Three loads of laundry a week. How?

[PotatoPudding]

Lighthearted thread:

I seem to see so many people saying they only do 3 loads of laundry a week for their entire family. How is this possible?

We are two adults and DS 5. I do the following:

• 3-4 mixed/dark loads a week
• 1 load of towels
• 1 load of bedding in colder months (different bed each week) and 2-3 loads when it’s hot (we all have our own beds, ranging from double to super king
• 1 white wash every other week, which is just school polos and the odd other bit but rarely a full load
• 1 ad hoc load every couple of weeks for blankets, dressing gowns, indoor fleeces, etc.

I wear one pair of jeans and one pair of joggers all week. I wear 2-3 hoodies/jumpers a week plus a base layer every day. I wear two sets of old joggers and hoodies for bed each week, as well as thick socks. DH wears a clean top every day for work but same trousers all week. DS wears school uniform and sometimes changes when he gets home. School coat gets chucked in the wash once every week or two. We do no sports or activities that require additional clothing.

For me, the laundry seems never ending!

How does this compare to other households of a similar size?

We have a 10kg washing machine so would obviously wash less than a family of the same size with a 6kg one,

Also I don't split washing other than colours or whites.

2 adults and 2 kids. Every week we do:
1 wash for my clothes
1 wash for DH's clothes
1 wash for the 2 kids clothes
1 towel wash
1 bedding wash
We only do bedding every 2 weeks so we alternate ours and then the kids.

Get a bigger machine!! We have a 12kg now and it was a life changer - there’s 5 of us and the 3 teens are adult size now so we still do more than 3 loads a week!

on an average week I would have (I tend to sort into what will go on the tumble drier together)

1 x whites/lights
1x woolly jumpers
1x non tumble drier stuff
1x joggers/hoodies etc
1 x underwear, vest tops etc
1x T-shirts, school/work trousers, pjs etc
1x towels
1x bedding

I don’t do bedding once a week and I would never do a coat once a week or fortnight! I think you do more than you need there.

I don’t seem to generate much washing myself but my teenager does as they change their clothes and pyjamas every day and they need to!

Gosh yes I missed that.
Coats here are done once or twice a year at most- for a start if I did them every week between washing them and then re waterproofing them I would struggle for room to dry other washing. We do winter coats at the end of the winter- by which time they are filthy and summer coats at the end of the summer if needed.
Only one done more often is my 2year olds all in 1 which is done every couple of weeks as she does tend to end up knee deep in puddles!

I'm astounded at how much washing is going on! I do 2-3 a week, if that! Sometimes no washing at all. I do work from home so get plenty of wear out of clothes and DD has plenty of school uniform. I just put things that need to be washed into the washing machine and when it gets full I pull it all out, see what I've got and wash it accordingly. I change beds when I think about it. We're not dirty, don't smell and are rarely ill. I don't see the need for constantly washing.

2 adults, 3 kids here.
I have a large washing machine and do at least one wash per day, nearly always 2. Sometimes 3!
We have lots of clubs, football, swimming.
Clean clothes for kids every day.
Me and my husband will rewear jumpers and trousers again, but kids are always filthy!
Pjs worn twice.

Hmm. One light, one dark, one with sheets/towels or whatnot. Me and 18 year old Dd. I tend to wear my clothes more than once before washing, other than underwear of course.
When my rugby playing son lived with us definitely two more as he got mucky on a daily basis!

Family of 4 and we do 4 loads. 2 darks a white and a bedding/ towels wash. You really should be able to do less loads.

Two adults and a dog

Every week
1 x towels
1 x normal darks / non delicates (joggers hoodies) etc
1 x delicates (dresses skirts)
1 or 2 x bedding

Every few weeks
1 x dog stuff
1 x lights or whites (although intend to put this in with bedding )

My DH does his own clothes and I do mine separately. We both throw in our DS's clothes in as we're doing our own. I do a towel/dressing gown/slippers wash once a week and my husband does the bedding clothes wash. It never feels overwhelming and if one of us urgently needs something we'll add it to the other's wash.

Same. And for the PP who said "not too bothered about cleanliness" are you "not too bothered about the environment"?

People wash clothes, hair and bodies far far too much.

No I'm suggesting everyone chip in putting on shared loads and emptying and folding afterwards. So many on here are just skivvying around after dps and grown dcs who could easily take turns but opt out 😕 not suggesting splitting washes per person and colour group.

I think Ive said on other threads, I tend to put these claims in the category of people that claim a 6 hour journey only takes them 3, who can get things way way cheaper than anyone else seems to be able to (and who wont then clarify the brand/supplier/whats included when challenged)

All these wild claims, for what purpose I do not know

Ive done 5 washes here since Thursday, sometimes things need doing individually on delicates (as its only one or two items), bedding all needs to be separate, at this time of year there are a lot of chunky clothing like jogging bottoms, thick jumpers, bed socks etc.

I dont know what size machine I have either.

I live alone and do two loads a week, one clothes, one sheets and towels. I might add a third if I need to do a wool wash or have a stack of tea towels and cleaning cloths to do.
I work from home 3-4 days a week, don't work out or swim or do anything much which requires exertion.

I do around 2-3. Mostly 2. Machine is a 9kg. 2 adults and 1 child. No sports clothes to wash. No pet bedding. No whites. Lights and darks get mixed. I don't separate anything. All mixed up.

2 adults here, it's about 4 loads a week. One week a dark, a light, a bedding, and towels. The next week a dark, a light, a bedding, and whites. It works for us but we tend to give our clothes a couple of wears before putting in the washing basket - other than underwear and anything that's actually dirty, obviously.

I'm only washing for me and do one a week, sometimes two if doing bedding and towels. I have lots of clothes and bedding sets and I don't really have any light colours so don't need to separate them.

As 2 adults we do no more than 3 washes a week, probably a bit less on average.

2 adults, 2 kids under 4. If I did 3 loads a week I'd be suffocating under dirty clothes!

DH and I both have work uniforms, DD has school uniform, DS has about 3 outfits a day due to spillages and mud. I do at least 1 load per day but mostly 2 loads.

I usually do alternate colours with a white wash and a dark wash ie colour, white, colour, dark etc. I do towels, tea towels, cloths in with normal clothes. I just use an anti bacterial washing liquid in the machine. Then the 2nd wash is bedding or blankets, animal bedding, nursery outdoor things, or just an extra load of clothes to catch up!! Machine is always in use 🤣

Ah OK yes I'm on board with that!
I do (try to) implement other people sorting washing but DH only ever half fills the machine and seems random about sorting colours so it's easier to put the stuff in the machine myself which, tbh, is the easy part! But I get teens to hang out, sort and put away clean laundry

There’s just me and teen DS and between us we do 4-5 loads a week.

2 retired adults, big AI function machine.
Small eco load every day, laundry basket
99% empty.
I think it's very individual, some people don't like having heaps of used laundry around etc.

@concernedchild

No I don't really notice- obviously if something is dirty or smells then I do wash it. I am probably scruffier than the average mumsnetter though!

One day here. Family of 4, 2 are school age.no tumble dryer. 4 beds to strip plus usual stuff.