How many loads of washing a week?

Emmala

I don't want to count them!!! There are 5 in our house, me DH and three kids. I tend to do one load every day, sometimes two, then towels once a week, two lots of swimming stuff, plus bedding (which is four lots of washing). It's never ending!!!!! Then, just when I think I'm on top of things, DH will get his suitcase from the back of the car and leave it in FRONT of the machine!!!! (most weeks he's away for a night or two, sometimes all week).

We have just got a new Bosch washing machine which will be plumbed in today - it's a 7kg drum which is bigger than my current machine, and is very efficient for both water and electric, so I'm hoping it will reduce how many loads I do, as well as work out cheaper (we are about to be put on a water meter).

It's the bane of my life.......and don't even get me started on the ironing..............................!!!!! :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

cleggie

There is me and 2 children and i do about 8-9 loads a week.

CH27

There are three of us.

I do one load of bedding( change beds fortnightly)
1 load of towels
1 load of whites
2 loads of darks.

splishsplash

I have three children, the eldest lives away at college but brings her laundry home at weekends. This week's laundry was fairly typical and I did:

• four quick-wash loads for throws (each has to be done separately due to wet weight) - cool wash, mini-load, eco option, tumble dried two at a time
• one pet bedding (all pet blankets and cushions)
• one whites
• two dark colours
• one light colours
• two 60 degree loads (bedding, underwear, towels)
• one cool gentle wash (knits, jackets)

All clothes were tumble dried apart from the cool/gentle wash, and all apart from the throws were full loads in a 7kg machine.

I've been without a washing machine in the past (often have had to wait a week or two between calling in for a callout and getting the repairs done). I did laundry in the bath, and certainly washed the clothes better than any machine, but it was a big job and had to be done every day to keep on top of it.

I don't envy women in the past who had to do everything by hand... and don't get me started on the practice of storing urine to bleach whites - that's something I learned about only recently, and could have done without knowing!

esmf73

hesitate to think but last week alone DS1 came home covered head to foot in mud at LEAST twice - cue new school shoes needed as first set don't dry out enough before the next day! AARGH When will it get frosty?

suzybloo

There are only of two of and dgs 2-3 nights a week, and I have 2 dark washes, 1 wool wash, 2 DH washing, 2 bedding, and 3 white washes a week, then one for the bathmats,cloths etc so in total 11-12 loads a week!
Never actually stopped to work it out before !

Hawthorn

I do roughly two loads a day, and I'm horribly behind at the moment. Washing is not a problem. Getting it dry is another thing entirely :mad:

I do have a huge indoor airer (a handy line thing) and a concertina airer, but still, with the heating not on except very occasionally it just doesn't dry. Roll on summer!

Our family consists of me...I wear clothing for 2 days, except underwear. My husband who needs his uniform washing daily as he is a carer. A very finicky 16 yo who insists that wearing something for three hours means it's manky and needs cleaning, or preferably throwing away and replacing with a new one. This is a boy, believe it or not. I do try to sneak clothes back into the wardrobe though
A fourteen year old. Now, this child is not a problem in generating washing....in fact if he had his way, he would generate one washload a year. How can two brothers be so different :rotfl: So yeah, I grab grotbags clothing after two days wear. he's not heavy on clothes but has that lovely teenage boy scent going on
A twelve year old daughter, who is getting more finicky by the day. Somehow she ends up trying on outfits and the ones that she tried on previously mysteriously end up in the dirty wash pile.....then mysteriously end up back in the wardrobe
And the eight year old. The soccer mad, thinks nothing of using his coat/bags as goalposts, sliding on knees even in thick mud, running round in white shirt and playing goalie and catching the muddy, wet, ball against his chest eight year old. Pure filth. He's a muck magnet that one. He generates a lot of washing. Send him to school looking pristine and by the time he's even entered the school at first bell he looks like a bedraggled waif.

Towels. With six of us, all taking daily showers....meh, just meh.

Bedding gets changed once a fortnight.

Get through a ton of teatowels as well, and dishcloths.

And a lovely, dappy as heck bull terrier.......who likes to 'rescue' clothing from the airers and sleep on them.

I think I should just give up the ghost and hire a launderess. Money saving no, but I might just regain my sanity!

aligerdie

Until reading this thread, I'd not really thought about how much washing I was doing.

With 4 kids (3 under 5) and a mucky hubby, I'm doing 2-3 loads a day,and more at weekends :eek:

DD2 is having problems staying dry at the moment, so sometimes it's more...

I'm going to have to look into lowering this (how I don't know!) because I'm struggling to get it dry without using the dryer, and all the radiators are full!!

Thank you for the tips Avocado I'll see if they make a difference

valk_scot

Two adults and two kids. One of the kids plays rugby, the other one hockey. They both go to Scouts and wear school uniform.

I do three loads of darks, colours and whites twice per week, plus one load of towels, one load of bedding and one load of anything extra filthy like rugby shorts. Everything is done at either 30' or 40' with half the soap powder and no conditioner or anything else. I live in a soft water area so it's not necessary. I put my bras in with the rest of the washing (they never seem to come to any harm) and hand wash proper wool type woolens.

I have rules about what goes in the laundry. Towels get dried off after each use, we all share (family germs!!) and I change them twice a week only. We have TurbiTowels for long hair. I change bedding once per fortnight..one week I do our king size, the other week I do the kids' beds. We all have clean socks, knickers and t-shirt or school blouse/shirt every day but school trousers and jumper/sweatshirt are expected to last a full week, barring falls or craft activities. I would have a lot to say to anyone who put a pair of jeans or trousers or PJs into the laundry basket after only one day...three or four is more like it.

We do all shower every day and use deoderant. I don't think we smell! But I do know women who make their kids change out of school uniform every day and wash the whole lotd aily , plus the outfit the kids changed into for a few hours, plus towels for every member of the family every day, plus bedding twice per week, PJs every day and anything else that's been on even for an hour or two. That's madness...no-one is that dirty.

rising_from_the_ashes

I've cut down massively - I was really bad for putting clean clothes on after my bath and chucking them in the wash went I went to bed (a couple of hours) and then using another clean set to walk the dog in the morning:eek:. The night ones are now also used for the dog walk the next morning which has cut out a whole set of clothes/day (quickly mounts up when you think 7 sets of clothes a week!).

So ...

2 loads of clothes (whites / colours go in together as I don't generate enough to do separate loads & refuse to do 1/2 loads)
1 towels
1 dog towels / bedding (he generates the most washing!)
1 bedding / throws etc (alternate weeks)

An extra load here & there as needed