How do launderettes justify their prices?

[EachandEveryone]

Ive just gone to ours only one machine working out of six. It cost £6 a wash and the drawers are full of old scummy powder. By the time ive finished it will be £10 at least. Not much more to buy a new quilt. Theres families in there drying washing and its eating their coins. Its not like the old days when there was someone onsite and i understand we all have machines now but I dont understand why they cant make them a better experience or just close it down.

What’s your extra £4 for?

The drier thats my limit

I imagine they have massive water and electricity bills. I used to love a trip to the launderette, very relaxing watching those big driers.

It's cheap

The machines are huge and industrial so they only take 45 minutes ish to do a wash

I can get 2/3 household loads in one - cheaper than a home washing machine

It depends on where you are.

I've seen very fancy ones in London, in areas full of tiny flats where fitting in a washing machine would be laughable.

I've seen grimmer ones in areas with loads of bedsits/HMOs etc. and I've seen loads in between.

They are expensive to run I guess, and closing them down wouldn't help anyone.

Yes it would be if any of them were working!

You cant get three washes in one drum unless ypu choose the £8 option. Ive left mine in there as theres nowhere to sit. I remember in the 70’s it was great all your mums friends would be there and we all pushed the big pram home again.

£3 a wash in the smaller of the 2 sizes of machine (still double the size of a normal domestic machine) £4.40 in the big inderstral ones run cicle about 45 minutes

20p for a cup of powder

Its the dryers i find expemsive realistically £2 for 30 minutes to get them dry

Its a life saver for me.

Water on a meter, building rent, electricity, insurance, cost of machines plus maintenance/repairs.

Massive electricity and water bills , the machines are £6k each at least . It should be clean though !

those commercial washer use shitloadsof water and electricity. that's the only way you can do a wash incl. prewash in 25 min. the dryers are expensive too, they need to be vented and serviced often so they don't become a fire risk.

When if have been o the lauderette there has always been someone on site the machines are usually 4x and sometimes 5x the size of your average washing machine,I only use them i f my washing machine breaks down but you can do a week's worth of washing in one go.

My local ones are always packed, so they must be doing something right. It's about £6 a wash but the machines are huge - can take a double duvet which I certainly can't in my 9kg home machine.

As a pp said, it depends on your area. We live in a place with lots of apartments aimed at young professionals and semi serviced student accommodation. Our local launderette is clean, well equipped and offers a very reasonable 24 hour service wash facility. When I lived in the suburbs surrounded by family homes where everyone did their own washing in Bosches, the launderette was piss poor because it was a mark of shame to be using it and they didn't give a shit.