My cellar is not bad for damp as cellars go. It doesn't actually smell damp, but it certainly wouldn't be fun to use it as habitable space. It currently houses a wine collction, my tools and a knackered old freezer. Some of the tools which I leave hanging on nails on the wall have eventually developed a thin smattering of rust, so there clearly is some dampness in the air. (I put a bit of WD40 on the vulnerable ones now).
My grand plan is to move the washing machine and tumble dryer down there and put them next to the freezer (plumbing and drainage is not a problem). I'm planning on cleaning up the bit around the washing area in case clothes get dropped (maybe some cheap ceramic floor tiles on the concrete floor, which has a damp-proof membrane beneath it, and some limewash on the walls), but I don't want to go to the expense of tanking it, it's only a utility room after all.
What I'm wondering is, does anyone think that the dampness in the air will bugger up the machines? The freezer has been chugging away quite happily for a couple of years down there, and I would have thought washing machines and dryers are designed to withstand a certain amount of dampness - they spend their time full of wet washing and they often go in garages and outbuildings after all. In fact maybe the warmth put out by the tumble dryer might help to keep the place a bit dryer (although it might not be so good for the wine). Are there vital bits of the machines which will rust and seize up in damp air?
Any opinions?