It’s All About the Laundry Routine

Laundry. We all need to do it, maybe just for ourselves or possibly for the entire family. It’s the never-ending chore, from collecting the dirty clothes to washing, drying, folding, and putting them away. Yet some people love to do laundry and others procrastinate! Why might this be? Well, it’s all about the routine you may (or may not!) have in place.

Your routine will vary from the next person. You’ll have to consider how many people live in the home, how many people are doing laundry (when my kids entered high school, laundry became their responsibility), whether or not you sort your clothes by light, medium and dark to wash them, and how frequently laundry is being done.

The key to developing a routine (and sticking to it!) is finding what works best for your family. To do this, track your laundry usage for a few weeks. Keep a list of how many loads are done, for which people, how often you’re washing sheets and towels, how frequently you want to do laundry, whether you need to iron clothes, and how all the clean clothes get put away in the proper place.

Here's a basic schedule to follow. Feel free to mix it up and add in what you need to get the laundry washed, folded, hung up and put away.

Monday: Adult #1 laundry day

Tuesday: Adult #2 laundry day

Wednesday: Sheets and towels day

Thursday: Take a laundry break

Friday: Child #1 laundry day

Saturday: Child #2 laundry day

Sunday: Take a laundry break

Instead of a firm schedule like this, you may find a better way to get all the laundry done is to divide the tasks among family members. Maybe someone likes to sort the colors, another wants to wash and dry the clothes, and yet another family member will fold and sort into laundry baskets.

Some additional tips from Living. Simplified. to help get the laundry done:

Give every person in your home their own laundry basket. As soon as they are strong enough to carry the full laundry basket, kids (and adults!) should be responsible for taking their dirty laundry to the laundry room and the clean clothing back to their room.

Get the kids to help. Even when they are just a toddler, kids will enjoy helping putting clothing in the washing machine or dryer (especially if they are front loaders) supervised by an adult. Young children can also help put their clothes in their dresser or hand up items already on hangers on a low rack in their closet.

Clean the washing machine. Periodically, it’s a good idea to disinfect the inside of your laundry machine to remove any residual mildew that may build up. Be sure to wipe down the rubber gasket on front loaders. Check the internet for options including with and without bleach, vinegar or baking soda.

Setting up a new routine might take a little getting used to. But sticking with it will, in the long run, ease the chore, get everyone involved, and hopefully make doing laundry a little bit easier.