These Aren't Your Home Washer and Dryer
A residential washing machine weighs about 150 pounds. A commercial coin-operated washer — the kind you find in every laundromat from Gresham to Corvallis — weighs 300 to 500 pounds. The big 60-pound-capacity front loaders? 600 to 800 pounds. And commercial dryers aren't much lighter at 250 to 450 pounds each.
A mid-size laundromat with 20 washers and 20 dryers contains roughly 12,000 to 20,000 pounds of machines. That's six to ten tons of steel, cast iron, and concrete counterweights sitting on a tile floor, connected to hot water, cold water, drain, gas, and electrical — five connections per machine. Multiply by 40 machines and you're looking at 200 utility disconnections before anything moves.
This is not a job for two guys and a pickup truck. We bring a crew of four to six, appliance dollies rated for 800 pounds, a ramp truck, and sometimes a liftgate. Commercial appliance removal at this scale is a specialty — and we've done enough laundromat closures across Oregon to know exactly what we're walking into.
Utility Disconnection: Gas, Water, Electric
Gas dryers require a licensed plumber to disconnect the gas lines. Oregon code mandates it. We'll coordinate the plumber's schedule with our crew, but that's a separate cost — typically $300 to $600 for a laundromat-scale gas disconnection. Electric dryers are simpler: flip the breaker, disconnect the cord, cap the outlet.
Water connections are straightforward but messy. Every washer has two supply hoses (hot and cold) and a drain hose. When you pull 20 washers off the wall, 40 supply hoses need capping and 20 drain connections need plugging. There's always residual water in the machines and lines — we lay down plastic sheeting and have a shop vac running. Even so, expect some water on the floor. Laundromat floors are designed for it, thankfully.
The big issue is the main drain. Laundromats have floor drains and sometimes a grease trap or lint interceptor that needs cleaning before the landlord accepts the space back. Lint buildup in drain lines is genuinely impressive — we've pulled clogs the size of a football from laundromat drains. That's a plumber's job, but be aware of it during your closure planning.
Actually Moving 300-Pound Machines
Commercial washers have shipping bolts that lock the drum during transport. If the bolts are still with the machine (they're often stored inside the coin box or taped to the back), reinstalling them prevents drum damage during removal. If they're gone — and they usually are — we move carefully and accept that the drum will swing.
Each machine comes off the floor (many are on vibration pads or bolted to anti-walk platforms), gets tilted onto an appliance dolly, and gets wheeled to the truck. The path matters: one step up or down adds two minutes per machine. Narrow aisles between machine rows mean we can only move one at a time. A clear, straight path from machine to truck door is the dream — and it happens maybe 30% of the time.
Stack dryers (two dryers in a vertical column, common in newer laundromats) need to be unstacked before moving. The top unit lifts off the stacking kit. But at 350 pounds, "lifts off" requires three people and careful coordination. One slip and you've got a dryer falling sideways into the machine next to it — which is why we use straps and never rush this step.
Scrap Value Is Real
Here's the upside of laundromat cleanouts: commercial machines have significant scrap metal value. A 400-pound washer contains mostly steel, plus a stainless steel drum, copper wiring, and a cast iron counterweight. At current scrap prices, each machine yields $15 to $40 in scrap value. Forty machines? That's $600 to $1,600 in scrap that offsets your removal costs.
Working machines are worth far more. A used Speed Queen commercial washer in operating condition sells for $500 to $2,000 depending on age and capacity. Used Dexter, Continental, and Maytag commercial units have active resale markets. If your machines are under 10 years old and functional, list them through industry channels before scrapping.
Coin mechanisms and card readers have some value too. The older quarter-drop mechanisms are worth $10 to $30 each. Card-based payment systems — the control boards, readers, and network equipment — can be worth $200 to $500 for the complete system if it's a current model.
Everything Else: Tables, Carts, Vending
Beyond the machines: folding tables (usually laminate on steel frames, 50 to 80 pounds each), laundry carts on wheels, plastic chairs, vending machines (those weigh 400 to 800 pounds each — don't forget about them), change machines (200 to 300 pounds of steel safe), and the counter/desk area with its cabinetry and register setup.
Wall-mounted TVs, security cameras, the DVR system, WiFi router, signage — small items that add up to a couple hundred pounds of electronics. All of that goes through electronics recycling rather than general waste.
Soap vending machines sometimes contain bulk detergent that's been sitting for months. It crystallizes, leaks, and creates a sticky mess inside the machine. We empty and clean what we can, but sometimes the whole machine is so gunked up it's faster to just load it as-is and deal with the mess at the transfer station.
Laundromat Cleanout Pricing
Small laundromat (10 to 15 machines): $2,500 to $4,500. Mid-size (20 to 30 machines): $4,500 to $7,500. Large format (40+ machines with multiple rows): $7,500 to $12,000. These prices include machine removal, fixture removal, and disposal. Gas disconnection by a plumber is additional.
Timeline: one to two days for most laundromats. A 40-machine facility is a full two-day job. Day one we disconnect and stage — moving machines off walls and grouping them near the exit. Day two we load and haul. This two-phase approach is faster than trying to disconnect and load simultaneously.
We handle laundromat closures across Oregon — Portland metro, Salem, Eugene, Bend. Schedule a walkthrough so we can count machines, assess access, and check for gas versus electric dryers. The quote depends entirely on machine count and access logistics.
