I don't have a mud room now so my laundry room and garage take over this duty but my mudroom in our new house is going to be roughly 6 x 10. 4 lockers and a bench probably (with opening lid for stuff like basketball shoes, baseball shoes, etc.)

Right now backpacks, lunchboxes, coats, all go in my laundry room on hooks. It is very crowded in there as that is also my broom closet since i don't have one, and where the dog food goes, etc. We have a seperate shoe basket by our back door where the kids generally put their shoes when they come in (this was implemented to keep them from being thrown all over the den).

I will likely move all of this into the mud room, along with the dog crate (crate training a new puppy). I may move the dog bowls and food in there too but am still on the fence about that as I am also considering doing a trash pullout for the dog with a lid in my laundry as there is water in there as well. Haven't quite decided.

It is the room I am most excited about in our new house. . . A place for all the stuff!!!

Mine is pretty good size to start with, about 15'10 x 10'7

Then out of that space, comes the coat closet, the cubbie bench with a drop counter on one end. There is also a nice size panty for the stock stuff and utility type stuff that I dont want in the kitchen. This space is also the laundry room.

There is a door from the garage, and a door from the back porch. It is also right next to a bathroom.

We havent moved in yet, but the plan is, come in mostly through garage, take off boots, shoes, coats, hats, etc. The drop counter is for things like keys, a mail/message center. Thought about a central cell phone charging station but everyone pretty much sleeps with their phones.

There is also cabinetry next to the w/d for folding laundry. Oh, there is also a utility sink next to the w/d.

Ok, so come in, take off stuff, if muddy can remove articles of clothing and put it in the tub or the washer. Can also use the bathroom to clean up. Just strip down, hop in the shower.

If we get the pool this year, I figure we will use the door from the back porch for soaking wet bodies to run in and out of. But more than likely, they will use the first door they come to so doubt that plan works.

I also have a hot/cold spigot outside the garage, so we can rinse off out there too and then bring the wet stuff into the mud room.

Some pet stuff will be in there too but we have the outside dog stuff in the horse barn.

I think that is about it :-)

My kitchen isnt overly huge, so this is like an extension of the kitchen, as it is pretty much just around the corner. Then my pocket kitchen is another extension of the kitchen in the other direction, so I have to remind myself of these two spaces when I start to doubt my decision on the size of the kitchen.

the mudroom is one of the things i'm most excited about! ours is pretty big (i can't find my recent plan, can't give you dimensions) and houses four cubbies (one for each person in our family) so everyone has a place to keep jackets, shoes, backpacks, sports stuff. also each cubby will be wired so we can each have a charging station. also in the mudroom: a wall unit to serve as a pantry (for red dot specials!) and storage for mops, brooms, etc. we also have a smaller, secondary washer/dryer stack for (downstairs) guest linens, kitchen linens, towels, etc... we opted to move a small bath just outside the mudroom (ours will be closed off by a door) for easier access from the kitchen.
-oh, and our cat will sleep in there too (dh and several family members are allergic). floor will be heated and it has lots of windows for natural light.

before we decided to build i looked at dozens of houses and passed on them all. they either didn't have a mudroom or if they did, they were much too small.

I have always had a mudroom despite the fact that in California there's not usually much "mud" or pile up of snow items. When we went to remodel this new house, which we took down to the studs, I was determined to have a large mudroom--had to compromise as there just wasn't a graceful way to make it bigger without taking from other important areas. So my mudroom is about 100 sq ft and about 50% smaller than I would like. Our mudroom has always been the entry from the garage and functions as both laundry and mudroom. I can tell you that second to the kitchen, it's the most "hard working" room in our home.

We have three kids and a dog(chickens too but they aren't allowed in the house LOL!). EVERYTHING gets dumped in the mudroom upon entry. We don't wear shoes in the house so it's mainly a coat and shoe warehouse! Outlets in each cubby, cabinet above each cubby, etc.

I opted out on the sink in my mudroom this time as we have a spare bathroom right next door and will have a sink outside. I didn't really use the sink in my last house but as I mentioned, we have few mud issues and our dog is small enough to wash in the bathtub or sink.

The mudroom that I call my "dream mudroom" was a very large room (approx 200 sq ft) with big windows, lots of storage, lockers, cubbies and an island in the middle which housed drawers and a giftwrap station. The island was used to fold laundry on too, and a TV was mounted up in a corner for that boring laundry folding job! There were benches on two sides of the room and shoe shelves under the benches. It was dreamy big and well used!

The only problem with it was that after the kids grew up, this family had no use for such a large mudroom--they turned it into an office after 17 years.

Here's another link to a mudroom discussion with loads of pics:

Here is a link that might be useful: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/decor/msg0114543725416.html

In ours we have built in cabinets that we use for storage, coats, ski items, vacuum, extra bottled water, sleeping bags, etc. The cabinets go to the ceiling. Then there is a small desk that has a phone on it, then wooden shelves for shoes. We really like it.

I think a room that just sits there and not being occupied is a waste of energy to heat and cool, and a waste of money to build. My utility room is where the door to the garage is....if my boots are muddy I just remove them in that area.

I agree with others here, that our mudroom/laundry room is one of the most hard working spaces in the house. Right inside the back door, 6 cubbies w/hooks for coats and backpacks, drawer under each for shoes - base is a bit wider so there is a seat there. Also, the laundry room - our old kitchen table sits in the window bay as my folding area/project area - there is a bench seat around this. My computer and desk area is also in here. Broom closet/cleaning product storage. We have a washing station at the end near W/D - tiled the floor and up the wall and put faucet in the wall - great for filling buckets, throwing in snowy boots, muddy cleats. This is one of my favorite features. We have affectionately renamed this space "Command Central". Favorite things about this room -- location, plenty of natural light, doors that close it off.

Our swill be fairly large and will include cubbies for coats, backpacks, boots, shoes, hats, mittens and cell phone charging. I also have a laundry off the mudroom that is 9x9 and a large coat closet off the mudroom that is 5x7 and a small cleaning closet that will hold vacuum, brooms, cleaning products that is 3x5. It will store alot of stuff!! We live in the Midwest and we have alot of coats and accessories and alot of shoes!!

Our mudroom is 13 x 9, *but* we have a chase for upstairs ductwork (about 2x2) on the hinge side of the garage door. So I hung 2 hooks for backpacks on the stud in the center of that wall. A door from the kitchen opens into the mudroom about 4 ft from the chase so I put a 3ft bench there with a peg/shelf combo for coats and baskets of mittens, erc. on top. Boots get put under the backpacks and under the bench (DH's shoes b/c if he puts them behind the door we can't open it wide enough). There is a wall with light switches on the other side of the door - less than a foot away. There is a 2x4 coat closet where I keep my vacuum, mops, etc. 6 ft in front of the garage door. So our "mudroom" is really only about 2x4 in front of the door then another 3x6 between the chase to the right (where I have the bench) and the closet. I'm not counting the 2x3 area where the kitchen door swings. It's not big enough.

The laundry room part of the room (on the other side of that short wall by the door) is 6x9, but put in W/D on one side and utility sink (next to the closet) and a large parrot cage on the other, the middle of the room is about 4x6 - again, not enough room to set up an ironing board and really work.

It looked so big on the plans, but I think we've got to change something since this has become the main entrance to the house - even when DH parks his car outside, he comes in the garage door not the front door, and the kids also tend to come and go from the bus stop through the garage, not just in the winter when I drive them. Pity, since we have a 3x7 (interior) closet by the front door where I had *planned* on storing backpacks, etc. I don't have room in the mudroom for 2 backpacks, 8-10 pairs of shoes, 4 or more coats, 2 library bags and 2 swim bags. When baseball season starts those bags (cleats and gloves, sometimes a bat) will be hung in the garage, but right now it's a little cold to keep bathing suits and towels in the garage - they don't warm up on the way to the Y! I keep a hamper in the garage for the really filthy farm clothes, but sometimes it's too cold to strip in the garage so DH throws them on the floor in front of the washer.

Mine runs the depth of the house (30' at that location) if you include the laundry room (the laundry room is actually a separate room, but it is at the back of the mudroom). It is about 6' wide (guessing). When you enter the door off the front porch there is a built in bench with space for shoes underneath. There are open lockers above (with baskets). There is a closet and opposite that there are wood pegs. The pegs are next to the door that goes into the mudroom from the garage. There is an antique bureau where I put my purse, and has drawers holding my numerous winter hats, gloves and Yak Trax. I will eventually replace that with something that makes better use of the wall space there.

We use it to contain the "stuff" before you come into the house. To prevent mud from getting on the hard wood floors (we live in Maine, after all!). But it is nice enough (tile floors, 2/3 height beadboard) that we use this as out primary entrance for guests. I don't consider it a waste of space at all. The cat bowls are there also. If we get a puppy (talking about it) the crate would go in there.

This was so interesting! This is funny, but I kept reading and thinking, "We don't really deal with mud often..." diff. parts of the country! My kids don't have cleats (only play basketball) and no dogs or livestock....so I think we have all this covered in 3 other rooms...a laundry, big pantry, and my big craft room off the kitchen. It will be a study & school project area for my kids, too...with a desk for them and cubbies for all of us.

Now that I think about it... I don't really know anyone with a real mudroom around here (NC coast)...mostly just laundry rooms... some have cubbies in a hallway, etc. I can definitely see a need for a mudroom if you are on a farm or have horses, etc. Thanks for the input!

Mine will be huge. I've never had one so I'm pretty excited!!! It contains a small office, powder room, lockers, bench, extra fridge and storage closets for coats, mops, vacuum. I'm also going to put up a big magnetic blackboard to be a message center.

The laundry room is in a separate location near the master. No pets here and I'm a city girl.

Our mudroom - cubbies for coats, drop zone for keys/cell phones, Place to store shoes, place to sit when putting shoes on. Ours is not huge - more like a back hall.

No mud here

The animal stuff goes elsewhere for various reasons. It is too active and visible for the litterbox. The dog eats in the kitchen, the cats eats in the office (on the built in desk).

Ours is just a wall built- in unit located at the garage entrance. There are outlets for the phone, chargers, etc. It is one of my favorite things about the house-keeps the usual everyday clutter (including kiddo shoes, jackets, mail, dog leash) organized and easy to use. There is a locker/cubby/basket/drawer for each family member (the dog will have to share if we have more babies!)There is a coat closet directly across from it. HTH.
Katie

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katieob - i love your "mudroom"! It's really open to the kitchen and small footprint but so neat! How long is that wall/builtin? 6ft or so?

My mud/laundry room is just too broken up. Coming from a home where we walked directly into FR (carpeted!) from the garage, and the laundry was a closet in a powder room, I thought this would be huge but it's still not big enough for how we live now (2 active kids instead of 1, on 97 acres instead of 3).

katieob- your home looks lovely!

highjumpgirl- most important that you plan your space for what works for YOUR family! Some mudrooms may seem over the top but I bet that no one with extra "back hall" space has any regrets.

We live on a farm - horses, dogs, snow, mud etc. We have a room called the "clutter room" that is the most valuable space in our home. It keeps the rest of the house in order. I use it in many ways.... and those will be obvious in the photos.

Here is a link that might be useful: Our clutter room