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AIBU?

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Original poster

To massively reduce how often I wash clothes?

295 replies

MyOtherProfile · 22/02/2020 11:38

I'm always thinking of ways to lessen our impact on the planet and have recently started wearing clothes many more times than I used to. Previously I would wear things probably twice (undies excepted!) before washing but I've been thinking that even that might be too much. I look for dirt and I smell check but now I'm only washing clothes when they fail either of those checks. I'm now on the 5th day of the top I'm wearing (not consecutive so nobody would know). Sid anyone else doing this? I don't really want to hear from people who are just going to say ewww I have to wash clothes after every wear.

OP posts:
Ilovesausages · 22/02/2020 15:44

I also try and do this. I wish my DH would too!

I can wear a top for 5 days and it is still fine. I do wash it then though. I wear my jeans for ages.

Pants and socks always washed daily though.

UntamedWisteria · 22/02/2020 15:44

Well done OP, I wish more people were like you.

Flowers
Sofonisba · 22/02/2020 15:50

I rarely sweated in England. It's cold as F most of the year.

Underwear I throw in the laundry bin after one wear.

T-shirts and other tops, go back in the cupboard unless I sweated that day or got dirty in some way. I don't count how many times I wear them, I just don't put them out to wash unless they're dirty. That could be after one wear or 5 or 10, etc.

Jumpers and other cold-weather clothes are the same, except they get put out to wash even less often because if it's cold, I won't be sweating. And you're always wearing other layers under them anyway.

Jeans and bottoms, same as jumpers. Washed just every now and then when need be. That's not often though.

All in all the bin gets full every 7-10 days I guess. Then I do a wash. DH does the same with his and I do the same with one in the kids room.

StinkyWizleteets · 22/02/2020 15:56

My armpits wouldn’t allow me to wear the same top for 2 days let alone 5 but I will wear jeans and a jumper until They’re either dirty or walking away on their own.

fussychica · 22/02/2020 15:58

Pants, sportswear and socks after each wear
Bras and pjs usually 3/4 wears
Tops, dresses 1- 3 wears. Sniff tested after each wearSmile
Trousers/jeans weekly though if I travelled on public transport it would definitely be more often
Cardigans/skirts etc when required
Towels at least weekly
Bedding weekly in summer, fortnightly in winter but pillowcases weekly or more as DH has a sweaty headGrin

Quicklittlenamechange · 22/02/2020 16:00

I have to wear a clean uniform daily, its the policy.
I wear Pjs as soon as I get in and rarely wear proper clothes in the week so I dont have a laundry mountain anyway.
Putting worn clothes back into a wardobe is rank and a quick way to get a moth invasion.
My parents always wear clothes several times, they stink and also had a huge moth invasion.
You get pollutants/bacteria/viruses on your clothes, its not so much "dirt" as it was in the past when people had manual jobs.

Baaaahhhhh · 22/02/2020 16:07

Putting worn clothes back into a wardobe is rank and a quick way to get a moth invasion

Worn clothes get put on the bedroom chair for the next day. Except for skirts and coats, which get hung up.

If it were the case that rehanging attracts moths, every house in Britain would have moths in their coat cupboard, which obviously they don't.

JesusInTheCabbageVan · 22/02/2020 16:09

confused no. I’m perfectly capable of deciding what impact reducing measures suit me personally. Others can choose what suits them. Does that baffle you?

It baffles me that people still think they have the luxury of only choosing to reduce their carbon footprint in ways that don't inconvenience them in the slightest.

It probably is too late for us anyway. But one day, my DS will turn round and ask me what I did to try to ensure he and his children will have a future. I'll be able to say, well, I stopped at one, switched to an electric car as soon as we could afford it, drastically reduced meat and dairy consumption, have the thermostat at 16, hardly ever have holidays abroad, try to minimise laundry etc etc.

Will you be honest with your DC, if they ask you? "Sorry, I knew the planet was fucked, but I preferred having clean towels daily!" (I'm sure you do other things, but I find it hard to believe anyone who washes towels daily genuinely gives a shit about the planet.)

Quicklittlenamechange · 22/02/2020 16:11

I was talking about a wardrobe , I dont have a coat cupboard.
Moths like dark places they wont be disturbed, so if you wear a coat daily it will be moved.
Moths only go for natural fibres and not many people have pure wool coats.

chimpandzee · 22/02/2020 16:12

The only thing I wear clean every day as a rule is knickers and my workout gear. I work out most days and get very sweaty so that gets washed after every wear. I shower every day, I don't smell, so I don't see the issue with wearing most of my clothes more than once. The reason I tend to wash things is if I can see visible dirt ie white tops which especially in summer will usually need washing after each wear but I will save all the whites up for a big wash all at once, or if I spill something or drop food on to my clothes.

I've got a pair of Huit Jeans and they actively encourage customers to never wash their jeans....I've had them 3 years and haven't yet!!!

ItIsWhatItIsInnit · 22/02/2020 16:14

Putting worn clothes back into a wardobe is rank and a quick way to get a moth invasion.
My parents always wear clothes several times, they stink and also had a huge moth invasion.
You get pollutants/bacteria/viruses on your clothes, its not so much "dirt" as it was in the past when people had manual jobs.

You're talking total bollocks. I've put repeatedly worn clothes in my wardrobe for my entire life and never had a single moth in there.

I also never get ill (maybe a cold every 2-3 years) so all those bacteria/viruses clearly not doing much harm.

The wash at 30 advice is bad though. It makes loads of crap build up in your machine too and doesn't really "wash" your clothes. I wash rarely but at 40.

ItIsWhatItIsInnit · 22/02/2020 16:15

Moths only eat wool or silk, so they wouldn't really like the mostly synthetic wardrobes of today.

ThatFriendsReunion · 22/02/2020 16:16

I just don’t understand how people who shower (at least) once a day and wear deodorant can still be concerned that their clothes smell and need to wash those after every wear too.

Well, they do, what can I say. I can smell my deodorant, I cook, I go outside. It's obvious is a tshirt is freshly clean or not.

Ironically, I find I stink a lot more when I sweat in cold weather than when I do in the summer - that's about exercising though.

Environmental concerns aside, the size of people’s water and electricity bills must be ASTRONOMICAL!
mine aren't, that's the beauty of washing machines and dish washers, they are very economical. I very very rarely use a dryer though, even in England I don't need it.

PlanDeRaccordement · 22/02/2020 16:21

This must be why there are so many smelly people out and about.

You know washing clothes in a HE machine takes very little water and you live on a wet island that has an over abundance of water.

There is no need to restrict your water use like you live in a desert.

JuanSheetIsPlenty · 22/02/2020 16:22

It baffles me that people still think they have the luxury of only choosing to reduce their carbon footprint in ways that don't inconvenience them in the slightest.

Grin

You’re making shit up as you go along now.

MrsPelligrinoPetrichor · 22/02/2020 16:23

My bills aren't high either and I use the drier most of the year unless it's baking outside and I peg out. Dishwashers are more economical than washing by hand.

Dontsweatthelittlestuff · 22/02/2020 16:24

This morning I picked up two pairs of trousers from the bedroom floor. Both had only been worn for around 8 hours so they went back in the draw to be reworn. The jumper I had on yesterday I put back on this morning along with the track pants I wore yesterday.
The only clean item I put on this morning was a fresh pair on pants. I even put yesterday’s socks back on as I had only worn them for about 5 hours and I don’t have smelly feet so they passed the sniff test.

Quicklittlenamechange · 22/02/2020 16:24

Its not bollocks, well documented in the press at the time of the Credit Crunch that washing and dry cleaning had dropped and moth infestations had rocketed.

Agree they only go for wool, cashmere etc.
They scoffed their way through my parents wardrobes of lovely cashmere, tweed jackets etc

I dont wear symthetics so Im extra careful now

ThatFriendsReunion · 22/02/2020 16:24

If you have to sniff your clothes, it means they really should be in the wash..

goldfinchfan · 22/02/2020 16:25

Washing clothes Less often is a bad idea.
is it that stupid Ecover ad?

I have bought Ecover for almost 40 years and am thinking of Not buying it to show my disapproval of this ad.

I hate wearing clothes that i have worn already if they have been next to my skin.....
Or if I have tipped my dinner down on them

I save the planet in other ways, I will not go along with this. It will be like the 1950's with smelly people again!

Quicklittlenamechange · 22/02/2020 16:26

Utterly grim to put worn clothes in a wardrobe with clean ones though.

ThatFriendsReunion · 22/02/2020 16:27

and about moths

Quicklittlenamechange · 22/02/2020 16:27

It will be like the 1950's with smelly people again!
Just catch a bus or tube -we are already there !

CrystalAlligator · 22/02/2020 16:27

It’s pretty much my default to wear everything except for underwear and socks several times, I could easily wear a jumper or a top or jeans 5-10 times before washing as long as they still look clean and smell fine. I don’t see why you’d wash stuff after one wear if it isn’t dirty, seems so arbitrary. I kinda always assumed though that people who wash after one wear only were unusually sweaty or oily and had no choice.

nanbread · 22/02/2020 16:28

Utterly grim to put worn clothes in a wardrobe with clean ones though.

Why? If it doesn't smell bad or have any marks / stains?