Hi all,

I've been browsing these forums extensively and have seen numerous references to people having trouble with laundry timetables etc. My wife and I are considering a move to Geneva/Lausanne and she was horrified to learn that we might have to live in a place where we don't have all our own appliances, incl a washing machine/dryer.

My question is: it seems from all the posts here that it is the norm in CH not to have your own washing machine in your flat. However, it's my understanding that most EF users are living in the German-speaking part of CH, so is it the norm in Romande to not have private washing facilities/a washing machine in your own flat? Do you have to own your own house/flat to have this "luxury"?

Thanks in advance
G

I think it depends on the apartment you choose, my apartment has a washing machine and tumble dryer in the bathroom, other apartments provide individual wash rooms per apartment in the basements or there are the communal washing rooms - knowing how unorganised I am I purposely looked for an apartment with its own washing machine or at lesat an apartment where I could put a washing machine in of my own

Check on homegate.ch when searching, I think it may state in some of the adverts if there are washing facilities in the actual apartment

Nicky

Washer-driers seem to be a little more prevalent than earlier ... coming from the UK, I saw a dishwasher as a luxury & washer/tumble dryer as a necessity .... something else that is a bit cocked around here ...

The answer is "it depends".

Most of the new buildings have connections for washing machines (but very few have enough space to fit dryers). The older buildings have communal washing facilities; you can have your own washmachine provided there's enough space for it in your bathroom / kitchen and you can get a water supply installed.

The catch being that old buildings vastly outnumber new buildings...

I live in a place with just 1 washing machine and a room with some weird contraption as a dryer. The annoying thing is that there is a "timetable" when everyone has their slot to use the machine, but I don't have one as I am quite new (there are people that have been there for 50 years plus, and they have always had the same slot, so unless they cop it, no chance for me..) and there is no point, as every morning and evening the machine is booked, so the only day that I can use it is on a Saturday, when me and all the "new ones" fight to use it. Most annoyingly is people that obviously go and get the key and lock the room, and then don't use the machine for hours, and so noone else can use it... grrr... I would have my own machine in a shot, but there is no water supply to put it in.... OK, rant over...

I live in an apartment where there is one washer and one drier for every 6 apartments so we get one day in which to do all the washing. OK so not too much of a hardship. However you're not allowed to use it before 08.30 and after 20.00, and since our day is Wednesday, we (Working all week) don't really get a lot of chance to use it.
Since we brought a washer and drier with us, and there is space and the plumbing in the bathroom, we asked the landlord if we could fit the washer when we moved-in. She insisted we use their nominated plumber and electrician to hook it up (Who together charged over CHF1100 - Almost the cost of the washer/drier) and now have the facility to wash when we please... or so we thought. We still can't wash after 20.00 or on Sundays, since more than one of our neighbours complained about it (Washing on Sunday) and we got a call from the landlord. So we have more or less the most expensive washing installation in the world, and can only use it Saturdays and for a couple of hours at night.

Hi Yarg

I seem to have ended up in the calmest building in Zurich. There are 6 apartments in my building and you can just use the washer and dryer as and when you please. I tend not to use this after ten pm but as i'm the one living directly above the wash room it doesn't really matter if i really need to.
In general i feel the smaller the building (i.e. no of apts) then the more laid back it is.
I wouldn't worry that much about it and also having only lived in private houses before zurich its not that difficult to adjust to shared washing machines and drying rooms.

B

Hi Yarg,

As you've probably noticed - this is an emotive issue!

I for one find the whole system of communal washing rooms/calendars etc unbelievably inpractical and outdated (they work fine if you're a full time housewife who has the time and energy to waste going up and down flights of stairs every 40 minutes to swop loads etc!!) but for the most part, it is sooo inconvenient and inflexible it is untrue! When we first arrived, we were assigned Wednesday mornings which were completely impossible for me as I was leaving for work at 6.30am and my partner at 7.45am. Instead, we were reduced to sneaking around, doing our washing at illegal times and risking stroppy letters from the letting agency/complaints from the neighbours!

I can't tell you how happy I was when we bought our own machine..............


(Having said that though, a good friend of ours lives in a building with a communal laundry room with no calendar and the possibility to wash until 10pm everyday, even on sundays, so there are some more understanding landlords around!)

Ok, thanks to everyone who has responded! I can see that, as one person said, it's very much an "it depends" scenario. At least we know now it's not that ALL flats have shared amenities and that when/if we begin our flat search at least it will be an option to choose a flat with private facilities if it really is that important to us.

From your responses it's good to see that there are properties out there that mean we won't have to engage in the fun laundry room wars!

Thanks again,
G

The key really is what type of place you are looking for. If you want older area/building with character etc. sharing is much more a possibility. Like some previous posters, having our own washer/dryer was a priority for us because we have a child. When puke happens, I want to be able to wash immediately, regardless of the day or time. We live on the ground floor over the waschküches (individual washrooms) and can never hear when anyone's washer or dryer is running. The only down side is not having one in the flat. The penthouses (top floor) flats in our buildings have w/d in the apartment, but they also have time restrictions on when they can wash/dry.

__________________
Thus far you have been adrift in the sheltered harbour of my patience. ~ Cobra Bubbles

Yarg,

You mentioned in your original post that you're looking to move to Geneva/Lausanne, so I thought my recent experience of house hunting in the area may help.

Basically we viewed 5 properties on our first visit and 7 on the second visit, a combination of apartments, duplexes and houses and ALL of them had their own washing machine and dryer, so stop worrying - if you're flexible on where you live you'll find the perfect place with all you need.

p.s. if you've got no pets I know of a stunning top floor apartment which is on the market which wasn't suitable for our pooch.

Once again, thanks for your input everyone!

Naps, thanks for the Romande-specific info, and also for the offer regarding the apartment. Unfortunately, I'm still in the interviewing process for jobs, so I can't really proceed with anything until I have an offer. The fact that every place you looked at had a machine does help to reassure though!

Cheers,
G

No problem - good luck with the interviews and when you get the offer just shout up if you need some local help. The OH is moving to Morges at the end of this month and I'm heading over first week in July.

It's really not that bad! I've never had a problem with shared facilities... so far. In fact, although I have a washing machine in my flat, I appreciate having the shared facilites once a week as they are big commerical machines & I can do all my linens at higher temps & then dry them in the dryer. There is nothing worse than line dried towels!!

Just moving into a new apartment and it has washer and dryer in the kitchen area, I kid you not. But normally they're in a separate room for all tenants to use and everyone seems to follow the rules.

[quote=Lausannebrit;61176]Hi Yarg,


I can't tell you how happy I was when we bought our own machine..............


Any advice on what make/model of machine to buy? Not keen on long wash cycles but reliability important. Not huge washes.

Get a Miele....

New buildings have more space, so go for those to increase your chances. And if it is shared, always ask while inspecting if you can wash on a Sunday, or late in the evenings, so you know in advance whether they are laid back or not. Try and pick a place with the machines deep in the cellar so people are less likely to complain should you wash at odd hours.

Folks,

If you are interested, I am selling a Hover washing machine AA+ which is hardly used for a price of CHF 400 still in warranty till Feb 2008. Since I am moving to Zurich where I have a washing machine in the appartment.