When my grandfather first bought my apartment, way back in 1966, one of the modern features the kitchen sported was a compact all-in-one washer/dryer combo unit. It was turquoise, just like all the other kitchen appliances and slid neatly into a slot under the counter, across from the refrigerator. Unfortunately, as the years when on, this little unit became increasingly unreliable, and after the building had to fix it for the 22nd (as well as all the others in the building), they decided it was time to phase out the combo units, in favor of traditional washer/dryers.

In order to fit another appliance into a small, galley kitchen, they closed off the second door to the kitchen, turning it from a walk-through into a tight, dead end set-up. Additionally, the apartment was never designed to house a venting dryer, so whenever you ran the dryer, it released plumes of lint and turned the kitchen into a sauna.

For the last year, I’ve been complaining about the lack of kitchen storage, as well as the layer of dust that always covered everything in the kitchen. Since Scott moved in, we’ve been toying with the idea of replacing the two old units with a single combo unit once again. Last week, we decided to go for it. It arrived today, in a very large Con-Way truck that blocked traffic on Ludlow Street for nearly half an hour.

Scott and I installed it tonight, using a small hacksaw to break down the box and move the unit from the entryway into the living room. It took a lot of coordination and effort (a handtruck would have been helpful, but sadly, none were to be had) to work it into the space in the kitchen (and it fit into the spot with absolutely no room to spare), but Scott once again proved that he’s far handier than he’d like to admit and made it all work.

It’s currently running the first load of laundry and it shockingly quite (except for those moments when it sounds a little like a spaceship is landing in the kitchen). Let’s hope the laundry it produces is clean and not too wrinkled!