Plenty of laundry around the Philadelphia suburbs and South Jersey lives in spaces that are not heated. In split-levels across Cherry Hill, Hamilton and Warminster, the washer and dryer often sit on the lower level right off the garage. In ranches and Cape Cods without basements, a laundry corner in an attached garage is common. In older inner-ring towns, some households have moved laundry onto an enclosed rear porch or into an unfinished basement with a drafty bulkhead door.
Those spaces are fine most of the year. In a cold snap, they can drop low enough to damage a washer and make a dryer struggle. Here is what actually goes wrong and how to prevent it.
What manufacturers say, in general terms
Most washer and dryer installation manuals say the machines should not be installed or stored where they will be exposed to freezing temperatures or the weather. Some give a specific minimum room temperature; that figure is in your model's manual. The underlying reason is simple: washers hold water in places you cannot drain by hand, and water expands when it freezes.
What freezes in a washer
Even after a cycle ends, a washer is not dry inside.
- •Fill hoses. The hoses from the wall valves to the washer stay full of water under pressure. A frozen hose can split or burst at the fitting, and when it thaws, it floods.
- •Inlet valve. The valve on the back of the washer holds water too. Ice can crack its plastic body.
- •Drain pump and sump. A small amount of water stays in the bottom of the tub and in the pump housing. Freezing can crack the pump or jam its impeller.
- •Drain hose. Water trapped in a low loop of the drain hose can freeze solid and block draining.
- •House plumbing. The supply pipes and drain in an unheated garage or porch are at risk too, which is a bigger and more expensive problem than the washer itself.
Symptoms after a freeze
- •The washer will not fill, or fills very slowly.
- •An error code for a drain fault appears, or water stays in the drum.
- •You hear the pump hum without moving water.
- •A puddle appears under the washer once the space warms up.
If you suspect the washer froze, do not run it. Let the space warm up first, ideally for a full day, then check the hoses and the floor before starting a short test cycle.
What cold does to a dryer
Dryers do not hold water, so they are less likely to be damaged by cold. But a dryer in a very cold space has other issues:
- •Longer drying times. The dryer is heating air that starts out cold, so it works harder and runs longer.
- •Condensation in the vent. Warm, wet exhaust traveling through a cold duct condenses inside it. Water can pool in low spots, mix with lint and form a clog, or drip back toward the dryer. Long horizontal runs through a cold garage are especially prone to this.
- •Controls and electronics. Some electronic boards and displays behave erratically in very cold conditions.
- •Gas dryers. A gas dryer's burner still needs a good exhaust path. A vent clogged with frozen condensation or snow at the exterior hood is a safety issue.
Ways to protect laundry in a cold space
Insulate and heat the space
The most reliable fix is keeping the space above freezing. Options include insulating the garage door or porch walls, sealing drafts around a bulkhead door, and adding a heater rated for garage use. Any new heater circuit should go to a licensed electrician, and gas heat should be installed by a licensed contractor.
Winterize when the space will freeze
If the washer will sit unused through a cold stretch:
- Turn off both water supply valves at the wall.
- Disconnect the fill hoses from the valves and drain them into a bucket.
- Run a short cycle with the hoses disconnected for a few seconds to clear the inlet valve, then stop it.
- Drain the pump through the front access filter if your washer has one, following the owner's manual.
- Leave the door open so the drum dries out.
Some owner's manuals describe adding a small amount of RV antifreeze to the drum and running a brief drain-and-spin to protect the pump. If yours does, follow those exact steps; if it does not, skip it.
Protect the plumbing
Insulate exposed supply pipes, and consider shutting off and draining the laundry branch entirely if the space is unheated and not in use for the winter. A plumber can add a separate shutoff for the garage or porch plumbing if one does not exist.
Shorten and slope the dryer vent
A short, straight vent with as little run through the cold space as possible reduces condensation. Make sure the exterior hood is clear after snow. Our guide to dryer vent length explains how to judge the run.
Laundry right beside the garage
In split-levels and other homes with laundry beside the garage, the laundry area is often only partly separated from the garage, with a gap under the connecting door. Cold air flows straight across the floor to the washer. Weatherstripping the garage door and the door between garage and basement can make a noticeable difference, as can keeping the laundry area door closed in winter.
Unheated basements in older homes have the opposite problem in summer: humidity. If your laundry also sits in a space that floods or stays damp, our article on raising appliances above flood level covers what to do.
Second refrigerators and freezers in the same space
Many suburban garages also hold a second fridge or chest freezer. Those have their own temperature limits, separate from laundry. Some refrigerators stop running properly when the surrounding air is too cold, because their thermostat is sensing a cold room rather than a warm interior. If yours struggles in winter, see our freezer repair page.
When to call a technician
If your washer will not fill or drain after a cold night, or it leaks once things warm up, a frozen and cracked inlet valve, pump or hose is the likely cause. Replacing a burst hose is simple, but a cracked pump or valve needs a proper repair. A dryer that suddenly takes much longer in winter may just need a vent cleaning, or it may have a heating fault the cold is exposing. Find out more on our washer repair page, and book a visit online when you need a hand.