Tenant Wants to Install Own W/D
My long-time tenant has asked me to consider allowing her to buy an electric washer/dryer combo unit, ventless, that she could run off her kitchen sink. Since there is no upside to this situation as a landlord and only peril in my daymares imagining water damage aplenty, my first instinct is a polite “no”. Unreasonable?…
My long-time tenant has asked me to consider allowing her to buy an electric washer/dryer combo unit, ventless, that she could run off her kitchen sink. Since there is no upside to this situation as a landlord and only peril in my daymares imagining water damage aplenty, my first instinct is a polite “no”. Unreasonable? If I did decide to accomodate, any suggestions how much I should tack on to the rent to compensate for the certainty of higher electric and water bills? Here’s the unit she wants: http://www.pcrichard.com/catalog/product_popup.jsp?productId=31971&PIPELINE_SESSION_ID=48b259afc0a8777a01784f37d9e87643
Suggestions? Thanks!
we have one in our house but we got a model that vents, yes they do make these that vent as well. the key is the spin at the end which should be a high rpm (and should also be switchable to lower rpms). the high spin speed does a very effective job of wringing most of the water out of clothes and decresing the load on drying. i also find myself air drying certain of our more delicate clothes. one thing to note, spin speeds over 1200 rpm will make lots noise as the machine often shakes.
I am totally surprised by the generally negative response of the homeowners on this site. These machines are well designed for a brownstone lifestyle. We’ve had one for seven years with two kids and tho it has limitations, IT BEATS THE CRAP OUT OF WALKING TO THE LAUNDROMAT. Additionally it’s uses FAR LESS WATER and FAR LESS DETERGENT than top loaders –it’s clearly more environmentally friendly. And it takes up less than half the space of full sized washer dryer units. Since most homeowners are paying between $650-$900 per sq foot these days, having a combo washer dryer unit saves at least 4 sq ft or $3,600 of precious floor space. On the other hand we can all drive our SUV’s to our McMansions and clean our laundry in large capacity side by side washer dryers.
I love my full-size LG combo unit so much that I’m considering giving it a name. They work great. And it takes 110V. (We have a 220 plug so I actually run it off an extension cord. Don’t think the full-size unit can run off the sink though.
Oh, and slick makes a point as well, about an increase in rent. However, there’s actually a law which provides for a small monthly increase (say, about $16., I’d have to check on this to be sure) for extra water usage in a Rent-Stabilized apartment. Again, I’d have to check on this, to be sure of the exact amount, and the Rent-Stabilized part. If you’d like me to do so, just let me know.
PitbullNYC, your comment appears to lack any sensitivity to others who are not you, I’m sorry to say. Many of us, single mothers, and others who aren’t as easily mobile as some, truly would/ do appreciate having a washing machine at home. Some of us also don’t live terribly close to laundromats, and appreciate doing laundry ourselves, so we can be sure it’s done well. Have you observed some of those laundromat workers who’re doing multiple loads from multiple clients all at one time? I’m very pleased that the OP has asked such a considerate question of our group.
I snuck one of these in my rent stabilized apt a few years back-I didn’t tell my landlord. It was a complete pain in the ass. The “temporary” drain that you hang on the sink would fall off and spew water all over the apartment. The clothes were always wrinkly. I kept the machine maybe a month at most then I resold it. As the above poster mentioned at 65cents a pound, you really can’t beat the wash and fold. Who wants to wash/dry a few things at a time every single day? Might be energy efficient but it is a totally inefficient expenditure of personal time. If I was not around when the drain came off I would have destroyed the hardwood floors.
Oh, one more thing. That little box in the lower lefthand corner on the machine. That is the dryer’s installed lint catcher. It has to be cleaned out regularly (every 3 months at least). Given the placement on the machine it is a huge pain. I did it the first time and then told my tenants that they had to do it from then on. I even put in their last rental agreement a clause stating that they are responsible for cleaning out this lint catcher to ensure proper operation of the machine.
I bought and installed an LG brand unit like this in my tenant’s apt about a year ago. From my research the LG units seem to be the best quality machines. I got the larger capacity unit given that my tenants have two children – so lots of laundry. I would definitely recommend the bigger unit as they are more efficient overall. So far I have found two downsides to this arrangement. 1. Although the machine is comparatively quiet it does have an audible hum and vibration sound that can be heard in my bedroom which is located immediatly below where the unit is installed. It was enough to keep me awake a night (although my husband did not mind it) and so I had to ask my tenants not to run it between 11pm-2am. The machine has a timer so can be set to go on at 2am and then be done by the following morning. 2. I have had to have a plumber out 3 times in the last year to clean out a clog from my tenant’s plumbing system. The dryer vents into the plumbing pipes and lint collects causing the pipes to clog. A plumber suggested that we have a catch installed between the dryer and the drain pipe to eliminate the clogs. The catch would have to be cleaned out regularly. We will probably do this in the near future. Overall, my tenants are happy with the machine – they certainly prefer it to going to the laundromat. They pay their own electricity so I am not sure how much this bill went up. Our water bill has not noticeably gone up. I say do it.
However, I would most certainly recommend that you have a professional plumber install the machine to ensure there are no leaks, and to ensure that your plumbing pipes are large enough to cope with the lint that will result from drying. Our pipes are too small which is why we have had the clogging problem.
How big is your building? Would it be reasonable to give your tenant access to a basement laundry room? That seems like it would be a lot less headache in the long run. Or … listen to Vinca.