How often to do washing?

itsthelittlethings

Partly a money saving question but partly a sanity saving question as I feel like I'm always washing clothes. How many washes a week would you do as a single person who wears a uniform for work? I like to wash my bedding once weekly (is that too much?). Then I do two clothing washes but I'm wondering if I could manage one wash by wearing things a bit longer. Any thought gratefully received.

Ambyth

Same amount here.  I try to get away with 2 loads, though some weeks it goes to three.

itsthelittlethings

Ambyth said:

Same amount here.  I try to get away with 2 loads, though some weeks it goes to three.

Is that one load of bedding and one of clothes?

jackieblack

I do one load of bedding and light coloureds each week.
In winter I tend to wear more dark colours so one load of dark coloureds each week with a load of whites once a fortnight, in the summer this switches to one load of whites each week with a load of dark coloureds once a fortnight

YBR

The answer is "it depends". 

How dirty does it get? In an office job I might wear my work clothes for 2-3 days between washes provided I hadn't spilt anything them but in a dirty or sweaty role it wouldn't be right.

Similarly with sheets, I'm happy to go 2 weeks between washes (particularly when I can't dry them outdoors), but I shower/wash before bed and don't currently get night sweats and ... well ... yours may get dirtier.

JGB1955

I do one mixed wash a week and a sheets or towels wash on alternate weeks.  There are 2 of us, but retired now.

itsthelittlethings

JGB1955 said:

I do one mixed wash a week and a sheets or towels wash on alternate weeks.  There are 2 of us, but retired now.

That sounds good.

Not a manual worker so I don't get sweaty at work.

Honey_Bear

It depends entirely on the weather.  I don't have a tumble drier and I don't want wet laundry draped all over the house, because it creates a damp problem.  

It also depends on the fabric of the uniform, how likely I would be to sweat in it at work, and how many changes I had of it.  I would never inflict anything in the slightest smelly on anyone else, or myself.

Other than that - when the weather's fine and the laundry basket is full I do a white load, a dark coloured load and that includes a bed change - white bottom sheet, blue duvet covers and pillow cases.  Occasionally there'e enough to do a light coloured load as well, but the loads are in that order.

So, weather dependent in the winter, although I have been known to stack bed linen near the washing machine when we want to change the bed an dthe weather's vile.

In the summer or a dry spell from spring onwards - shower curtains, front door draught excluding curtain, dressing gowns, cushion and sofa covers, anything I can lay my hands on during a hot spell that fits in the washing machine that i can get dry.  

At boarding school, we each had three cotton sheet, two pillowcases, two towels and two napkins.  Every Saturday we were required to put the bottom sheet, a pillowcase, a towel and a napkin in the laundry, and remake the bed, putting what was the top sheet on the bottom, and use a clean pillowcase.  I've pretty much stuck to that system all my life as an adult, but not necessarily on Saturdays, and we use duvets now instead of a top sheet.  

MattMattMattUK

Single person here, weekly washing list below 
Sheets, towels, gym towels, jeans, white cotton, mixed cotton, white manmade, mixed manmade. 
Monthly
Kitchen towels and oven gloves, shower mats, as both take a month to get a full load change every week for mat and kitchen towels and oven gloves as needed. 
On top of that extra sheet changes in my spare room if someone visits.
So on average ten loads a week, does not bother me in the slightest, a minute or two at most to load, maybe give to hang it up to dry and another five to put it away. 

otb666

pillow cases bed sheets and bathroom towels fortnightly. t towels oven gloves weekly  I change vest pants bras socks and night dress daily. This amounts to 3 loads every fortnight. My outer clothes get washed about every 3 months I rotate them and unless they get dirty I do not wash them as over a 3 month period only wear them about 3 to 6 days each as have a huge collection of clothes think 30 jumpers 20 trousers 40 tops and 20 skirts.  I am a bit weird with clothes as cannot bin them but have a huge selection collected over several decades always been given clothes and never shop for them. I have winter and summer clothes separate.  I only have washing machine and clothes horse which I manage but make sure house is well ventilated and heating never goes below 18oc I pay 200pm for gas and electric. 

itsthelittlethings

MattMattMattUK said:

Single person here, weekly washing list below 
Sheets, towels, gym towels, jeans, white cotton, mixed cotton, white manmade, mixed manmade. 
Monthly
Kitchen towels and oven gloves, shower mats, as both take a month to get a full load change every week for mat and kitchen towels and oven gloves as needed. 
On top of that extra sheet changes in my spare room if someone visits.
So on average ten loads a week, does not bother me in the slightest, a minute or two at most to load, maybe give to hang it up to dry and another five to put it away. 

10 loads a week?!