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Today consumers take advantage of many advanced household appliances that do the bulk of the housework for them. And doing laundry is no exception. But even if your family owns a washing machine and dryer, taking care of the family’s laundry can turn out to be time-consuming. That, of course, depends on the number of family members. But it’s safe to say that even one extra household members make a dramatic impact on the family’s laundry habits – especially if that extra member is a child.
That’s why sorting, cleaning, drying, and folding clothes might end up taking hours of your time every week. If you feel that doing laundry takes way too much of your time and want to cut it down, this article is for you. Read on to find out how to minimize your effort without creating a large pile of dirty clothes with these 7 handy tips.
1. Pre-sort and Pre-treat your clothing
Pre-sorting might sound like a little too much, but in fact, it’s a real time saver when it comes to doing family laundry. Here’s how to get started. Set up a separate hamper dedicated to different laundry loads. That way, pre-sorting won’t add any time to your laundry routine. And this is exactly what we’re trying to achieve here – save as much time on doing laundry as possible.
Also, at this point, you can check the table of care instructions which are very handy to learn how to wash a garment properly. It’s always a good idea to have a look at these instructions because washing specific garments with clothing of inappropriate color (for example, dark) or in temperature that is too high might ruin them.
It’s easy to ask family members to drop their white clothing into one basket, the delicate pieces into another, and heavily-stained clothes into yet another one. It’s just as easy as throwing all the clothing together. Once the laundry day rolls around, you won’t have to spend any time on that task as the job is already done.
Another smart tactic to reduce the time you spend on dealing with the family laundry is pre-treating stains. By addressing these problematic stains as soon as they appear you’ll save time in the long run. You won’t have to deal with dried-on dirt on your clothes and hold up the rest of your load until you manage it.
2. Create a laundry schedule and stick to it
Now it’s time to take a closer look at your family’s clothing habits. This point is essential because it will help you in planning the frequency of doing laundry to optimize the time you spend on it.
Here’s how to do that. Analyze how your family uses their clothes and which fabrics dominate in your household. By doing that, you’ll be able to figure out how often you need to do the laundry in the first place. For example, if your family’s staple piece of clothing is jeans, then they can go through multiple wears before they get washed. Or perhaps your partner wears undershirts? If so, his button-downs might get a second use.
The idea is to optimize the time you spend on doing laundry. If you make sure that everyone has underwear and socks to last two weeks, you’ll be able to do laundry less frequently. The same holds true for items like sheets and towels. If you have more than two sets, you can easily wait until the two sets are dirty and wash them while the third set is in use. There’s no need to do laundry more frequently than you need to!
3. Buy easy-care clothing
Another smart method for cutting down on the time you dedicate to laundry is paying attention to the care of clothing at the moment of purchase. If you buy items of clothing that are notoriously difficult to wash and maintain, no wonder that laundry takes so much time and effort. Some fabrics may require extra care – like pre-washing, special detergents, or other treatments. And if you happen to won clothing with these requirements, you’re just bound to spend more time doing laundry. Bet on easy to wash fabrics like cotton, and you’ll be on your way to reducing the laundry time.
4. Learn how to remove stains
To spend as little time as possible on washing, take advantage of some effective strategies for dealing with food stains. Use a stain remover pen – it’s easy to store it in a handbag, glove compartment or desk drawer. It might not get out every kind of stain, but it’s an excellent first line of defense against stains. Have a look online to learn the most effective ways to banish stains from foods and other sources.
5. Learn more about your appliances
Read the instruction booklet of your home appliances to make sure that you’re using them as efficiently as possible. For example, you need to learn a full wash actually means and how dirty your clothes need to be to require a heavy wash cycle. You might find out that your items can be washed on shorter cycles and with less water. That way, you’ll spend less time waiting to transfer them into the dryer.
There’s plenty to learn from the instruction booklet of your washing machine/dryer. So take your time to go through it properly and you might discover that there are many steps you can take to make the process of doing laundry more efficient. Also, keep your dryer vent clean to ensure that the auto dry is working efficiently. All of these steps will help you save money on energy, water, and maintenance.
6. Organize your laundry space
A neat and well-organized laundry space is much easier to use than a chaotic room with the floor covered with piles of clothes. You might be the only member of the household who sees this room, but it’s in your interest to keep it neat. Store detergents and stain treaters in baskets or on shelves. Leave some space for a drying rack. You can also use it for the retractable line for hanging delicate items.
Another important step in organizing your laundry room is creating some space for your pre-sorting hampers. Don’t forget to keep the tops of your machines clear and set up a small table to hold your laundry baskets. Why not decorate your room with a fresh boat of paint and some beautiful pictures framed on the walls? There’s no reason why you shouldn’t enjoy spending time in that room.
7. Learn how to fold quickly
The final step of every laundry routine is folding. Until machines learn how to do it, you’re on your own. But you can easily speed up this process by learning some quick-fold techniques. For example, the two-second shirt fold comes in handy if you deal with a lot of shirts in your household. You can store hangers in the laundry room to hang clothes as soon as they come of out the dryer. That way, you’ll keep them wrinkle-free.
Doing laundry is a necessity, but with these tips and tricks, you’ll be on your way to reducing the time you spend on it. Use these tips to control the time you dedicate to doing laundry and make the entire process more efficient.
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This content is sponsored by Jamshed Chaudhary.
Photo: Shutterstock