Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

We have a front-loading washing machine and, while it washes an immense amount of laundry (yay!), it’s a pain to stoop over to put that laundry in and to take it out and put it in the dryer.  I found these plans  for a laundry machine pedestal and knew it would work for our new laundry room.  I built the pedestal and, while the plans worked fine, there are a few tweaks I wanted to share with you.

First, I measured my laundry room and changed the measurements in the plans so that the pedestal was 56 inches wide (rather than 60″ in the plans). Make sure that you change all the related measurements if you change the width (or any measurement) of the pedestal (in other words, the space between the supports is going to change if you make the pedestal longer or shorter).

I then gathered the supplies. My local hardware store cut the wood for me as listed on the cut list, with my changes, which was incredibly helpful. I found the most level spot I could – not an easy feat in a 1929 home! – and started building.

To build the frame, I started off like this:

But quickly realized that this wasn’t going to be an easy way to attach the supports to the frame. This way gave me more leverage.

Also, the plans call for using 3″ wood screws. I found that deck screws worked much better – they went into the wood much more easily.  Except for screwing the top/platform into the frame (see below), you’ll want to use wood screws that have threads that go all the way to the head of the screw. That way, they grab the wood more easily all the way in. For the platform, it’s ok to use wood screws where the threads stop a little bit before the head.

When driving the screws into the 2 x 4s, watch out for knots. Try to avoid them – the screws don’t go into the knots well and you’ll end up pulling out the screws and redrilling.

Screw the top platform to each frame. Make sure you countersink the screws.

Next, the plans call for adding corner angles to the legs. The diagram in the plans shows that they are to be attached on the left side of the leg with 2″ screws.

Instead, two of them need to be attached on the left side, and two on the right.

That way, each leg will be flush with the side to which you are attaching it.

When you attach the legs to the frame, use smaller than 2″ screws. 2″ screws will go through the frame. I used 1 1/4″ screws and they worked perfectly. Use the 2″ screws (or the deck screws, if they aren’t too long) to attach the leg to the frame at an angle or with a pocket hole.

Once you have attached the legs, then you are ready to attach the bottom to the legs. The plans say the top, but it’s really the bottom – you are building this upside down at this point.

I painted the pedestal next. I used Behr Latex Paint with Primer in Ultra White for the platforms, and (affiliate link ->) DecoArt Americana Decor Chalky Finish paint in Relic for the sides and legs.

Note: I was provided the Chalky Finish paint by DecoArt, but not specifically for this project. That said, I loved it. It went on easily and I only needed one coat. No primer needed. Fabulous!

After I painted it, I decided to add just a little trim to the top. I didn’t want to trim out each leg – as was included in the plans – because it was a bit too traditional-looking for my style. Instead, I just added one trim piece on the top front edge of the platform using my Ryobi nailer (they didn’t pay me to say that – I just love it!).

You are going to need help to get this in your laundry room. This thing is HEAVY.

Put the machines back on it, level them, and you are ready to wash some clothes!

One other thing the plans didn’t mention is that you might need a longer dryer duct once you put the dryer on the pedestal. I did – I just needed a bit longer reach. Just something to keep in mind when you are buying your supplies for this project. Measure that beforehand so you don’t need to make an extra trip to the hardware store.

Also, I added some small plastic bumpers in between the washer and dryer. That way, if the washer “walks” a bit, and bumps into the dryer, there’s a cushion there.

I added three baskets in the storage area of the pedestal – one for whites, one for darks, and one for towels. Just make sure you measure the baskets at the store to make sure they’ll fit in that space!

And now I have a happy laundry room. It’s so much easier without the stooping!

If you have any questions, please let me know in the comments!