Washing machine v. dishwasher

ashybear · November 2013

DH and I live in a small 2-bedroom house on-site where we work. Our housing is part of our salary, which is great, but it also means there's a limit to how much renovation/improvement we'd do, because it's essentially a rental. Here's the sitch: This is our tiny kitchen. The only thing you're not seeing is the stove and fridge, which are right next to where I took the picture from. There's also a door to the outside. The desk isn't normally there; it's in purgatory after being pulled from the now nursery. We don't have a dishwasher.

The option has been raised to move the stacked washer and dryer from there at the end to a covered spot outside, to share with our neighbor. It would be less than 20 feet away from where the photo was taken from, just outside. There is truly no other place in our house that we could move the washer/dryer. Our neighbor is one of our closest friends, a single guy who does laundry maybe twice a month. If we moved the washer dryer, we could install a big storage shelf, freeing up room to extend the counter space and install a dishwasher.

Ridiculously long back story. Mostly, I want to hear your opinions:

Would you deal with your washing machine being outside if it meant a dishwasher?

Maybe I should note that we pretty much exclusively line dry, so half our laundry process takes place outside as is. But I imagine that will change some with baby gear, especially as we plan to cloth diaper. (Uh oh, am I finally coming out as the board hippie?)

My main worries are timing (How much middle of the night laundry will we be doing?), and my mom and MIL who I know will want to do laundry any time they visit, and I know this isn't ideal for them. What else should I be weighing in this decision?

Thanks for sticking with me: Here's a cozy mug of hot chocolate in appreciation for your time/thoughts:

nbbride06 · November 2013

I wouldn't move the washer/dryer outside. You will be doing more laundry than you even think...not necessarily middle of the night, but just a ton in general. A dishwasher, while fabulous, is not as important to me, especially if you're planning on mostly breastfeeding.

vstevens · November 2013

Hmm, I guess my first question is where you live? A W/D even 20 feet from our place would not work in the northeast, but if your climate is warm and dry it might be doable? I'm assuming if you're line drying that's the case...my next question is whether the W/D will be sheltered enough from the elements? I don't think those bad boys are designed to be left outside...

As for me, I loathe washing dishes. As long as you trust your friend and have a good (and honest) relationship with him, I can't see sharing a machine as being the end of the world, and in exchange you get the major upside of a dishwasher. It's true if you're BFing that won't make a huge difference in the first little while, but I EBFed then pumped until 9 months, and had plenty of bottles / sippy cups to wash - I can't imagine having to wash all that crap by hand all the time, in addition to my own dishes etc.

ashybear · November 2013

@vstevens We live in the mountains in southern California. So, we get some weather (it might snow 2x a year), but from March-November it's basically mild and dry. I've thought about the sheltering of the washer/dryer too, but when it comes down to it, they belong to the company we work for and are their ultimate responsibility (They'd be building the shelter and installing them). I hate washing dishes too! And the thought of spending 20 free minutes of my day each day with a newborn washing coffee mugs and cereal bowls and just DH's and my dishes (since I plan to BF), sounds pretty unappealing.

ashybear · November 2013

ovenrack said:

Are you guys planning on being there forever?

Not forever. We're in a very small town, and the school system is less than impressive, particularly junior high and up. If we stay any longer than 3 years, we would likely move into our current boss's house when he retires.

slmille4 · November 2013

I lived without a dishwasher for 21 years. It's much easier to deal with dirty dishes in the sink for a couple hours then a clothing from a diaper blow out if that happens to be the one day your neighbor does laundry.

COgirl29 · November 2013

I would def pick the dishwasher! I used to work at a summer camp, and shared the washer/dryer with 12 other girls. Mind you, I didn't have a baby at the time, but I feel like you would spend way more time hand washing everything (bottles etc) than you need to! 20 ft away doesn't sound crazy - and especially since you already line dry most things - I would absolutely do this.

PS I have a friend that lives in Louisiana and clothe diapers and she line drys all of those - she said it helps take any stains out (sun).

ashleywiz · November 2013

Having a washer/dryer outside is fairly standard in mild/warmer climates. I see that SO often out here and it makes sense!

Honestly, I don't miss not having a dishwasher *but mainly because I think they're only good for sterilizing, not cleaning* but I miss having my own washer/dryer SO bad that I wish we could install one!

However, if you can get a dishwasher AND washer/dryer-- heck yeah, it isn't like you are having to travel very far to get to it!

Lena122 · November 2013

I regularly pull clothes from the dryer while wearing only my underwear so that wouldn't work for me. But truthfully, baby doesn't add THAT much additional laundry loads, especially if you have plenty of extra crib sheets and clothes. I can think of one time where I ran out of blankets or sheets or something in the middle of the night and had to do baby laundry at night.

jldubb0626 · November 2013

I wouldn't know what to do without my dishwasher. I'd share my washer and dryer in a second if it meant I could have a dishwasher. You may be EBFing now, but when kids are older and using straw and sippy cups, those things are a PITA to clean. If you manage your laundry right, you shouldn't ever have to do middle of the night loads of laundry. A cloth diaper blow out can be managed in the sink or tub until the morning.

HereWeGo2 · November 2013

Lena122 said:
I regularly pull clothes from the dryer while wearing only my underwear so that wouldn't work for me. But truthfully, baby doesn't add THAT much additional laundry loads, especially if you have plenty of extra crib sheets and clothes. I can think of one time where I ran out of blankets or sheets or something in the middle of the night and had to do baby laundry at night.

We had tons of everything too, so while I agree I never had to do laundry at odd hours because I was out if something I did do laundry at odd hours because I was awake and might as well. I do disagree about LO not adding much laundry though; my experience is DD added a ton of laundry, I just had enough stuff that I didn't have to wash more often. When I do wash there is way more than with me and DH.

That said, i also couldn't live happily without my dishwasher, so I'd vote move washer/dryer!

ashybear · November 2013

This board is the best! I just read everyone's responses to DH, and after every one, he was like, "Hm, that's a good point." I'm going to talk to my boss tomorrow about moving the washer/dryer and getting the dishwasher installed. Seriously, it's just so great and clarifying to get so many perspectives - thank you!

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