Furnished or unfurnished and other Q's

Alright I am not sure which category this goes in but....what is the deal with the washers in the kitchen?  If an ad describing a flat says unfurnished---does that mean NO appliances?  Furnished means all appliances and furniture too?  Do all flats come with washers in the kitchen?  and do they have dryers?  If I want to rent a flat for example with a washer/dryer, refrigerator, and stove...what do I look for?


Forgive me...I didnt see the other thread  down below!

After reading all the posts in the other thread, my Q's above still stand...

....what is the deal with the washers in the kitchen?

What do you mean when you say 'what is the deal' ?

If you are in a city, you will most likely find flats with a washer in the kitchen...it's just the norm.  And honestly it's not been a problem for me at all.  I do not have a dryer and wouldn't use the dryer part of a washer anyway - they're not all that great compared to the dryer I was used to in the States.  I just hang my stuff and do a lot of ironing...it's not bad.  And I bought some great very high quality towels that don't get stiff (the only thing I was worried about).  As for finding a flat/house with the washer, refridge and stove - even if unfurnished, you'll have all of those in it.  And if you want the washer/dryer combo (you will rarely find a separate dryer...it's a very American thing) then tell your estate agent that it's a NEED.  As for unfurnished - means that there is no furniture.  Furnished (as they said in the thread below) can mean all sorts of things - everything from just having all the requisit furniture (bed, sofas, wardrobes, appliances) to having even tea towels & salt shakers alongside the works!  I have found that telling an estate agent what you need to find in a flat is very helpful...but if you're looking for a separate dryer, you may be out of luck!

Crap!  I was afraid you were going to say that!  Having lived in Sweden for 5 years with a crappy dryer (breaking half the time in our complex), and having to dry MOST of my laundry on radiators, heck any place I could find, just absolutely sucks!  I would welcome a dryer.  I'd probably even kiss one! Oh well....if I had a washer though, then maybe I could do some small loads instead of large ones like I do now.  (We have a lock with our apartment # and 3 slots on a time board outside our laundry room for booking a time)..We have like 20 apartments and two tiny washers with ONE dryer (that breaks constantly, and doesnt really heat the clothes) and one dryer closet (kinda like a garderobe with rails for hanging....) I'll probably feel culture shock if I moved back to the US and actually got to dry my clothes!  My own washer would be nice though....*sighs*

I do tons of small bits.  And there are great drying racks over here!  I got one that I can hang hangers on (for my shirts) and it has lots of bits to hang other stuff on.  It's great.  Definitely find a place with a washer - it saves time and energy. (do I miss my big huge washer and dryer?  yup, but it's not a huge deal)

We don't have a dryer either.....I thought I would hate it but you do get used to it. I would love to have one but don't want to commit to buying one since we are always up and down about whether to stay in the UK or move back.

When we go back to the states for a visit....as soon as we there for a few days and have some dirty clothes to wash,  I can't wait to use a dryer! Its like a real treat! 

We have a washer and dryer (stacked on top of each other) in our bathroom. It's most common if you have them here to install them in the bathroom though I have seen a washer in the kitchen on occasion. My SO uses the dryer for everything, but I don't. I fish out my clothes and hang them on a collapsable drying rack that I bought here. Other than sheets, towels and socks the rest of my things I hang to dry. Yes this creates a lot of ironing and if we had children I might think again but for now it works.

Recently we were in the States visiting family in CA and my sister in TX. My sister throws everything into the dryer even things that shouldn't go in like silk, linen or wool blends.  She shrunk a lot of my clothes because I didn't catch her in time before she threw them in. Grrr...

I wash a couple of loads a day, usually.  If you keep on top of it, it's not so bad.  We have no dryer and it's honestly all right.

Yes but here in Sweden if you don't have a washer in your place (and many places don't) you have to reserve a time in the laundry room. Most of the convient times are taken like after work or on weekends. You're lucky if you can get one time a week. Then it is a race to get it all done. Since "The Green Lady" has 3 children it must be a nightmare especially when the dryer craps out. I've lived in 3 places here and the first 2 were small and there was no way that we could have a washer in our places. The first place had no hook up of any kind either. I'd end up getting to do the laundry once a week and by then it was piles of it. It was pretty stressful especially when I was checking the clock making sure that I was still within my time slot. Here people are very anal about their time slots. If you go into someone elses by even a few minutes they are angry with you and complaining. It seems to be the only time that Swedes get really vocal.    I have never seen a laundromat here either so you don't have that as an option. When we moved into this place I saw that there was a hookup in the bathroom. We bought our washer and dryer used for a good price. What a blessing they have been. 

Yep Sabeine, you hit the nail!  Laundry is a nightmare!  Especially during rot month!  I have had several towels mildew already!    It definitely sucks!  Here's our story:  when we moved to Sweden we lived in a small town.  We had the priviledge of being the first ones in a new apartment.  We got to decide on wallpaper etc.  It was really exciting!  We had a washer/dryer in our apartment in the bathroom just like what you are talking about.  I had a then 4 yr. old so it was fine.  Negatives: It was a one bedroom and there was no bathtub!  It was a shower only (I think you understand what I mean...flat floor just a drain!  It was fine until I got pregnant with my son!  Then as some of you ladies who have had kids know, you drool over a bathtub!  Then we moved to Malmö.  It's the 3rd largest city in Sweden.  Our apartment building is quite old.  Probably circa 1940 or 1960 (we cant tell..hehe) but it's VERY drafty!  We have 3 large radiators and 2 not so large.  We have 20 units in the building.  In the basement is our laundry room.  There are 2 washing machines with small drums.  I cant even put my bed cover in it!  And there is one dryer.  Our old dryer was more like a deep fryer!  You'd put your clothes in it and they would literally fry (they'd be so hot!)  Then someone forgot to clean out the lint trap and it burned to a crisp nearly taking out the whole building.  So then they got another machine (which is the piece of crap!)  You cant put more than 2 towels in it along with your clothes or they wont dry.  After an hour on HIGH they come out just as damp as when you put them in.  And Sabeine can tell you people get pretty peeved if you run over your laundry time.

My husband and I went round and round with the janitor to give us our lock.  We couldnt even book a time to do our laundry for months!  I had to dart in there when it was empty!  Finally he quit and we got a new janitor recently.  He just gave me a lock and I am sooooooo excited!   Pathetic I know!  I have gone through h*ll doing my laundry!  But I think you're right.  If I do small loads instead of large ones I'll be ok!