The Pipes and Boiler Didn’t Stop Them From Adding a Wall of Storage
A washer, dryer, boiler, exposed pipework, outlets, and cleaning supplies competed for space inside this narrow utility room. Standard cabinet sizes were not an option, since new storage had to fit around equipment and service points while keeping the central aisle open.
Instagram creator @casa_bespoke shared the solution: custom units built in place around the room’s existing obstacles. Cabinets now rise above the washer and dryer, drawers use the gap above an appliance, and shallow storage takes advantage of the opposite wall without crowding the passage.
Open Shelves Left Supplies Across the Room
The original setup used deep open shelves above the washer and dryer, with labeled fabric boxes holding smaller items. Cleaning products filled baskets below, while vacuums, mops, an ironing board, tools, and other equipment occupied the narrow aisle and opposite wall.
Storage existed, but much of it remained exposed. The tops of both laundry machines had also become extra surfaces for detergent, papers, baskets, and supplies, leaving little separation between laundry storage, cleaning equipment, and mechanical systems.
Cabinet Frames Were Built Around Existing Services
Removing the boxes and loose supplies reveals why standard cabinets posed a problem. Copper lines, insulated pipes, controls, electrical connections, and equipment cover much of the back wall, while the washer and dryer take up most of the usable width below.
The new cabinet framework stops and changes depth where those fixed elements demand access. Shelves above the appliances use the open wall area, while the section near the pipework remains cut back rather than forcing a conventional cabinet box into the space.
Cabinet Interiors Follow the Available Depth
The cabinet interiors show how the joinery uses depth that would be hard to capture with freestanding storage. Wide shelves run from the cabinet face toward the wall, creating large compartments for the same storage boxes that once sat exposed.
Doors convert those shelves into enclosed storage without requiring another piece of furniture on the floor. Adjustable-style shelf spacing also gives tall boxes and short supplies separate zones inside the same cabinet.
Doors Turn the Storage Wall Into One Built-In Unit
Large slab doors cover the upper storage while long black handles make each section easy to identify from the narrow aisle. Open niches remain below, keeping selected areas accessible without opening a full-height door.
The cabinetry reaches close to the ceiling, using space that the old shelving did not enclose. Its flat fronts also remove the rows of boxes, bottles, labels, and cleaning products from view when the doors are shut.
Drawers Use the Space Directly Above the Washer
One of the tighter sections sits above the white washing machine, where three wide drawers occupy the gap between the appliance and upper cabinets. That turns a former drop zone into enclosed storage without taking another section of floor.
A neighboring door opens toward the mechanical end of the room, while the washer and darker appliance remain in their existing row. The cabinetry was shaped around those dimensions rather than requiring the laundry machines to move elsewhere.
Existing Storage Boxes Fit Inside the New Cabinets
The labeled fabric boxes were not discarded with the old shelving. Several fit onto the new interior shelves, keeping the existing sorting system for tools and household supplies while moving it behind a cabinet door.
This section also shows why deep shelving was useful. Multiple boxes can occupy one vertical cabinet, while the lower compartment remains open for equipment that needs faster access.
Mechanical Equipment Still Has Its Own Zone
The renovation does not attempt to box every pipe behind permanent panels. Copper and insulated lines remain exposed at the far end, preserving access to valves, connections, and equipment that may need service.
Cabinetry ends before that mechanical zone while still extending storage toward it. The result uses the available wall without treating pipes and controls as space that can be covered without consideration for access.
Narrow Shelves Put the Opposite Wall to Work
Full-depth cabinets would have consumed too much of the aisle on the opposite side, so this wall takes a different approach. Shallow shelves provide spots for small electronics and household items while leaving the center of the room clear.
Horizontal dark slats above the shelves add wall-mounted storage potential without projecting as far into the walkway as another cabinet bank. The boiler remains mounted above, with its connections kept clear.
Floor-to-Ceiling Storage Replaces the Open Shelving
From the doorway, the largest change is the storage wall above the laundry machines. Cabinets and drawers now occupy space from just above the appliances to near the ceiling, while the opposite wall uses shallow storage that preserves the passage between them.
The washer, dryer, boiler, pipes, and mechanical equipment still dictate much of the room. Building the cabinetry around those fixed elements allowed the project to gain enclosed storage where a row of standard cabinet boxes could not have fit.
Image credits go to Instagram creator @casa_bespoke.