To ask how you manage to stay on top of the laundry pile

[Cigna]

Our family has just expanded from 5 to 6 (whoohoo) and while it is mostly wonderful, I can already see that we have difficulties with the increased amount of laundry. We are not extreme in washing (towels last one week, as does bedding- clearly as long as no accidents happened), but we easily have 8-10 full loads every week. With both of us working full time (am now on leave though) we used to do all of the loads in the weekend with me sorting and folding in front of tv on Sunday. This seems no longer feasible as we cannot spent the whole weekend moving laundry from the washing machine to the dryer etc. How do other (big) families manage to stay on top? Kids are too small to help and especially the sorting per kid takes a lot of time. Any tips are gratefully received!

Family of 6 , at least one load a day plus all towels and bedding once a week. I have a 10kg washing machine and a tumbler dryer. I also keep an airer in the utility room for items I don't want to tumble dry. Once dry I put straight away as I iron as I go along

I feel your pain. Family of 5 (but two delayed bedwetters) - have been known to have 10-16 sheets and duvets to wash a week - fortunately one is now only wetting about once a week. Seem to drown in washing. Total convert to "Sockies" for keeping socks paired throughout the washing and drying process - with a minimum of 35 pairs per week, we only have a handful of odd ones (all ones that have appeared singly in the washing basket).

Family of three but due to multiple sport/gym commitments the laundry is never ending. I do at least one if not two loads a day. First one goes on at 7am then straight into the dryer. Second one goes on after dinner and clothes dried before bed. Only iron shirts then as and when needed. The rest is folded up and put away. Wash bedding once a week and again because of sports stuff towels virtually every day or every other day.

Did you do it all at the weekend? Why? None mid week? I do s load every 2-3 days. Your are probably best doing a load of very other day?

game changers for me:

Large drum washer

Pretty much everything on short cycle (ours is 30mins) with 'dettol laundry' instead of fabric conditioner, so 2 birds etc.

DH does most of the washing & he tends to wash our stuff by person, which makes sorting easier, and ironing is done by the wearer.

Wash every day. kids put it there own clothes away. Put on line before work or tumble dry.
it's relentless..

I generally do a load a day unless I'm working. No drier here so I use airers and a dehumidifier on wet days or out on the line if it's fine.
If it's a good drying day I do as much of the laundry as possible - bedding, towels, throws, cushion covers - you name it, it gets washed while the weather's good.

Family of 6 here. I do a load every day, 2 on days where I’m doing bedding or towels.

Having a machine with a large capacity helps, I can easily get te

Bugger!

I can easily get two single beds worth of bedding in mine for example.

Dry stuff on hangers, only iron DH work stuff, some of my work stuff, school uniform and the occasional cotton dress/shirt for DC. I can get away with 30-45 minutes of ironing twice a week.

Congratulations on the new addition!

Also put a load in over night on the timer so it finishes as I get up. Either goes outside or on an airer by a sunny window.

Family of 5. Had two in full time cloth at one point (about a year). Triple fabric laundry sorter for darks, whites and mixed coloureds. Each bag is one load. Daily wash and dry on line or tumble dryer. Washer goes on when we get up and I'm putting kettle on, move to dryer before leave the house. Put dryer on once I go up to bath kids and put to bed. Empty dryer in front of tv later on. Put into each persons pile, roll socks etc. All carried upstairs and put away while children asleep (I'm a room ninja!). OH puts his own away (hardly ever that night...). If not done in the morning I put them in the bottom of his wardrobe so I don't have to look at them. Fresh pj's every day, towels once a week unless needed to be changed earlier and bedding once a fortnight. Bedding is a weekend task. I never put washer or dryer on when I'm asleep. Family members who are firefighters have made sure I know not to do that!

Family of 4 . I do 2 loads of clothes and face towels etc every morning before work ( 20 mins each ) and have 2 tumble dryers so it is all dry when I come home . Bath towels & bedding go through the system on Saturday's . Never do any on Sunday's .

Ah pookie tbh I was thinking to myself that if anything needs drying quickly, I'd bung it on the radiator for an hour or two...I didn't even think about not having the radiator 🤦🏻‍♀️

Family of 6 here too, DC aged 4 to 13. We have 2 washing machines plumbed in side by side. One dryer but mostly I put stuff on the line outside or a pulleymaid contraption in a sunny but unheated conservatory. On dry sunny days from spring to autumn, I can easily get 6 washloads washed and dried in a day. Winter is a struggle getting stuff dried before the next load but we manage.
Couldn't you get your DC to help with the sorting, OP? Once the washing is dry, the 4 year old often helps me sort it into 6 piles. Sorting 6 people's socks is the most tedious job ever, especially when some of them are similar, but she seems to enjoy it!

In your situation I'd put a load on overnight every day, and a couple extra at the weekend. If you don't have time to deal with it in the morning, set the timer so it's finished when you get back from work.

Easier for us as there are only 4 of us, but I honestly don't find it difficult to keep on top of it. We mostly use the tumble drier and don't iron - apart from dh doing his own shirts.

Oh I should add that anything that needs ironing gets hung together and we have a lovely cleaning lady who irons half hour or so a week. That helps a lot

Three young kids here (5, 3 &1) and I never, ever get behind on the washing. It doesn't matter what else is going on , a load of washing gets put on first thing in the morning and either hung out (if dry) or put in the dryer as soon as its washed. If you get behind it builds and builds. I do around 9 washes a week. One each day and two on one day in the week and two on Saturday or Sunday (both if I'm doing coats etc). As soon as there is enough to do a full wash it gets put in the machine. I fold it all and put it away before I go to bed each evening. Its such a chore but better than it building up. I'm quite military with the washing tbh but it works

Oh, and I do not iron...ever. Well, I may iron a shirt for a special occasion for dh or ds. And our clothes are not creased, they really aren't. I make a point of buying clothes that don't crease super easy. I straighten out things that go on the line before they are hung and I fold stuff from the dryer as soon as its done so it doesn't sit and crease. If I can't fold it straight away I give it a 15 minute blast in the dryer then fold it.

I use multiple baskets.
I do a load as soon as I get up and then try to hang it out when I get back from the school run, the baby is usually napping and the toddler "helps."

We have a huge rotary dryer with four sections. I try to put mine and dh clothes on one section and then one each for each of the kids. Towels etc go wherever there's space. Then when I take it down it gets folded and straight into separate piles for putting away.

How old are your kids?

3/4 isn't too small to pair socks, pick out their clothes into a pile etc.

Timer on every night, hang load before school run, return from work tumble to finish off and put away.
I read on here I think about a basket for each person so everyone takes their clean laundry to their wardrobe and I put away when I get the kids outfits for the next day. Except dh who I put on his side of the bed so he has no choice but to put his away each night

It all goes to pot when we have a busy weekend tho and there's more than usual!

My family's no where as big as yours, but do at least one wash a day, just to stop it building up and becoming unmanageable

I also sort and put away each wash as it is dry, each DC is then responsible for putting their own laundry away in drawers, cupboards. Even 4yr old can manage that.

Have one small hamper & wash whenever it gets full. Sheets & towels at the weekend.

In the summer I peg out in the evening after work.

I put away every day too and don’t buy anything that needs to be ironed for regular wear

It’s swimming training that overloads my washing, endless towels and damp uniform that can’t be worn again.

However microfibre towels have made it a lot easier, they are great for gym/swim/sports heavy families. Much easier to wash and dry.

I put everything out on the line or on a heated airer until it’s as dry as possible, if needed I’ll put it in the tumble drier for 15 mins.

In fact I’ve just noticed spots of rain on the window, must get my current lines of washing in!!!