Towels?

[LettuceP]

Another thread about washing bedding just reminded me that I've been meaning to ask this.

What do you do about washing towels? Does each person in your family have their own towel and you wash them together? How often do you wash them?

We have clean towels in the airing cupboard and get one out as needed. For the kids I hang them on the radiator in their room after use and use them once more then put them in the washing basket. Me and DH try to do the same but usually end up slinging them in the basket after one use. Tbh it's only a few years ago that I learned you don't have to wash them after every use. They get washed with clothes, I don't seperate towels or bedding. I only seperate by colours and some things go on a hand wash. I do all washing at 40 degrees but I think I need to start separating things more and doing some washes at 30.

I'm trying to cut down on washing because I know I do way too much and we need to save money and I'd love to have less to do 😁
Also what about clothes? How many wears before you wash them. T-shirts, socks and pants are 1 wear then wash but what about jeans, trousers, jumpers, bras etc?

I never realised that people in the same family have their own allocated towels? we (me, dh & 2xdds) just grab the driest...washed every couple of days...

We wash them when they get dirty. DD's swimming towel gets washed with her kit once a week.

Yay another crazy laundry thread!

I still can’t believe people wash towels after one use. What a waste of time and energy. What do you think is on these towels apart from water off your clean body?

We have a towel each (there are 5 of us) and I randomly take the least freshest with me to use after the gym 3 times a week and DH uses the others after his twice weekly swim, after that they get washed so in that way the towels all get cycled through the wash once a week. I do about 7 loads a week normally, but only seperate by colour, the type (sports clothes/towels/bedding/babyclothes) all just bundled in according to colour.

Towels get washed once a week, bedding roughly every 2 weeks.

I wash everything at 40 and occasionally do the bedding and towels together on a 60, will also chuck in cotton underwear that's a similar colour to this wash too.

Pants, socks and sports stuff gets worn once, my OH's tops are only worn once as well. Everything else gets washed when its dirty/smells. If we wear any Pyjamas get changed every 3 days (ish).

Do maybe 2 loads a week for two of us. I tried separating into cotton and synthetics as well as light and dark but it took ages to have a full load! Now I just do lights, darks and bedding (which is light anyway).

Do other people use a different detergent for lights and darks? I use the same non-bio power for everything.

My clothes - all washed after one wear (except nightwear which has two/three wears) , my towels - washed with my clothes after a few uses. Everybody else (Dh and adult DC) they put their washing in the wash bin when they decide to - I will wash it with my stuff, but I don't chase them for it. Bedlinen weekly.

Apart from the environmental impact, I guess it's each to their own, but I do wonder how you find the time.

One load of whites, one load of darks, one load of pale and one of brights.

brights and white are usually only once per fortnight or even month.
Towels and bedding every 2 weeks.

Towels - two bathsheets between a family of four, washed weekly with bathmat. Hand towels changed midweek.

Sheets - sheets and pillowcases changed weekly. Duvet covers changed fortnightly. Pyjamas changed weekly with sheets

Clothes - trousers, skirts etc probably washed every 4-5 wears unless they are dirty (I am looking at you, DS!)

Tops and underwear - changed daily.

Teatowels and dishcloth - changed daily

I wash all the towels in the house together, generally after 2-3 goes. Tea towel, kitchen hand towel and flannels are changed daily though.

3 of us in the family,one of which is 18 months old.
I wash bedding 1x a week
Towels we each have 1 and its 1x a week wash
Ds wears 1-2 outfits a day,he is quite a messy child and usually do 2-3 washes a week just for him.

I wash tops after every wear, bottoms every 3-4 wears for both myself and dh.
Pjs after a few wears
Pants and socks after every wear
Gym clothes after every wear
I also wash cloth nappies 2-3x a week.

If I washed my towel after each use I would need 2 large bath towels a day . Honestly I have better things to do than wash that often.

Each person had their own towel and they get washed once a week.

For clothes that have been worn and not dirty but will be worn again soon they get put folded up on a chair.

I try to remember to change them once a week, white towels at 60. Own towels. Air over rail/heater after each use

Each have our own towels. Towels are washed in Fridays at 60. One hit wash a week is good for the washing machine.

I wear PJ for two nights in a row. But only for a few hours before sleep but I shower before bed not in the morning. Toddler does not wear PJs and I have no idea how often DH changes his PJs.

Towels are one time use then washed at 90 with bath mats once a week.

Why?

We have our own towels. OH and the guest ones are downstairs int he airing cupboard, DS has a hooded thing and bath sheet and my towels are in my bathroom. Used as and when but washed after a few uses.

DS's can usually be found on his bedroom floor

Washing at 90C is not necessary and very, very bad for the environment. I once heard a talk about hospital laundry and the speaker said that 60 C plus detergent was sufficient to kill bacteria.

This site is from a detergent manufacturer but it's still pretty good advice - especially the bit where it says that washing at 30 C not 40 C is better for clothes AND uses 40% less energy.
www.persil.com/uk/laundry/laundry-tips/washing-tips/temperature-use-wash-clothes-towels.html

I try to implement a system of DS (1) has a fresh towel after every bath and DH and I reuse our towels for maybe 3 showers.

In reality it often works like I dry off DS, his towel isn't dirty or even very wet what with him being a baby so then I use it after my shower then DH pinches it and I'm not using it after him so it goes into the wash then.

Towels are one time use then washed at 90 with bath mats once a week

Absolutely shocked at this ^ - so potentially for a family of four you are washing at least 28 towels a week at 90 degrees? nahhhhhh

Towels once a week washed at 60
Bedding once a week washed at 60
most clothing I wash after one wear - think I must be a sweaty betty - they really aren't pleasant to wear again! - depending on what it is washed at 40/60

bed clothes once a fortnight.Towels once a week, but we usually have two each on the go. Underwear and socks worn once. Work dresses 3 or 4 wears and jeans last a week. I only wear pyjamas as leisure wear and they get washed every few days when I have too much food spilt down the front. I never wash anything on more than 50 degrees, most is at 30 and line dry towels and bed linen if I can, otherwise over the bannister.

Washing towels after one use is outrageous. What a waste of time and resources!
Mine get washed about once a fortnight if that. I don't think anyone in my household smells as a result.

Family of five, three teens/tweens.

DH and I have our own towels. Kids don't care & share. Washed once a week at 40 or 60 degrees depending on my mood.

Bedding changed once a week, but kids were for two weeks before they became such stinky teens. Kids' washed at 40, ours at 60 due to dust allergy.

Pants, socks, tights, school shirts, DH shirts all washed after one wear. Kid's PJs normally washed once a week (swapped on the day they get clear sheets!) but if they or I notice anything unsavoury, or they spill breakfast on them they change as required. I change mine more often than that as I'm a middle aged woman and sometimes I get really sweaty in bed.

All clothes washed at 30 degrees apart from white school shirts washed at forty with added bleach.

I used to wash everything at 30 for environmental reasons but there are some concerns that machines don't get clean enough and you can get build up of things like fungal infections, so I make sure I do at least one hot wash - 60 not 90 - once a week.

I dry with a combo of tumble dryer, lakeland heated airer and hanging shirts to dry.

You are all so clean!! I do ours when I remember or have space in a washload and only at 40 degrees. Think I better do them tomorrow .. and sheets too, and laundry.

Come on, own up all you evil tumble dryer owners - 28 towels a week - you can't expect us to believe you can have this lot drying around inside a house. I shall find where you live and sabotage your tumble driers - that'll stop you and all your crazy washing. Cleanliness is not next to Godliness - that's a myth peddled by the soap industry.