Drowning in laundry

[tuliplily]

How do people keep on top of their laundry? 2 adults, toddler and baby and I feel like I'm drowning in washing and putting away. Don't even iron! Anyone got any tips?

Three of us here, two adults, one toddler. Twice a week I do two loads in one day (dark and lights) weekend do towels and bedding. We have a tumble dryer which I probably use far too much but makes it so much easier and with work etc I'm all about as easy a life as possible! WFH has helped as I often put a load on whilst waiting for the kettle to boil

Reading this while looking at the massive laundry pile sprawling across my bedroom, I think I just have to accept that I need to do at least one load of washing every single day without fail. Rather than leaving it all week and trying to do 6 loads at the weekend.

I do around 10 loads a week (one a day of clothes then bedding and towels etc on top). As I take it off the airer/line I fold it into piles for each person then each pile just has to go to the right room. Seems less hassle this way than having a big basket of unfolded and unsorted clean laundry to go through. I rarely use my dryer but do the same if I do and fold it and put it into piles as I take it out.

I have a disabled son and two other kids and a husband who does manual work. My son changes his clothes constantly all day and a lot of the night . I’ve got two machines going all day long and the tumble dryer. I feel like 90% of my life is doing washing so yep totally understand!

We have normal laundry needs here and I do prefer a load a day then put away. We have 5 to 6 loads a week, normal size machine. (One wash is usually delicates / woolies that I never bothered with when kids were small: It was the first category booted out of the everyday wardrobe.)

We do keep an eye on the weather though and if it's a fine day a couple of loads get done and dried. Having to dry everything indoors IS a pain.

1 adult 1 teen and 1 preteen and I do at least 3 loads a day. Less when they're were smaller. We each have a basket on top of the dryer and they are responsible for taking it and putting it away. Could the other parent be responsible for this? We also have a basket for anything that needs ironing and hanging ( kids now do their own) I don't think it's fair if there are two parents that only one is responsible for all the laundry.
I think the key is routine and have a basket or bag in their wardrobe fir thing which are too small, so it's not just recirculating.
I used to be consumed by my laundry then realised I wasn't the only one making it so why should I be the only one to sort it. If you wash it and dry it then maybe get into a routine of sorting it at the table whilst dinner is cooking and the other intent puts it away or irons it.

3 loads a day 7 days a week?

@LookAChicken

3 loads a day 7 days a week?

Monday to Friday I don't do any of a weekend

15 loads a week?? How are you making that much washing? It must cost you a fortune!

1 adult, two preteens here. Two loads of coloured clothes per week and one white load. One of towels weekly and bedding every ten days. I dry as much as possible outside using airers and a high washing line. Clothes to be ironed are dried on hangers. I don't own a tumble drier. The kids put their own clothes away after I fold them.

Some of these are baffling to me. How do some people have time? Do you not leave the house?

1. be ruthless about whether stuff really needs washing. If it's not stained and it smells ok, it gets worn again.
2. I love my tumble drier (heat pump for energy efficiency).
3. towels only get washed once a week. Bedding I've been known to leave a fortnight, so sue me.
4. I have four laundry baskets so whites, colours, delicates and bedding/towels get sorted as we go.
5. my washing machine has a 10kg capacity and a timer. I put a big pile in as I go to bed, set it to finish at 7am and get it all hung as soon as I wake up.

Oh and I never iron.

I probably do the following:
Weekly:
2 x colours
1 x white
1 x towels
1 x nappies and other heavily soiled eg cleaning cloths

Bedding every other week
Delicates (mainly wool jumpers and cardigans) about every 10 days so twice in 3 weeks.

2 loads a day, first thing in the morning. (sometimes 3). You can fill the machine in the evening, ready to be switched on when you get up. Hang outside or use a dryer inside. Switch on tv in the evening, fold and put away.

I personally cannot stand laundry on radiators and in my way, at worst an airer in the bathroom with the window opened (it's the room we use the least)

I can't imagine spending A DAY doing laundry

My laundry is drying by the time I leave the house to go to work, or just out on days off. It really doesn't take much time at all.

2 adults and 4 kids here. Beddings changed weekly, but on days when they can dry outside.

15 loads a week?? How are you making that much washing? It must cost you a fortune!

that's only 2 loads a day. Much easier to deal with laundry regularly a little bit at a time than drown in it. It becomes as second nature as emptying the dishwasher.

Before we had kids, I would do at least 5 or 6 loads a week just for 2 of us.

Before we had kids, I would do at least 5 or 6 loads a week just for 2 of us.

How on Earth do you get so much dirty clothing for 2 people? I do no more than 3 loads a week - 2 clothes, 1 bedding & towels. And that’s with my DP cycling to work and getting his clothes all sweaty every day.

How on Earth do you get so much dirty clothing for 2 people? I do no more than 3 loads a week - 2 clothes, 1 bedding & towels. And that’s with my DP cycling to work and getting his clothes all sweaty every day.

very roughly:

one bedding
one towels
one white
one black
one light colours

Between work clothes, casual clothes, nightwear, sports clothes, there's more than enough for 3 or 4 loads a week.

My king size bedding takes an entire load, so did the spare bed and it was often in used. I barely iron, so it was never a big deal. I even put some of my suits in the wash when I couldn't be arsed to bring the to the dry cleaner

Do you wash your towels after every use? That’s very unnecessary I don’t even own enough towels to make a whole load. Also if you’re coming home from work and changing into casual clothes for a couple of hours you can probably get away with wearing them all week unless you spill something on them.

PattyPan
Do you wash your towels after every use? *

Me? If I did, I would have more loads wouldn't I?

No, weekly... but no, I don't wear the same casual clothes for a week without washing them.

My KIDS even less! No one stays clean when playing outside

I can get one wash per day, washed, dried and ready to put away all in one day, so I don’t do any more than that.
Usually I would put the machine on overnight to finish first thing, hang it all up on the airier and it’s dry by the end of the day.

Any more than that and it starts to pile up.

I do weekly for 2 adults and 3 teens/preteens
1 x white
2 x colour
1x jeans
2 x towels
2 x bedding
And an adhoc delicate wash as needed
I tend to do all the clothes washing on a weekend and dh does the bedding and towels in the week as he’s at home, we wear things more than once but school uniform inevitably ends up with grass stains/pen/mud or whatever and they need fresh every day and I wear clean uniform every day too (HCP). Normal clothes get worn a couple of times before washing and towels get used for a week and then changed.

I do a load a day.... it dries in the spare room glorified washing room

Or on the banisters as it's a draughty Victorian house
All the clothes are put in piles for each person!

The spin speed on your washer is fundamental. Even delicates can take a strong additional spin because they’re not moving, the drum is.
I put everything through my 2800 rpm spinner (barrel style) which looks like something from the 1970s but IME it cuts drying time by half compared to a 1400 washing machine spin.

A pulley maid keeps clothes out of your eyeline and takes advantage of warmer air rising to the ceiling.
Wash whites, darks, pales. Iron as little as possible.
Have fewer clothes and put “clean enough to wear again” clothes on hangers for your next day’s office wear/home wear.

2800 spin dryer.
amazon

Stop using clothes just once. If you use everything at least twice, bar knickers, you have cut your washing hy nearly half. I stopped washing clothes after one wear years ago as an environmental consideration and it's better for the clothes, the environment and the bills! And it isn't noticeable.

@thebillyotea yes sorry, the quote didn’t work. I just can’t see how you could get a load from two bath towels, a bath mat, a hand towel and a tea towel!
Wearing casual clothes after work for say 3 hours only adds up to 15 hours for the whole work week which is similar to how long you’d be wearing them for on a weekend day and you wouldn’t think your clothes were dirty and need changing part way through the day. Obviously if they actually have something on them then they need washing but things that you just wear after work probably don’t really get that dirty especially if you wear an apron to cook.

I love MN washing threads. They are the laundry version of the MN Chicken.

‘There’s 75 of us living here and we only do a half wash once a month. Sometimes I’ll rinse my knickers in the water butt but only in summer.’