Laundry: the chore that never ends!

  • Thread starter Thread starter prolifewife
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
P

prolifewife

Guest
It seems like all I do is laundry. Daily. If I manage to not have laundry one day, then I have plenty to fold from previous days. We only have the two of us and the dogs. I can’t imagine what its going to be like with kids. Am I doing something wrong? :o Tell me about the laundry situation at your house.

How many people are in your family?

Do you have pets?

How many loads do you do a week/day?

What type of washer and/or dryer do you have?

What (if anything) has helped you cut back the number of loads?
 
I HATE laundry! Probably my least favorite chore. I always joke that when I win the lottery, the first thing I’m doing is hiring a laundress :).

I have made it a bit more tolerable. I finally have forced myself to fold it right away when it comes out of the dryer and then put it into the appropriate laundry baskets. DH and DS rarely bring them upstairs but I decided if they don’t mind going down in the basement every morning, who am I to care?

I also really only do it once a week - or over both weekend days. The washer / dryer may run like crazy for a solid day but for that glorious moment, it is DONE! If you’re constantly throwing a load or two in a night, there’s never that satisfaction of getting the job done.

There are 3 people (2 adults, 1 teenage boy) in my house. I probably do 8 - 10 loads a week. When DS heads to college next year, it won’t cut the number down by much because I super sort so I’ll still have many of the same loads, just smaller versions.

I just love it :eek: when DD comes home from college and brings her stuff too! Her dryer was broke before Christmas so I got one heck of a present when she came back. Actually, everyone does help by at least transferring loads from washer to dryer and starting the next. I’m in charge of sorting (because remember, I’m a bit obsessed over what gets washed together)

Did I tell you that I want to hire a laundress? :cool:

Kris
 
I hate doing laundry but we only do it once every week- 10 days or so because we live in a high rise with coin laundry. Usually we have 4-5 loads by the time we get it all down there.
Doing laundry annoys me because my toddler has to come with me. When I was less pregnant I’d just tie him to my back but now it gives me a really sore back to try and carry 30lbs of toddler on my back and a giant hamper of laundry 😛 So I grab my basket, give toddler the laundry soap and hope he follows me. If so, great all I have to do is keep him from opening all the dryers when we get there. If not, then it gets hairy. I nearly lost him in the elevator once (the doors were closing with my baby inside! :eek:) It’s not an uncommon sight to see me kicking the basket down the hall, runaway toddler in arms. Anyways the good news is we get 5 loads washed and dried all at once and then I have about an hour’s foldathon and we’re good for another week or so.

We have 2 adults and one toddler. And one cat.
DH and I rewear our clothes until they get dirty or smelly (except underwear obviously). We reuse our towels a few times. We only change the sheets every couple of weeks unless it becomes necessary sooner. DS’s clothes can’t often be reworn cause he is messy. Right now I’m outgrowing my xsmall mat pants so I haven’t dared to wash them in about 2 weeks :o
 
prolifewife said:
It seems like all I do is laundry. Daily. If I manage to not have laundry one day, then I have plenty to fold from previous days. We only have the two of us and the dogs. I can’t imagine what its going to be like with kids. Am I doing something wrong? :o Tell me about the laundry situation at your house.

How many people are in your family?

Do you have pets?

How many loads do you do a week/day?

What type of washer and/or dryer do you have?

What (if anything) has helped you cut back the number of loads?
Click to expand...
2 people in my family

No pets anymore

I do about 3 loads every week and a half; hubby does 1, sometimes 2. He does the whites.

I have a HE front loader, extra large capacity so I can do blankets, quilts, etc., and I can wait and do larger loads.We reuse towels and rewear clothes that aren’t soiled or smelly (except undies). I don’t like to wash my clothes too much, it wears them out. This washer was one of the best purchases I ever made, my water bill is down at least $20 a month, and very little detergent and laundry products have to be used. It should pay for itself in a few years. The dryer is of the same type, high efficiency, and should do the same, but I line dry jeans and sweaters,etc.

When I had kids at home, the laundry was NEVER completely done.
 
2 adults, 1 teenager, 2 cats, 1 dog. And at least one load a day!

The up side is DH’s uniforms are laundered by his employer. I have to wash my own, but it’s not that bad. When DH worked construction, I had to wash his laundry every other day!

Towels are the ones that pile up… with daily showering and kitchen dishtowels (no dishwasher, just the ones God gave us!) it’s every third day for towels. Sheets and the covers we throw over the furniture to keep the cat hair under control, once a week.

The really good thing is DH usually throws a load of laundry in the washer before he leaves for work in the a.m. DS switches it out to the dryer when he gets up and either folds it or hangs it up or leaves it for me (which he does when it’s whites… he’d rather Mom take care of her own “fine washables”!) All in all a good system!

Three chores that never run out… dishes, laundry and taking out the trash!
 
My husband does our laundry (even while we are separated, LOL!) He loves it and won’t let me help!!! It’s “cathartic.” 👍

How many people are in your family?
Just the two of us.

Do you have pets?
No pets!

How many loads do you do a week/day?
3 - 5.

What type of washer and/or dryer do you have?
Samsung HE Washer and Dryer

What (if anything) has helped you cut back the number of loads?

Husband’s laundry secrets: throw a load in the washer first thing in the morning, transfer it to the dryer right before he leaves for work, sort it right in front of the TV in the evening.

Also, we always take off our clothes (and socks) right-side-out. I put my delicates in a mesh laundry bag so they can be washed along with other loads of similar colors, instead of their own load. Once something has been washed a few times to test color fastness, we wash “similar” colors together, even if they’re not THAT similar. Also, we don’t wash everything every time we wear it. Pants and shirts get washed every 7 wears or so. Underwear and socks are small (and we both have plenty of them) so we only have to wash them once or twice a month.
 
How many people are in your family? 5: me and 4 kids

Do you have pets? No

How many loads do you do a week/day? 6 or 7 loads per week

What type of washer and/or dryer do you have? Too lazy to go and look 😛

What (if anything) has helped you cut back the number of loads? Got rid of 75% of our clothes!!! We moved 2 months ago to a much smaller apartment than our previous home. The kids each get about a 4-foot long closet rack, and a box for their pants and shorts. Their socks and underwear go into a separate box and they can grab their own stuff each morning.

With this new system, I do 2 loads every-other day, and am able to fold/hang and put away immediately. SUCH a blessing to never be behind on laundry. But seriously, the amount of clothes we had before…well, there was no way I could have ever been caught up.

Edited to add: we usually wear each item only once, the exception being pajamas, which are washed 2ce/week. Bedsheets/linens are washed every other week or so.
 
prolifewife said:
It seems like all I do is laundry. Daily. If I manage to not have laundry one day, then I have plenty to fold from previous days. We only have the two of us and the dogs. I can’t imagine what its going to be like with kids. Am I doing something wrong? :o Tell me about the laundry situation at your house.

How many people are in your family?

Two

Do you have pets?

Four large house dogs, plus I’m made to babysit my brother’s extra-extra large dog three days a week. And livestock, which are not pets but contribute to the laundry for sure.

How many loads do you do a week/day?

**With all the outside chores I do, I could get away with doing a load every other day. maybe every two days.

But when it’s raining two to four inches of rain at a time :rolleyes: I get mud splashed all over me. I also use ‘dog towels’ and on a very bad day, I may do two loads of those a day. When it’s more dry out I can get away with doing one load of those towels a week. My yard for the past week looks like there are small ponds all over it :confused: Honestly, everything is drinking out of ponds in my yard and in the field. I haven’t had to fill any water buckets. My brother’s canoe is completely filled with rain water. Convenient, huh? 😃

That said, I’m not sure why you have so much laundry because if it weren’t for the chores and getting all mucked up while doing them, I probably could do one or two a week. Are you absolutely positive that you don’t like doing laundry? 😛 **

What type of washer and/or dryer do you have?

The dryer is an Amana, the washer is a whirlpool.

What (if anything) has helped you cut back the number of loads?
Click to expand...
**Consolidating loads. Consolidating normal clothes is easy. But it’s hard sometimes to consolidate because ‘chore clothes’ get all mucked up and smelly. 😊 And if they’re wet from the rain, you need to do something with them or they’ll mold.

When it’s raining buckets, I need to wash the dog towels, or it’ll be a big mess. I’ve had to throw them in twice in a day a few times because it was just that wet out.

But you don’t have all those problems do you? 😛 Why are you doing so much laundry? **
 
I don’t mind laundry so much, but I do hate having to drag my stuff outside and downstairs in order to get to the laundry room. I live in a condo complex in a building of four townhouses, and we have a laundry room with coin-operated machines in the basement. It is no fun dealing with the steep stairwell even in good weather, but try it in the wintertime (in Michigan), with bad knees, and your arms full! :mad: Even so, it’s better than having to drive to the laundromat, I guess…

It’s just myself and two cats, but I still end up with about 3 loads per week, and I do them all at once unless one of the cats barfs on the bedspread or something.:doh2: My laundry chores really decreased when I lost my “real” job; now I only work a couple of days a week through a temp agency and I can wear casual clothes where I am assigned. I don’t use a fresh bath towel every day, and I change the sheets once a week unless they need it more often. I put delicates into a mesh bag and toss 'em in with the regular wash, and only hand-wash stuff that really needs gentle treatment. I don’t usually buy things that have to be dry-cleaned.

One thing that irks me is when someone “hogs” the two best dryers and then leaves their stuff unattended for hours. One time somebody did this, and someone else came along and took their clothes. I don’t know if they ever got them back, but there was a note on the dryer begging for their stuff to be returned. I’ll bet they never left their clothes unattended after that!

The only time I ever had my own washer and dryer was when I lived in a mobile home years ago. I worked third shift, so I would throw a load into the washer when I went to bed in the morning, and then toss it in the dryer when I got up in the afternoon, and by the time I had my shower and my coffee and was awake enough to know the difference, my laundry was dry. 🙂
 
How many people are in your family? 4 of us hubby, me and 2 daughters ages 6 and 9

Do you have pets? 1 little wittle dog that has a sweater and a blanket

How many loads do you do a week/day? due to me wearing scrubs(im in school full time to be a medical lab tech) i have to do laundry mondays, wednesdays and fridays.

What type of washer and/or dryer do you have? ummmm i dont wanna get up and look but its a kenmoore front loader HE

What (if anything) has helped you cut back the number of loads? Having scheduled days
 
How many people are in your family? 5

Do you have pets? Yes, but the dog doesn’t wear many clothes:)

How many loads do you do a week/day? depends on the week. I usually do it all over 2 days per week, rather than daily.

What type of washer and/or dryer do you have? Maytag netune, pretty new.

What (if anything) has helped you cut back the number of loads? I bought a big bath wrap for every member of the family and put a hook on each bedroom door. Everyone uses their own personal towel over and over, hanging it up between uses so it doesn’t get smelly from lying on the floor. It has cut down my laundry considerably. Towels take a lot of space in a load, and take a longer time to dry. I wash them once a week, although I once used my towel for 3 weeks straight, just to see how long I can go. It was quite fine.
😉
 
spent a few week sin the summer with DD who has 4 kids, no infants, and the largest front loader-dryer combo they sell, and it literally runs all day. I don’t know how she keeps up since I did laundry most of the time I was there.

they have uniforms for school so I hope that helps

there are 2 of us, but MIL is visiting and she does laundry daily so it keeps up.

I have a load of rags and towels every other day–we use cheap washclothes and dish towels instead of paper napkins and towels to that adds up.

we have a small front loader and matching dryer because water conservation is a big issue here. It uses less than half the water, and about 1/3 less electricity for a load to wash and dry than the conventional appliances this combo replaced.

DH does his own laundry once a week while I am gone, I do the sheets and towels on my day off, and my personal laundry Sat. pm after work.

I seem to be dribbling food lately and end up washing tops worn to work after 1 or at the most 2 wearings, new washer is much gentler on clothes, they stay looking better longer and wear better, and color does not fade as fast

I use half the recommended amount of detergent, and white vinegar instead of fabric softener, which I am allergic to.

each of us has a load of whites, a load of darks and a mixed load each week of our own clothes. loads are the size of the smaller round laundry baskets

I pretreat with a stick type product when I remove an item and put it in the hamper

pants, skirts, dresses I can wear 3-5 times before they need cleaning. I check for stains, us a dry stain remover and a dryer dry cleaning sheet for dresses that need it, seldom go to a commercial dry cleaner.
 
We are a family of 5 and have developed survival secrets.
  1. Huge front loading washer. Pricey, but helpful. If money is tight, skip the matching dryer and get a regular 7 CF dryer. No drop in performance and half the price!
  2. Towels get used for a week! You need enough towel bars to spread them out so they dry quickly and don’t get musty.
  3. Bed sheets go 2 weeks. Shuttup, they go longer in Europe… 😊
  4. Pants, sweaters and sweatshirts are washed only when visually or olfactorily needed (i.e. look/sniff test). ALWAYS wear a teeshirt under the sweater/sweatshirt to make this work.
  5. PJ’s are good for a week. Store under pillow by day.
Obey the above and cut your work in half at least.
 
I see I have not been totally honest
DH hangs or folds his clothes right away
I hang up what is pp like pants and tops, iron once a month (in a good month) and for the rest, live out of the basket
 
i do laundry Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday. I used to do it every day but I made myself schedule cleaning tasks, to keep my sanity. There are four of us. I have a top loading extra big washer and extra big dryer.

The days I do laundry, I do it from start to finish, including fold and put away. 12 yr old helps a lot with this chore.

On those days I do about 4 loads, plus more if there are comforters to wash (which there always are).

I have also saved some on energy this way, because I always have extra large full loads, so I’m not running the washer more for smaller loads.

I also saved my sanity by having a sock and bra system. There are two large mesh zipper topped laundry bags hanging next to the laundry chute, one for all socks and one for all bras, which must be fastened, before entering the bag. On laundry day I gather both bags and throw them right in the wash and dryer. No sorting or loosing of socks here. Amen.
 
3 adults, 2 med size inside dogs.

Regular old washer, free from freecycle.

We do not do a load a day. Each day we each wear a one set of clothes - DH and I each change out of work clothes into “lounge pants/t-shirts” in the evening, but, we will wear that same pair of lounge pants for several days.

We hang our towels and use them more than once.

Dogs don’t wear clothes, so, they do not generate laundry 😃
 
I must admit, I don’t mind doing laundry (although folding socks is another matter altogether 😛 ). In fact, it’s one of my “favorite” chores.

How many people are in your family? 2 parents, 4 “boys” (#1 ds is an adult)

Do you have pets? 3 cats

How many loads do you do a week/day? A minimum of 6 (2 dark/cold, 1 dark/warm, 1 white/warm, 2 loads of towels); more if I need to wash sheets or football uniforms.

What type of washer and/or dryer do you have? Whirlpool Ultimate Care washing machine (super capacity) and a basic Whirlpool Dryer.

What (if anything) has helped you cut back the number of loads? I only wash the sheets on an “as needed” basis and I only wash an article of clothing if it’s dirty, or smelly.

MadameButterfly
 
As a single person I do about 6 loads a week and that includes reusing towels and rewearing some clothes. I go the gym and change socks about 3 times a day (one in the morning, work and I sleep with socks on) so that’s probably 2 loads worth right there. I’ve always wondered what people with kids do it must be never ending as the OP said. I have my own washer and dryer so I can only do a load at a time. I don’t like the creepy feel of the local laundermats so I guess I’m stuck. :rolleyes:
 
2 adults, 3 teens, 1 dog, 3 cats…

I PERSONALLY do about 2-3 loads a week, always on Sunday afternoon, laundry day. Each of my sons does another 1-2 loads per week. They wash their own clothes and own towels.

More often than not, we live out of laundry baskets…who has TIME to fold laundry???

We have a GE top loader without a center agitator. I love it.
 
Here at college sometimes it seems like laundry is the chore that never begins, either. 😃

How many people are in your family? Well, there are eleven of us when I’m home. But at uni it’s just me.

Do you have pets? Not with me, no.

How many loads do you do a week/day? I do three loads a weeks: load of darks, load of whites, and towels/sheets.

What type of washer and/or dryer do you have? The most ridiculously lame washer/dryer known to mankind. That costs $2-$3 a cycle.

**What (if anything) has helped you cut back the number of loads? ** Leaving home!!! This definitely cut down on my laundry workload!! At home we run at the MINIMUM 4-5 loads of laundry a day. Yes, a day. With 9 children, four of whom are under the age of 8, five dogs, four cats, and a farm, things get moved into the “must-wash-NOW” category quite swiftly.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top