I counted...25+ loads of laundry a week!

[delmar411]

Wow! I'm REALLY amazed at all the laundry some of you do!

I'm shocked at the number of people that wash towels every day and clothes every day (OP especially washing numerous outfits per day).

I don't get it.... the towel that you use to dry your body after a shower is CLEAN. I use mine about 3-4 times before throwing it into the hamper. ONE TOWEL for both my body and long, thick hair. I just hang it up after I'm through with it. It's dry by next morning.

I wear my jeans 2x at least before washing, depending on what I'm doing. Gosh, unless you're going panty-less, there's no reason to wash your jeans after just one wearing, especially if it's just a few hours after work. What do you all do in your jeans? LOL! Unless I spill something on them, I will wear them again. Same thing goes for tops. If I wear a shirt for just a few hours, I'll wear it again another time. Unless again, I spill something. Or I sweat, lol. Otherwise, my body is clean.

Only thing I wash on a daily basis are my panties.

And by the way, I'm not a slob. I'm a very well-dressed, attractive, and professional female. I'm just not a germ freak imagining germs around every corner....

I think you are missing a major fact that adds to the laundry...KIDS. My kids play hard and get dirty every day and there are four of them (no dogs LOL). Their school clothes are either uniforms that are dirty after one wearing or play clothes that are dirty and covering in glue/paint/sparkles/markers/food after one wearing.

Then they change clothes at home and play and run around and spill dinner down their fronts and then they put on pjs to sleep in. In which they either pee themselves at night or they sweat or both!

Then there are the towels which *if* hung up would be suitable for another day but it's rare anyone other than me hangs up a towel properly. If the towels end up on the floor then they get washed. I have small boys who haven't mastered aiming yet so anything that hit the floor near the toilet gets washed before re-using.

Then there is DH who works in a restaurant. His clothes are dirty, stinky and flat out yuck after work. That includes, an undershirt, a t-shirt, a button down shirt, a pair of slacks, a pair of socks and a long apron. Those get washed after every day and as soon as possible to not cover the other clothes with the stink. He does however compensate by wearing his pjs for as many night as he can get away with since I'll grab those to fill out a load if I see them laying around.

Then there is the soiled pee covered bedding. The kids sleep with a comforter plus 2-4 other blankets. (it's what works for them but does cause them to sweat like crazy) So that alone once peed on is 2-3 loads depending on whether I need to wash their pillow as well.

Then there are the washclothes, the hand towels, the dish towels, the cleaning cloths, the regular sheets, the swim clothes, the swim towels, the gymnastic clothes and on occasion I even get to wash my own clothes!

Wanna do the math on our laundry?

We send nothing to the dry cleaners and use very little paper products (paper towels, paper napkins).

I get those 200 load tubs of laundry detergent from Costco and I go through one every 8-12 wks depending on how well the boys are doing staying dry at night.

 

[riley2008]

I was just complaining to DH about having to do laundry AGAIN. It was all clean on Sunday (and it's only Thursday night). I did one load and will do another before bed. That should do it until Sunday again - then about 4 loads - two more of clothes and two of sheets and towels.

(We obviously reuse towels and PJ's get used 2 nights. Also, my boys have been hanging up their own towels since they were 2, yes 2 years old! Then again, we did hang low hooks and bars for them to be able to do it, but really....)


Maybe people just like doing laundry more than I do. I prefer other hobbies.

 

[rockundergirl]

Wow! I'm REALLY amazed at all the laundry some of you do!

I'm shocked at the number of people that wash towels every day and clothes every day (OP especially washing numerous outfits per day).

I don't get it.... the towel that you use to dry your body after a shower is CLEAN. I use mine about 3-4 times before throwing it into the hamper. ONE TOWEL for both my body and long, thick hair. I just hang it up after I'm through with it. It's dry by next morning.

I wear my jeans 2x at least before washing, depending on what I'm doing. Gosh, unless you're going panty-less, there's no reason to wash your jeans after just one wearing, especially if it's just a few hours after work. What do you all do in your jeans? LOL! Unless I spill something on them, I will wear them again. Same thing goes for tops. If I wear a shirt for just a few hours, I'll wear it again another time. Unless again, I spill something. Or I sweat, lol. Otherwise, my body is clean.

Only thing I wash on a daily basis are my panties.

And by the way, I'm not a slob. I'm a very well-dressed, attractive, and professional female. I'm just not a germ freak imagining germs around every corner....

its the fact that the towel sits wet on the rack that makes it unclean to me. not my body IMO

 

[buzz5985]

You don't even want to know how many loads we do when everyone is home like they were over Christmas! All of my kids play sports. Have you ever smelled ice hockey laundry? It is GROSS! We had five soccer teams going this fall--the smell wasn't too much better. Sometimes I think my DH and sons need a towel for each body part...

LOL Yes I do. Nothing worse than giving a couple of kids a ride to hockey - and being forced to smell more than one bag. One kid on one of the younger teams got a fungus on his scalp from his helmet!!! Not letting it dry out properly.

I only have the one boy - but he plays hockey, baseball, lacrosse. Plus he is a scout and nothing is worse than the swamp locker that comes home after a week at summer camp!!!

This weekend is their Klondike Derby - race dog sleds through the woods - the boys are the dogs!!! Supposed to go down to 10 degrees. Wouldn't mind so much - last weekend it was 50 up here!!!

Janis
Janis

 

[bumbershoot]

Okay, I'm LOL at the posters who are a family of xx, with a dog... does the dog wear clothes?

It's probably more that big dogs mean lots of dog hair on clothes, it could mean muddy paws on clothes. It could mean they are washing dog beds, towels after doggie baths, etc.


I don't know how many loads I do, and I'm not sure I want to! I do know that of all the rooms in the house, I'm starting to seriously figure out what I truly want in a laundry room, when we buy/build a house someday in the future. It might end up being one of the biggest rooms in the house! Especially since I plan to have the clothing drawers in there, since we don't seem to be interested in actually putting laundry away in our dressers, and it's easiest to just grab clothes from the folding table to put on! Going to be one mighty fine laundry room....

 

[annsteere]

I put out 2 fresh kitchen towels and a fresh washing cloth every evening. (I use the washing cloth for dishes and the counter, one towel for hands and one for dishes that don't make the dishwasher.)

We reuse bath towels for about a week.

Is that what the rest of you mean when you say "reuse towels?" Or, do you use your kitchen towel for several days?

 

[wdwfan16]

I put out 2 fresh kitchen towels and a fresh washing cloth every evening. (I use the washing cloth for dishes and the counter, one towel for hands and one for dishes that don't make the dishwasher.)

We reuse bath towels for about a week.

Is that what the rest of you mean when you say "reuse towels?" Or, do you use your kitchen towel for several days?

This is what I ment. We change kitchen and hand towels daily but reuse bath towels.

 

[edk35]

I am OP and should have added, three boys who play HARD...dirt/sweat daily. Plus they play in "play" clothes, so that's two set of clothes per day: school and play. Soccer three times per week times for two of the boys and husband coaches. Husband is in construction and comes home smelly. Baby in house so that's at least 2 outfits a day plus crib accidents. Husband and I both work out daily so that's two sets of smelly gym clothes. Sheets are changed weekly, we do reuse towels for 2-3 nights. When I met husband, he was a clean/germ fanatic, so I knew what I was getting into!
On the plus side, I never have to pick up after my husband, as he is more of a clean/organized freak than me!

See I could easily see that many loads for your family. When my dd was younger (off at college now) she danced 6 days a week, so we had lots of cold water wash for her every week. My boys played baseball several times a week before my older son gave it up in 8th grade, now they are in year round soccer. Older son plays high school and club sports....that adds to the laundry. That stuff adds to the laundry piles. Then add in sheets, towels...it does add up each week. However a few years ago I got a front loader washer with matching dryer. HUGE difference in the amt. of loads I did per week. So that has helped big time. I couldn't believe how much this helped. Well worth it. Now the people on here that say they do 4-6 a week for a family of 4 to 6. They must be wearing clothes more than once or they only have one outfit per day. My husband wears two things most days...he comes home and changes from work (dressier clothes) and puts on jeans or sweats or whatever. I do the same some days too. Also, if you have very young kids or babies..I guess those people can stuff more in their loads since the clothes are iddy biddy.

I have always had a lot of laundry with our family of 5.

 

[disney1990]

Kids refusing to reuse towels; kids not hanging their towels up after they use them; these are things that were never allowed in our house. Our girls knew the rules. Your body is clean after your shower so you should be able to reuse your towel.

Now it is only DH and me. We probably do about 4-5 loads of laundry a week.

 

[amez]

Family of six here we do between 8 and 10 loads a week. We try to wash sheets weekly and we do reuse towels. I have a front loader and love it!

 

[littlbugmom]

We are a family of 4 and 1 dog.

I mention the dog because she uses towels. We have towels that are just for her....when it's wet outside, her paws get a wipe down before coming back in (shih tzu). She also has bedding in her cage that is washed weekly.

We use a bath towel three times before washing it....twice to dry our bodies and then it's hung up and used again the next day. It's hung up again but used to step on coming out of the bath/shower the next day.
Washclothes are used once.
Kitchen washclothes are used for one day.
Kitchen handtowels are used for two days because it's just to dry my hands.
Bath fingertowels are used two days.
Bed sheets are washed weekly.

My kids typically wear one set of clothes a day. DD9 isn't hard on her clothes but DS5 can be. He may need to change mid-day due to big spills.
They also have swimming, gymnastics and soccer....all of which adds clothing. My dh has uniforms we have to take care of and most of the time, they need to be done separate from the family loads.

My dh works a 24/48 rotating schedule, so he is home 3/4 days a week. He will typically do 2 loads a day. When he's working, I will do 1 load a day. We average 10-12 loads a week this way.


When my DS was a baby, he had reflux. I did 2 loads of just his spit up clothes/blankets every single day. At least. And then there were all of our clothes that he spit up on...(it would have been too convenient for the puke to actually hit the blanket we draped over ourselves at all times). So, we were changing our clothes a couple times a day. Add that to our normal laundry and man, that really sucked.

 

[wdwfan16]

25 loads of laundry makes me glad the factory is shut down!

 

[Belle5]

Plus he is a scout and nothing is worse than the swamp locker that comes home after a week at summer camp!!!

Janis
Janis

Oh, Janis...we are very much in the same boat with odors. Look at my siggie--I know the swamp locker smell VERY well!

 

[hippiemama76]

I think you are missing a major fact that adds to the laundry...KIDS.

We send nothing to the dry cleaners and use very little paper products (paper towels, paper napkins).

The only paper item we use is toilet tissue - everything else is cloth, including the diapers. With a family of four, I'm probably at about 15-20 loads a week.

Some of them are smaller loads - for example DH has a medical office and also does hours at the hospital. At the hospital he wears scrubs, which can and frequently do get covered in all kind of ick and get washed on their own the second he walks in the door. He might do 1 or 2 shifts at the hospital a week, but that's still 1 or 2 individual loads.

Plus, living in SW FL, even with the air running all the time, I still feel like linens don't stay as clean and crisp as they do elsewhere. I can get 2 uses out of a bath towel, but after that it's kind of . . . damp. The weather also leads to more showers (not necessarily a full washing, but just a rinse to feel fresh).

Scrubs X 2
Diapers X 3
Towels (bath, kitchen, napkins, etc.) X 3
Sheets X 1
Blankets X 1

That already puts me at 10 without a single article of clothing.

 

[lonegirl]

OP here again...thanks to you who are in the same boat, either due to climate or smelly sports clothes. For a while there, I was feeling very wasteful with all my loads. But we are an active family, constantly out in the heat and humidity riding bikes, playing in dirt, running, lifting weights etc. NOW I just have to find the biggest capacity washer/dryer our money can buy. DH jokes that we need commercial-sized ones or multiple machines. I think coin operated ones for the boys when they get older and start doing they own laundry will make me a rich woman.

 

[Disneyadore]

OP here again...thanks to you who are in the same boat, either due to climate or smelly sports clothes. For a while there, I was feeling very wasteful with all my loads. But we are an active family, constantly out in the heat and humidity riding bikes, playing in dirt, running, lifting weights etc. NOW I just have to find the biggest capacity washer/dryer our money can buy. DH jokes that we need commercial-sized ones or multiple machines. I think coin operated ones for the boys when they get older and start doing they own laundry will make me a rich woman.

I have an aunt who has the same "problem".
She washes like crazy and cleaning is the fulfillment of her life. ( she combs the carpets on her knees with a small brush so the threats are all in on direction)
On bad ,or should I call it good day, the police and the electric company knocked on here door.
They came to inspect the house. Her electric and water bill was so extravagant high they suspected she had a weed farm hidden in the cellar. She used as much water as little fabric
So beware if the "man in black" come knocking on your door.

 

[DawnM]

What size washer do you have right now?

We have a super capacity front loader.

Of course, you could be like the Duggars and get 2 or 3 of them and stack them so you can run them all like a laundry mat all at the same time!

Dawn

OP here again...thanks to you who are in the same boat, either due to climate or smelly sports clothes. For a while there, I was feeling very wasteful with all my loads. But we are an active family, constantly out in the heat and humidity riding bikes, playing in dirt, running, lifting weights etc. NOW I just have to find the biggest capacity washer/dryer our money can buy. DH jokes that we need commercial-sized ones or multiple machines. I think coin operated ones for the boys when they get older and start doing they own laundry will make me a rich woman.

 

[lonegirl]

What size washer do you have right now?

We have a super capacity front loader.

Of course, you could be like the Duggars and get 2 or 3 of them and stack them so you can run them all like a laundry mat all at the same time!

Dawn

I don't know the size, but it will only hold one king sheet set at a time, or two twin sheet sets together. Maybe 3-4 large towels with wash cloths thrown in...
They are older, so we're eyeing the Samsungs...

 

[DawnM]

Oh, yeah, I would be doing 3 times the amount of loads too if that were the machine I had.

NOW I GET WHY YOU DO SO MANY LOADS!

We have the Kenmore front loaders. The washing machine is about 8 years old. The dryer is 5 years old. I can easily fit in whatever anyone wore that day (even if they had 2 outfits on), plus a sheet or a couple of towels.....and we are a family of 5.

Dawn

I don't know the size, but it will only hold one king sheet set at a time, or two twin sheet sets together. Maybe 3-4 large towels with wash cloths thrown in...
They are older, so we're eyeing the Samsungs...

 

[busy mom]

I constantly preach the "use the towel twice" rule in our house, but it still seems as I am always washing towels.

A little secret between us - my teenage daughters think its gross to wear their pajamas twice, so I just fluff them in the dryer with a dryer sheet and put them right back in the pj drawers. Sshhhh.....