Washing bathroom mats in the washing machine

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Does anyone here wash bathroom mats in the washing machine?

I came across an article saying it's bad for the washing machine because bathroom mats can absorb a lot of water and they get heavy and the spin in the washing machine and the heaviness of a wet bathroom mat is going to wear down the machine faster.

My mother is paranoid about germs and washes mats nearly every week when I think maybe once or twice a month would be more than enough.

I wash 3 a week,
one in the girls bathroom and two in the family bathroom, they’re thinner than the bulky sort though; more like a chunky hand towel.
absolutely fine.
I have washed duvets in my machine and it’s all been okay. We do tend to replace the washing machine ever 5-6 years so perhaps it’s overused but we’re a family of 5 and there are often 6 of us here, 3 of us play a lot of sport/do lots of exercise so the machine is on twice a day - I don’t begrudge getting a new washing machine, we use it loads.

Mine go in every other day. Never had an issue but they don't go in wet.

How else would you wash them? 😵‍💫 genuinely coming up blank. Never crossed my mind not to put them in the machine, never had a problem.

They are wet once they have been through the wash and rinse cycle and enter the spin cycle though?

I have a heavy one, I put it on the lowest spin speed setting and my machine copes with it. If I forget to adjust the spin speed my machine beeps at me and won't continue with the spin cycle.

Mine are just like thicker towels, in fact if I'm behind with the washing I'll just put a hand towel down.

Of COURSE they go in the machine. But, as bathmats do tend to be heavier so they do absorb more water in the machine, making them heavier during the rinse/spin cycle, I am careful not to overload the machine when washing bathmats. Or large towels for that matter.

And as they ARE cotton and do absorb a lot of water, they absolutely should be done on a cotton cycle as that tells the machine that the items inside the machine are more likely to be heavy and that cycle is specifically designed for heavier loads.

I did wash mine once in the washing machine and it broke down. The drum had fallen off its axis or something. I got it fixed, but now anything like that I take to the laundrette to do.

Bath mats and big towels, I just change the spin speed to the lowest possible. Then give another separate spin at higher speed. This works for me, and I don't get the error messages any more.

Had terrible trouble with bath mats not spinning dry always done them with the towels. Machine man said not good for 5he machine. Threw them all away and got M&S quick dry ones. Wonderful no problems wash the mat each week on the towel wash. I must admit sometimes I think shall I bother but still do it

Fingers 🤞 I’m not tempting fate by saying it but my washing machine is 15 years old and it’s never occurred to me that bath mats couldn’t go in it. I do with a couple of towels to balance the load.

I wash mine in the washing machine and my machine is almost 20 years old and still working perfectly.
The article doesn't make sense because machines have different weight loads, for example some may be a 6kg weight, some a 10kg weight etc.
Plus, you may wash say three bath towels together, weight for weight, that's going to weigh around the same as a heavy bathmat once they get wet.
Guaranteed the article was sponsored by a washing machine manufacturer.

The hotel style towelling ones go in with the towels. The rubber backed bath rug goes in the machine but air dried.

Yes, though it tends to be after they have had a chance to dry from use in the morning.

My nearest laundrette is 30 miles away, and I'm not washing them by hand! So, genuinely, what would be the alternative to the washing machine?