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Laundry - how many different loads do you sort it all into?

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Does everyone do lots of different washes for everything? I do separate washes for:

Bedsheets 60 C
White clothes (hardly any) 40 C
Darks (Jeans/clothes) 40 C
Colours 40 C
Delicates (wool stuff) 30 C
Bath towels/Tea towels/cleaning cloths 60 C

It's six different washes, with different laundry baskets all over the house to sort/store the stuff.

Usually, each wash is less than half full which seems very wasteful, and it's time consuming. It would be different if I was doing laundry for a whole family but it's just me, so there's never that much stuff. I can't save up enough for a full load as it would take ages and there's always things I need regularly.

Is there any way to reduce this? I was thinking of adding the white clothes into the 60 C wash with the bedsheets, but would this shrink them? Is it unhygienic to add the towels in to the 40 C clothes wash?
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Comments

  • Jackieboy
    Jackieboy Posts: 1,010 Forumite
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    Whites (or very light colours) and darks - all done at 40 degrees nearly always. If I have to mix, I use a colour catcher.
  • Silvertabby
    Silvertabby Posts: 9,024 Forumite
    First Anniversary Name Dropper Photogenic First Post
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    I do the same, but just put all clothes into the same laundry basket and sort it out at the washing stage (towels and bedding are just carried straight downstairs). Not too bad for us, as there's two of us and so double the clothes washing.
  • Rachiedabbler70
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    I do the same as mentioned above. One lights wash one coloureds at 30 or 40 degrees and I don't iron anything except shirts. 😁
    Blitz that mortgage
    Jun 2016 £152,000
    April 2021 £85,000
  • trolleyrun
    trolleyrun Posts: 1,382 Forumite
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    Bedding/towels/teatowels
    Everything else goes in a 40C wash. I rarely buy new clothes so they've all been washed plenty of times and won't run. When I wore white shirts for work I washed them separately with Napisan as otherwise they'd go grey and the Napisan would bleach the coloured items.
  • prosaver
    prosaver Posts: 7,026 Forumite
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    When i wash whites and towels i pour bleach on the towel b4, to give it a good clean. BTW 40 degs
    “Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
    ― George Bernard Shaw
  • Jamiesmum
    Jamiesmum Posts: 368 Forumite
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    Everything goes in at once unless labels state otherwise. I've a lot of clothes that I hand wash to avoid ruining. But anything of the partners, my son, our uniforms + and towels and bed covers all go in together. Never do any whites/pinks with jeans but tend to do jeans with towels. We always have a million towels to wash, and there is only 3 of us.
  • Frith
    Frith Posts: 8,157 Forumite
    Mortgage-free Glee! Name Dropper Photogenic First Anniversary
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    All goes in same wash
  • Linda32
    Linda32 Posts: 4,385 Forumite
    First Post First Anniversary Combo Breaker
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    I put everything in the same washing basket.

    Then at the end of the week I put our work clothes in (coloured) along with socks and pants (coloured)

    Then I put the bedding and underwear in (whites) or bedding and dishcloths and tea towels. Every month or so I will do this wash at 60 otherwise its 40

    I change the towels and flannel twice a week and put in anything that is left over. I use fabric softener on this wash for the towels.

    Then about every 4 weeks when I have a load of my nice clothes, I put these on at 30.

    Two adults at home.
  • coffeehound
    coffeehound Posts: 5,674 Forumite
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    With the home washing machine currently kaput, it's all in together in a 25-kg launderette washer on the 'warm' cycle with two dye catcher sheets. All seems to work without tears using colour powder.
  • SmlSave
    SmlSave Posts: 4,911 Forumite
    First Anniversary Combo Breaker
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    I never used to sort clothing but since I've got a new machine I now separate into a white wash and an everything else wash.

    Even the cloth nappies go in the normal wash
    Currently studying for a Diploma - wish me luck :)

    Phase 1 - Emergency Fund - Complete :j
    Phase 2 - £20,000 Mortgage Fund - Underway
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