College Student Laundry

[HappyGarret]

The time has come for me to do my own laundry.

I'm re-reading the ERE book and will go buy some borax, sodium carbonate, and [self-grated] bar soap tomorrow--and maybe a clothing rack since I can't think of a good spot for a clothesline.

I live in a dorm--with a roommate--in Amherst, Massachusetts with washing machines at $1.25 a load, and drying machines at I-haven't-checked-the-prices-yet.

A few questions:

1. How to wash clothes (i.e. which colors with which, how to not ruin fabrics, etc)
2. Does the plunger & 10 gal bucket strategy actually work? How do I go about it?
3. What about the laundry board? And how does that work?
4. When do I use dry or liquid detergent?
5. What would be a good location to start a clothesline? Should I just stick with the rack inside my dorm?

Thanks in advance

[jennypenny]

1. Lights, darks, and brights should be washed separately. Do yourself a favor and avoid bright clothing if possible. Don't overload the washer. Wash everything in cold water. Whites can be washed in warm water.

4. Use dry detergent in a dorm washer. Liquid detergents can stain the clothes, especially in cold water (I know). It's easier to make homemade dry detergent anyway.

5. I own two drying racks. One would fit in your room. The other would probably have to go in the lounge or laundry area. I only paid $30 for the folding rack and $37 for the standing rack, so the prices aren't good right now.
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Could you rig a clothesline in your dorm room? Something like this...
http://www.amazon.com/Honey-Can-Do-DRY- ... lothesline
That's pretty cheap and all you would need is clothes pins to go with it.

In a dorm, I would say the goal is to avoid getting your clothes and linens dirty quickly so you have less wash to do. Hang your clothes and towels up. Air the bed every day and don't eat or wear shoes on your bed. Take off good clothes (jeans, etc) in the dorm and have something you wear to knock around in. If you get a spot on something like jeans or a sweatshirt, run the spot under cold water and use a little dish soap to get it out. There is no need to wash the entire garment. Wear t-shirts under other shirts so you can get 2-3 wears out of the good shirts.

Keep febreeze in your room. A little febreeze sprayed on clothes and a short tumble in the dryer will make clothes seem clean in a pinch

[KevinW]

Take off good clothes (jeans, etc) in the dorm and have something you wear to knock around in...Wear t-shirts under other shirts so you can get 2-3 wears out of the good shirts.

+1

Another reason that dry detergent may work better for you is that it is more space-efficient. Liquid detergent is mostly water which takes up a lot of space and weight.

I recommend simplifying things by setting up your wardrobe so you only have "dark" clothes that wash cold and "white" clothes that wash hot in bleach (undershirts), eliminating the "lights" category. Also boycot anything that requires special care e.g. dry cleaning or hand washing.

[bibacula]

I wash everything in warm water. If something doesn't survive, then it doesn't belong in my wardrobe.

Check clothing tags before you buy for "Machine Wash Normal" instructions.

Detergent is cheap; I've never thought of making my own. I only use 1/4 of the recommended amount. Otherwise, the detergent won't fully rinse out, which irritates skin.

Use a machine whenever you have enough for a full load. If you just have a few items, then soak them in a bucket with a little detergent for 30 minutes. Rinse twice and hang up.

[Chris]

Detergent

You're probably better off getting a bottle of the ultra-concentrated liquid. Getting the ingredients to make your own will take up more space and won't save much money. I use All Small and Mighty. $5/bottle, lasts me over a year. Use 1/2 a cap.

Clothesline

If you have at least some doors, you can rig a standard clothesline. Wrap one end around a doorknob, run the line up to the hinge and loop it around the top. You may need to pull the hinge pin up a little to act as a guide for the line. String the line to the next door and loop over the hinge pin there. Repeat until you run out of doors or line. At the last door, anchor the line by tightly wrapping around the knob. The pattern you want to end up with will cover the most distance (to fit more clothes) while crisscrossing the least.

But if your dorm room is like mine was, you won't have the space to hang a full load. I ended up using the clothes baker.

[jacob]

2,3,4) Fill bucket with water (warm or cold depending one what you're washing). Add detergent, liquid or not, doesn't matter, to dissolve. Use plunger to agitate clothes. "Washing action" is mechanical, not so much chemical. You can also use your hands although they may get raw. A washboard makes for more mechanical action (take the clothes and rub on on the board). Once clean, take clothes out, replace with clean water. Rinse clothes again. Wring clothes in hands.

In my student days I used a laundromat. My wardrobe was designed to fit exactly 1 cold load and 1 warm load done every 14 days. I used a clothesline. That equaled 4x1.25=$5/month at your cost.

[pete]

Using a bucket & plunger or a washing board takes too much time. Always wash a full load, anything less is wastefull. Add your roomie's laundry if need be and split the cost.
Stay in the laundry room (and do reading) so your laundry doesn't walk off. If using liquid detergent, use no more than a half capfull
In college, my clothes were either white (underwear) or blue (shirts & jeans). That way, everything could go into the same washer at the same time.
Avoid using the dryer. Dryers destroy fabric by overheating or by rubbing the clothes against each other. Use a clothesline. I don't know how your room is laid out, but the clothes line could be attached to an over the door hook, around the closet pole, around a partially open window (knot one end of the line, toss it past the window, and close the window as much as can). Take the clothesline down when not in use so the RA doesn't get upset about safety.
Do you ever go home for the weekend? Do laundry at home

[pangburnfam]

I've never done the bucket method. I have tried the tub method (fill tub a bit, add clothes, stomp around) as well as using a salad spinner (tedious as hell). Both gave me mediocre results. I really despise wringing clothing out by hand. I guess I have weak hands - but I get blisters every time. Then again, I am washing for four.

Anyway, I had the "WonderClean" in the past and it worked pretty well...well, slightly better than hand washing (you do need to wring out the clothing though). It might fit in your room. I highly recommend at the very least to hang dry your clothing. We hang dry ours year round. You get used to stiff socks and crunchy towels...and the savings is well worth it.

[Stahlmann]

I'm going to buy 5kg of borax. I have fear that something will go wrong, because it won't be Brand Name Very Known Cleaning Agent Tm. I've got front loader in home.

On the other hand, back then I used Tidal in USA, where the only ingredient was... borax.

Is there any difference in mesh size?

[Farm_or]

1) Get in a cold shower with your clothes on.

2) Pedal your bike through a bad neighborhood (fast).

[Stahlmann]

Heh

On other side of musings:
1) I used borax once. The stuff which come from the machine wasn't soft. Hmm... I will maybe try adding "normal" softener in smaller portions.
2) With borax, there is no Consumer Brand Fresh Flower Magic Scent. Hmmm. I'll try adding scent concentrate. Firstly, I need to find something bigger than 10 ml bottles