LAUNDRY ADVICE

[moroni28]

Hi,

I'm just on here for some advice, my dear wife and I have been married a number 16 years and as you grow together you sometimes take on your partners preferences and sometime forget what your normal was. I have worked a full time Job since married and my wife has been a stay at home mum for the past ten years. My current Job role is quite demanding but I also get to work from home. I do my fair share of the house cleaning and do all the laundry except for the ironing. This is the point I need advice with. My DW throws EVERYTHING in the washing, we have 4 children and I understand if they have got dirty or food down them it go's in the wash, but if its clean and just worn once she has to have it washed. I have even occasionally pulled items out of the laundry basket that has only been tried on and not put back in the wardrobe. Towels are another one, growing up I could use a Towel at least two times before washing, we have heated towel racks and every time I put the towels back on the heater after one use she puts it in the washing pile, no one can use a towel more than once. I just feel overwhelmed with the piles that constantly build up. Last year I bought two 9kg washing machines and two 10kg dryers for the laundry room. Every time I walk past the laundry room and see the machines have stopped I put the next load on. The biggest problem is I just don't have time to do the Ironing and DW insists that everything be ironed before going away, we constantly have a huge pile of ironing in the lounge, I am contemplating getting an ironing lady but I do feel a little resentment in this, my wife has a lot more social time than I have and I just need to know am I being unreasonable, is this normal with other families.

how can she have more social life when she does so much washing and ironing.
i agree with you some stuff can be used more before being put to wash.
its so unenvironmental, too.

You only use towels twice?!

and not all stuff need ironing.

You only use towels twice

It won't be long before someone comes along and asks 'You use towels twice'?

If your wife wants everything washing after every time it's been worn, why doesn't she do it as you work FT and she's a SAHM?

Apart from being an environmental disaster, she might realise what a huge unnecessary job she's creating.

My DS used to throw everything in the laundry, I would check it over, fold it and stick it in with the clean folded laundry. Why iron everything if it comes out of the tumbler hot normally folding a lot of it works fine.

I would go on strike and let it pile up.

You are right that a number of items can be used or worn several times before needing washed, unless food etc. has been dropped down them. If your jeans and jumper are still clean they can be worn again the next day. Towels can be used at least twice.

Ironing? What's that? Nothing gets ironed in this house. Wash it, dry it, fold it or hang it carefully and then just put it away. In fact, I'm not sure where my iron even is these days.

You're not being serious are you OP?

Suggest DW do the ironing?
She is SAHM and you work FT and do all the laundry and some house cleaning.

My goodness, your DW would have a fit of the vapours if she heard my washing routine.

That amount is simply ridiculous, bad for the environment and a waste of money, tell her to stop being so silly as to wash perfectly clean clothes, is there a mental health issue you haven't included?

This can't be real. Two washing machines and two dryers!

Extremely wasteful and unnecessary.

Cease doing it would be my advice.

how can she have more social life when she does so much washing and ironing.

OP is a he and he does all the washing and ironing.

Your electric bill must be crazy??

I'm laughing here at the towels being washed so much ... once or twice? More like wash once or twice a month here!

I get helping out but I have no idea why you're doing all the laundry when you have 2 washing machines and 2 dryers and a partner at home!! You need to talk to her!

If things have been in the dryer, just fold and hang, no need to iron.
But she is creating far too much laundry, that is ridiculous.

If she wants it ironed she will iron it. Her wanting something done doesn’t mean you have to do it OP.

I use towels once (shoot me now I’ve had this discussion a million times on MN- water off a ducks back- my overall eco credentials are better than most MNers when we’ve discussed it) but I don't care if someone else wants to use theirs a million times. Tell her to leave your towel exactly where you’ve left it.

18kg (at least) worth of laundry a day though? That’s bonkers. I know there are 6 of you but that’s a huge amount.

It's ridiculous!! Who uses a towel once?! Once a week I wash mine! I mean its clean water being dried straight away on a heated rack 🤷🏻‍♀️ irons are for shirts only, wash, shake, hang, fold is all it needs. Massively wasteful and not very environmentally friendly at all.

I think if it’s your wife who wants all that washing and ironing doing, she can do it herself.

It certainly isn’t normal in my house or amongst my family and friends to wash towels after one use, or to wash every item of clothing after one wear.

She's being bloody ridiculous

I also have 4 children and 1 normal size machine and 1 tumble dryer - I do not put a wash on every day

Why don't you leave the laundry to your DW and do some other tasks instead. As. SAHM myself I'm happy with any task DP is willing to take on, any task he does is one less I have to do.

I very rarely wear an item more than once before washing. Occasionally might wear jeans twice but not often. And I wash towels after every use. In a household of two adults and two nearly adult kids. I think if we had our "own" sets of towels of different colours I'd probably use more than once but as we don't, I'd rather wash each time and not have towels being hung to dry and risk using someone else's.

@maloofhoof what do you think is going to happen if you use someone else's towel?!

@inwood I just don't like the idea of drying myself on the same towel as someone else, whether they're my family or not. I don't think it's hygienic to do so.

Oh here we go. [grim]

Freudian slip right there!