique pine dry sink: a perfect solution for storing unwieldy items like bags of dog food, home canning paraphernalia, or potting soil – and a great place to set the groceries as you come in the door.
How about a big ceramic bowl to hold the day’s mail? Crowded for space in the kitchen? Think about a pantry cupboard to store extra canned, bottled, and dry goods. And keep a first-aid kit in an old-fashioned black lunchbox – for backyard emergencies.
Take A Load Off
Every mudroom needs a bench (preferably built in with a hinged lid) in which you can store helmets, towels, garden hats… and it’s such a pleasure to be able to sit when you are getting in or out of shoes and boots.
Bead Board Paneling
Either painted or natural bead board paneling is the perfect wall treatment. Nothing too precious in this room — just easy to maintain surfaces that can take rough and tumble treatment.
Floors should be stone, tile, or vinyl. Be sure to use an absorbent
washable mat too, and a bristle mat at the very entrance is necessary for maximum mud removal.
Plumb The Mudroom And Install A Big Sink
This is truly a luxury, but how great would it be to have a dedicated sink for houseplant potting, washing up from gardening, or rinsing off a muddy child or pet before entering the rest of the house? A French farmhouse sink would be fabulous…but a stainless steel basin works too!
Make it command central
Why not put up a blackboard, and a cork bulletin board for daily messages and reminders? Have you noticed lately that many of the best show homes and design magazines are sporting handsome, organized mudrooms?
No secret behind this growing trend; smart designers have simplycaught up with the reality of our indoor/outdoor lifestyles! This spring, make room for your own mudroom!
The House Team Of Mortgage Intellingence
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/make-room-for-a-mudroom-75259.html
#1 by AGrJo on October 28th, 2009
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Can I put an A/C Unit in a window between a finished room and an unfinished room?
We just purchased a home that does not have AC…
I was wondering if I can put a window A/C unit in a window between our kitchen and an unfinished large mudroom. The unfinished room was clearly added on later in the home’s life and has several crank up windows. So there is ventilation, but I’m unsure if I can do this? Any input?
I thought the room would get hot too – maybe I could put a box fan blowing out that hot air…..
We will only be using that room to walk through from the covered porch just outside of that room. Even then, we could use the other door. What a mess.
Thank you for all of your advice. It really has helped a lot!!!!
#2 by veterannavymom on October 28th, 2009
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i don’t see why not. Is there any insulation in the unfinished room? What about the cost of your electric bill? wWill the unfinished room affect the effeciency of the a.c unit
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#3 by Jack the Toad on October 28th, 2009
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sure, as long as you make provisions for the condensation water to go somewhere it wont hurt anything.
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#4 by royphil345 on October 28th, 2009
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That mudroom would get HOT….
We had one installed in a window that opened to a screened-in porch and that worked fine. Just depends how good the ventilation is in that mudroom, if it’s completely sealed off from the area you’re trying to cool and if you’re willing to lose the use of the room due to extreme heat. A fan in one of the mudroom windows would probably help much there….
You would have to have somewhere for the condensation water to go… Some air conditioners have an outlet that will accept a hose. Easier to direct where the water goes… You could use a bucket, etc…
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#5 by acandheat on October 28th, 2009
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you can put the window a/c in the window but remember the hot air will be blowing into the "mudroom" and the condensate drain will need to drain somewhere.
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#6 by Greg on October 28th, 2009
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Something to Consider, Some window type A/C’s dont require a drain be connected, they actually have a pan built in which the liquid line is ran through,(its used as a subcooler but that is more than you need to know) this liquid line which is warm will go thru the condensation water and evaporate it, im not sure if the box the units come in specify condensation drainage requirements or not is the only problem.
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Hvac/r mechanic – LADWP