How often do you do your laundry?

[Lndnmummy]

Need some help from the Mumsnet brigade. Dh and I were taking this evening about our family laundry. There is only 4 of us so not a huge household. All sports etc cancelled at the moment so in theory that should reduce the load. We wash.all.the.time. At least a load a day. We live in an apartment so not a huge amount of space. We do have a drier but use it mainly for things like sheets and towels. My question is how do you guys do your laundry? A designated day where most of it gets done then put drying racks etc away until the same day next week? One load a day? I feel that there is are permanent drying racks everywhere and it’s driving me insane. Where am I going wrong?

Almost every day. We are 2 adults and 2 under 5s who like to play in the mud/paint/smear food on themselves etc. The youngest is also in reusable nappies. We have two clothes horses (and endlessly battle with condensation). We wash towels maybe twice a week and bedding once a week. I change all the kids clothes and pjs every day, and my own top and underwear. I wear my trousers and jumpers several times before washing them and dp wears everything a few times before washing it. Still somehow adds up to a load a day!

Family of four...I do laundry every day. At least two loads, sometimes three. Any less and I'm playing catch up. I dont do any on Christmas day and its scary how much it mounts up after missing one day

@CrownAddict

Can highly recommend wearing clothes for.longer than a most people on MN seem to. Change undies and socks daily, but everything else.can be worn more. Jeans, bedding, towels every few weeks. Hence we don't seem to do as much as most, family of three 1-2 loads a week. Airer followed by radiator.in winter to finish off or line dry in summer. I don't think we smell or look dirty and don't think clothes.need washing that much unless actually dirty or sweaty. Or other circumstances of course. I notice teens are bad for taking stuff off and putting in wash when no need...

You wash towels and bedding every few weeks!

Family of 4 here too, i do a light and dark load over the weekend to get work/school clothes done for monday and then during the week another 2 loads so 4 loads altogether.

To be honest i do stuff the machine to the maximum! And i tumble dry everything except a couple of delicate things that might ruin or shrink and they hang on the radiators. I also don't wash bedding all at the same time, we all have darker bottom sheets and lighter duvet/pillowcase so i throw whichever one in the light/dark wash as i go so i never do a whole wash just for bedding and i think that reduces the amount of washing i need to do. I also only seperate lights/darks i dont do whites/lights/darks/delicates like some do.

In the summer i do more as if its a nice day out i can't waste it! So i will wash anything in sight lol.
Occasionally my DP will decided to dump a whole load of dirty washing into the basket at once which results in an extra load but generally its just 4 times a week.

I feel like I do it 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and the laundry basket is still never empty . There’s only 3 of us!

Daily. Clothes one day, nappies the next, and when towels/bedding/whatever else pops out of the ether needs doing they get done in addition to the clothes on clothes day.

@Lndnmummy

This has been enlightening thanks everyone. Yes we do wash things after every wear we must be a pretty dirty bunch. I have a toddler and I’m always mucky at the end of my day with him so just put everything in the wash. I wear pjs twice before I wash them and we use towels twice before they are washed. All bed linen washed weekly. 5 sets of school uniform so they just get washed in one go on a Friday. Before lockdown we had a lot of our work clothes dry cleaned weekly so maybe that’s why it feels so much more now. Our lounge type clothes doesn’t need dry cleaning. We just got abit fed up this evening as it feels like there are clothes and washing everywhere. I think we might need to rethink it and start to use the dryer abit more. There is no reason why underwear, socks and toddler clothes can’t be tumble dried.

I can understand washing toddler clothes every day. They re mucky little things. Thank goodness I don't have that stage any more.

You could use towels more than twice before washing. Up to you if you are comfortable with that. I only wash DC bedding fortnightly as they don't sweat like adults.

When you say 5 sets of school uniform, is it 5 full sets. Mine wear a clean polo shirt or shirt every day but trousers/skirts and jumpers for a few days. Luckily also past the age where they spill their lunch down the uniform.

Just the two of us. Maybe 3 washes a week.

Clothes horse and dehumidifier in the winter, clothes line in the summer.

1-2 loads a day. But I have two children in cloth nappies, when they toilet train my washing will halve.

3 of us here, 3 to 5 loads a week on average. 2 loads fill our airer so I tend to do 2 on a Tuesday and then 2 on a Saturday.

I tumble towels and bedding so they get done on other days as no need for the airer.

How the hell does everyone find the time to do this much washing!?
I do loads and found I really cut my laundry time down by having a routine: every morning I empty everyone's laundry bags into the sorting trolley in the laundry room, put on a load then while that's washing I fold and put away the previous days now dry clothes, hang up that morning's washing on the airer or tumble dry. Quickly put another load on and empty (obviously do other things in between!) then that's it for washing until next day. The small amount of ironing there is (mostly school uniform) my husband does on Sundays.

Family of 4. A load a day on average but some days I do 2 then none for a few days. Tops are hung up to dry on hangers. Lakeland heated airer for everything else. Tumbler for odd times when too many sheets, towels etc. I wear things several times before washing and try to make DC do this too. DH not as careful. Bedding gets done once a fortnight, towels weekly. Made much easier by having a utility room. March to October it all goes outside on the line. I much prefer that!

I wash one day a week, about 5-6 loads over 24 hour period. Sheets and towels done as-hoc if necessary.

Two adults and one toddler, we do a load most days. Everything dried outside in summer, heated airer permanently up in the conservatory in winter (and rainy summers).

Every day it bloody feels
Now it’s winter I’ve sorted a drying corner in my room
But it’s incessant

10-12 washes a week. After school clubs etc being cancelled means more forest walks so more mud and more washing. Plus DH goes for a run most days.

It feels relentless.

Those of you with a tumble dryer do you find your electric bills are higher? I've not got one but about to blend families so there'll be more of us, I'd like to have one just for socks and undies for quick drying in the winter as I hate washing on radiators, but wouldn't be happy with high electric bills?

thanks

@2me2u2u2me

Those of you with a tumble dryer do you find your electric bills are higher? I've not got one but about to blend families so there'll be more of us, I'd like to have one just for socks and undies for quick drying in the winter as I hate washing on radiators, but wouldn't be happy with high electric bills?

thanks

Mines a combi machine and i would say its probably an extra £5 a month to use it 3 or 4 times weh I dry towels and bedding, it's not a huge increase, but it's still an increase to consider.

Family of 4 with a messy toddler who covers me in goo all the time. We normally do a load a day. In this weather it’s thrown in the tumble drier.

2 adults and 2 children. We do a load almost every day but we're slatterns in mn land because we don't wash towels or bedding every week and we wear most clothes several times before putting them to wash.

Single person -
1 X lights
1 X darks
1 X towels (I change them in the middle of the week)
1 X bedding
1 X sports kit wash in the summer - I cycle commute and save it all up.

I wear Jean's for a week before washing them

Family of 4. 4 clothes loads a week. 1 bedding wash (ours one week, kids next). 1 towels wash.

Washer goes on on timer overnight Friday night with load 1 - dark clothes. Out first thing sat morning, next load goes in - light cloithes. Out lunch time, then towels or bedding go in. We use a tumble drier (a heat pump one which is energy efficient (we are on a 100% renewable tariff) and doesn't shrink clothes, it's a god send in winter. For some things including bedding & towels.
Another load goes in Tuesday night (dark clothes), light clothes weds am. Towels/bedding at lunch weds.

We aren't a terribly sweaty family and we all shower/bathe daily, so clothes only get washed if they obviously smell of have stains on. The kids both have waterproof overalls they wear on muddy days which help.

Line of conception I wear jeans for months without washing them

Socks and undies are the one thing I would never use a tumble drier for, those sorts of stretchy jersey or fabric with elastane in are very shrink prone.

No comment on bills, have never not had one so no comparison