How do you keep on top of laundry?

[freshlander]

Here's a question for parents of young kids. I am trying to mend my slovenly ways - no scratch that- it ain't for want of trying - but I can never seem to keep on top of our huge laundry pile. Please, please take me through your routine and give me your tips. We have no tumble drier and everything takes forever to dry in winter. How do some people manage to keep their homes completely clear of washing? We seem to always have sheets hanging on the backs of doors etc, a huge pile waiting to be put away and no room on the racks cos everything is damp. Help!

I'd recommend a tumble drier. Alternatively, are you close to a launderette where you could take the clothes to be dried after you've washed them?

Otherwise you're right, you'll always have stuff drying all over the place.

As for a system, have 3 baskets - one for dirty, one for ironing and one for waiting to be put away.

If you can't afford / don't have the room for a tumble dryer. Get a heated airer . Wash it in the evening. Hang it overnight .. Repeat every day !

jean you iron

Second getting a dryer if you can. I put my washing on timer to go on early hours of morning and then it goes in dryer while still on Econ 7. My loads are:
Whites
Light colours
Dark colours
Red/pinks
Bedding
Towels.
Steam generator iron speeds up ironing too.

After being swamped for years I have now resigned myself grudgingly to almost daily wash, tumble (try to put away) and iron everything on Sunday night during bath time and my dh puts it away. I heard dan snow say the other day that on their Grand Canyon programme the rule is if one person is doing something the other cant be sitting on their arse. This seems to resonate deeply with my dh.

Yes I iron, not much, but I don't understand people who manage to look smart in work suits/dresses/blouses/school uniforms without ironing them.

I have a bit of a laundry routine going but I do nearly always have washing on the go despite having a tumble drier (I try not to use it for everything though).

Monday - clothes washing
Tuesday - towels
Wednesday - bedding
Thursday - delicates
Friday - school uniform

I rarely actually stick to this routine but it seems to help me keep on top of it all.

Have you got anywhere you could fit a ceiling airer? Stuff dries really fast on them - I also find stuff dries pretty quickly on our landing (same principle I think, hot air rising from below) So I have one airer in front of the boiler and the other on the landing.

I've felt a lot more under control since I also got into the habit of putting any dry washing away every time I put a wash on.

I suppose the other thing is to minimise the amount of washing. Is there anything you could get a bit more wear out of before washing it?

I have both a drier and a dehumidifier. I do 1 or 2 loads per day. The laundry is relentless. And I still have a mountain of it, despite my efforts.

Oh and I iron as little as possible.

I manage not to iron much by hanging things up as soon as they're washed, including on hangers. I also don't see creases

No TD here either and no chance of one and I hate having laundry draped over everything so only use an ordinary airer.
2 adults, 2 DC (10 and 8) and I do one load a day, every day. I put stuff outside as much as I can even in winter - just 3-4 hours makes a difference and then hang the rest on the airer. Usually it is dry by the next day but if not I will turn it round on the airer to air the underneath. We try to put the airer in the warmest room when we go to bed - usually living room or teeny, tiny shower room :)
If it gets too backlogged I do have a second airer.
Still managed to keep on top most of the time whilst using real nappies when they were babies and DS is still not dry at night now so a lot of bedding gets washed

I wash then the wet washing goes into a spin dryer which takes loads more water out then from that to tumble then either folded or ironed.

I agree if you can get a tumbledryer do so!

There's 5 of us you could say 4 adults(18&15 boys) and a child
I need to do at least 1 wash a day to keep on top of things
This is my winter method
Wash hang up on the clothes horse and luckily I have a balcony that I can put horse out all day bring in at night
In the morning if it's not dry I put damp heavy stuff (jeans hoodies etc)on a 2nd clothes horse in my hall and the light stuff Teeshirts pjs etc go in the TD for 20mins I've only got a tiny TD!

Shoewhore I like the idea of your method how many is in your home??

Don't wash everything after every wear. I have some new Levi jeans and the actually say don't wash after every wash as they don't need it

Unless actually dirty jeans/ cardigans/ jumpers can all be worn at least twice. Especially in winter. Same with certain dresses. I wear shift type dresses atm, but in this weather I have a vest top and long sleeved top under as we'll as tights so the dress doesn't even touch my skin. I shower min once a day myself

I agree with Artandco - you don't need to wash everything every time you wear it (socks / underwear excluded of course ) - I do think some people seem to think that everything needs to be washed every time it is worn/used. There is another thread on here saying that people wash towels every time they use them .

I just want to say condenser dryers are quite good if you nowhere to vent a dryer. The water collects in a container. You just have to empty it quite often. There are three of us and life would be impossible without one.

A load every day and a tumble dryer.
MiL bought us one when DD was born. It's a condenser one and means that stuff gets dried in the winter in our fairly small house. We really don't have anywhere else in winter. House bought for two, now home to four!

I was swamped with washing, if I keep on top of things it's fairly clear now. I have 3DC's aged 6 and under so everyday there are paint covered clothes, food covered clothes and the odd potty training accident.

My rules are:
Clothes are worn more than once if possible.
I do a 60' load and a 40' load a day.

I don't iron (smooth out the creases when you hang stuff out to dry or fold and press stuff with your hands as it comes out of the dryer.
P.j's get bought in bulk and in a larger size as they are always tumble dried.
Towels all get washed together on 60' regardless of colour (it was a choice of a few grey towels v loosing my sanity beneath a pile of washing...).
I don't buy the DC's any white clothes, white school shirts I buy x5 and 1 white load goes on a week.
Each DC has their own towel, these get hung back up in the bathroom after each use (I know which belongs to each child as they each have their own colour).
Everything that can go in the dryer goes in, some stuff shrinks, hence the buying of p.j's in a larger size.
Everything else gets hung on an airer and put in a small room over night with the dehumidifier set on high.
I only iron for weddings, job interviews or special occasions.

I love my condenser dryer, it sits in a cupboard where there is no outside wall to vent to.

Get a tumble drier, much better for your health then wet clothes hanging about the place.

Then a load a day washed and dried.

yes, cut the ironing
buy a tumble dryer
only wash stuff when it is dirty, one wear is not dirty.
...and for littlies in the winter, get them into their jammies as soon as they are out of the school uniform! No need for more clothes! inbetween home and bed!

....you can really minimise the need for ironing by learning to fold stuff properly. Try and catch it warm from the dryer, fold it, pile it and it'll press under its own weight

I do a load every day. In winter I put heavy stuff on radiators and lighter stuff on a clothes airer. Everything is dry by the next day ready for the next load. Bedding goes over the banister and dries quickly. I only do one bed at a time.

I love summer when I can hang it all out instead.

Thanks weelady - there are 5 of us including 3 dirt magnet football playing boys. It does mean I need to do 2-3 loads on a Monday but then it's pretty easy for the rest of the week.

I do a load a day. I don't separate darks and whites as we don't have a lot of white stuff. I run the washing machine every night.

I have a kind of drying tree, it has spokes and clips to hang smaller items on. I put it outside during the day if it is not raining and then if things are still damp I move it inside at night and leave it in the corner of one of the kids rooms overnight. Towels and bigger clothes go on the line but again if they are still damp in the evening I move them inside and hang them on the curtain rails in my kids rooms overnight.

In the morning I put the dry stuff in the basket and hang the next load out.

If it is wet during the day I part tumble dry it and then hang it in one of the kids rooms during the day with the door shut and heater on.

I do ironing once a week, and fold and put away everything in the evening when the kids are playing after their bath.

School uniforms get washed at the weekends.

I do 2 loads a day. I do one each evening and put timer on so a load is done when I get home from work.

I hang on covered line and then bring in overnight.

Towels on a Monday, DC bed sheets on Wed, my bed on a Thursday.

With this system I almost always keep on top of washing.