Hangers are convenient to have in your laundry room whether you want to leave clothes up to dry or keep items there until they’re taken up to their owners’ bedrooms. However, you may wonder what options you have to store them, so they don’t pile up and make a mess. We’ve looked into this topic for you, and we’ll give you some ideas for how you can store hangers in your laundry room.
There are several popular ways to store hangers in the laundry room, including:
- Hanger bar/rod mounted below cabinets or above the washer and dryer
- Dual shelf and clothes bar/rod
- Hanger stackers
- Improvised/homemade PVC hanger rack
- Magazine holders
We know you probably want some more details about those options, so we’ll break them down for you in this post! We’ll also give you some advice for how you can hang clothes to dry in your laundry room, tell you how many hangers you’ll need, and discuss the differences between several different hanger types.
Laundry room hanger storage options
There are plenty of easy ways to keep your hangers stored and ready for use, as we just mentioned. Here are some great options.
Hanger bar/rod mounted below cabinets or above washer/dryer
Many laundry rooms have cabinets on the wall above their washer and dryer. If your laundry room has this layout, you can install a bar or rod on the cabinet’s underside. You might also try mounting a bar between two sets of cabinets or between a set of cabinets and a wall. This setup gives you a place to put your hangers, and you’ll also be able to hang up clothes as soon as they’re done drying.
Dual shelf and clothes bar/rod
If you have a shelf in your laundry room, why not install a bar underneath it so you can hang clothes there as well?
Hanger stacker
Not only is this metal rack cheap, but it’s also easy to use as well. You just put it either on the ground or on a nearby shelf and start adding hangers to it. When you need a hanger, take one off the top.
Click here to see this product on Amazon.
Improvised/homemade PVC hanger rack
If you’re the kind of person who likes building their own tools, you can easily make a quick project out of making a clothes/hanger rack from PVC pipe.
Magazine holder
If you’ve got these lying empty around your house, you can put them to use storing hangers instead. You should be able to fit at least a few hangers in each holder.
How do you hang clothes to dry in a laundry room?
We’ve already discussed ways you can hang clothes to dry in your laundry room in a previous post, but we’ll give you some more ideas here.
Some of the hanger storage options we just mentioned in the last section are great for hanging clothes. Hanging your clothes to dry on a bar under a shelf or set of cabinets always works. Similarly, a homemade PVC clothes rack hangs clothes just fine. If you’re eager for more ideas, though, keep reading!
Indoor Clothesline
Everyone’s familiar with the traditional outdoor clothesline, but did you know that you can set one up inside your laundry room too? One option is to install a permanent clothesline that stays up even when it’s not in use. You could also install a retractable clothesline, which allows you to free up some space in your laundry room when you’re not drying clothes.
Wall-mounted Drying Rack
This is another convenient option because you can fold it up against the wall when you don’t need it.
Hanging Ladder Drying Rack
If you want to get creative and have a spare length of ladder, you can hang it from the ceiling and mount hangers on the rungs. This isn’t how ladders are typically used, but it works.
How many clothes hangers do I need?
The number of clothes hangers you need depends on two factors: how long the hanging bar in your closet is and how much space your clothes take up. Generally, 16 hangers per foot of bar space is a reasonable guideline. However, 12-13 hangers per foot is a wiser option if you’ll be hanging larger, thicker garments. If you are hanging thinner clothes, you might be able to get away with up to 19 hangers per foot.
Ultimately, you want to ensure that there’s enough room between your clothing items so they’re not smashed together, and you can easily hang them up or take them down when you want.
Are wooden or velvet hangers better?
“Variety” isn’t the first word that comes to mind when most people think of clothes hangers, but they come in several different types. Naturally, there’s a debate regarding which type is the best, but the truth is that each hanger variety has its own strengths and weaknesses.
Wooden hangers have strength and rigidity going for them, meaning they can support heavy clothes and help them maintain their shape. Sometimes they have added features like notches on the sides to hold items that have straps or a bar across the bottom to hold pants. Additionally, many people enjoy wooden hangers for their looks as they can give a closet a professional appearance. Lastly, wooden hangers are built to last, so you won’t have to buy new ones constantly.
However, wooden hangers have their disadvantages as well. Like with any wooden object, splinters are a concern. These hangers also tend to be wider than other varieties, so you won’t be able to fit as many of them in your closet.
Velvet hangers’ main advantage over other hanger types is how slip-resistant they are. Velvet hangers are great at keeping clothes in place, so you won’t come home to see the shirts you hung up before making a pile on the floor. They’re also on the slim side, so they don’t take up as much space.
That said, velvet hangers’ main positive can be a negative since you might find it frustrating to get clothes on or off of them due to their strong grip. Velvet hangers also aren’t as strong as other hanger types and have a higher risk of breaking under heavier weights.
Are plastic hangers better than wire?
Plastic and wire hangers are often considered the lesser-quality options as far as hangers go. Comparing them is somewhat difficult as they have many of the same pros and cons.
For one thing, they’re both cheap and easy to use. On the other hand, neither type of hanger is very durable or strong. Keeping heavy clothes on them for long will make them start to warp into bizarre shapes. Also, clothes can easily slide off of either hanger.
As to which variety is better, it’s a close call, but plastic wins out. While plastic hangers have many of the same drawbacks as wire hangers, there are two that they don’t have: rust and sharp edges. Wire hangers rust over time, and in the worst cases, they can cause discoloration in your clothes. It’s also easier for clothes to get caught on wire hangers and suffer damage than plastic ones.
Final Thoughts
Hangers play a vital role both in helping clothes dry and keeping them in good condition while they’re in the closet. With just a bit of planning, you can figure out where to keep them in your laundry room and what kind of hanger will work best with your wardrobe.
Thanks for reading, and for more tips on storing laundry items, check out our post on places you can keep your laundry basket. We also have plenty more great posts about how you can design your dream laundry room, so stay tuned to HomeDecorBliss.com!