>Green washing of Jeans: wash first, dry last. Hang to air dry in between.
This saves time and energy by air drying the wettest of the jeans. They’ll shrink less, too, as they can now dry for a minimal time on the delicate cycle.
20 Mule Team Borax is a great invention.
It smells better than bleach, doesn’t spill (well, I don’t spill it as easily), and takes out stains well. It doesn’t cost as much as commercial detergent boosters, and the paper box is recyclable.
Detergent makers usually recommend at least double the amount that’s really needed to wash a load well.
Of course! They want me to buy twice as much of their product. Ha, ha, ha. I’m wise to this trick!
Dryers eat socks. Sometimes they spit them out later. I keep an Orphan Sock Box in the closet for socks waiting reconciliation.
This also works if one sock in a pair spouts a hole. When another pair from the same package suffers the same loss, there’s a new mate waiting. If a sock really, really doesn’t have a mate, it will eventually end up in my classroom as a white-board eraser.
Just because I do this chore efficiently doesn’t mean I like it.
I’ve learned enough tricks to get the family laundry done quickly and efficiently, get the stains out (mostly), and get all the clothes back in the closets and drawers by the time school and workweeks start Monday morning. It’s a necessity, family, not a pleasure.
Clothes must be washed, no matter what the other plans are. Fit it in.
See above. If we’re going away for part of the weekend, I’ll start sorting and washing ahead of time. If report cards are due, I’ll start a wash load, work on math grade, throw the wash in the dryer, work on reading grades, etc., etc., etc. Laundry is a good Sunday chore, too; I can fold sheets in front of the TV while the Packers are playing!
Each and every family member needs to own at least two weeks worth of underwear.
See above. If no one runs out of underwear, laundry can wait a week in a pinch. Maybe. So there’s the wisdom; make sure everyone has drawers in their drawers, and the livin’ is easy.
>You and I were cut from the same laundry cloth! I could have written this post almost word for word. The only difference is that I keep orphaned socks on top of the dryer. It keeps my husband from cluttering it up with a bunch of his junk. I am going to steal your dry-erase board idea for socks without mates. That’s a good one, green sister!
And don’t forget the other beauty of Borax…it has many other uses around the house that just laundry. I just cleaned my toilets with it yesterday! We love that stuff!
>I concur, the orphan sock box was kept on the dryer. Orphans that never found a new mate polished the chrome on the car or occasionally the few silver trays I have.
Using the recommended amount of detergent also leads to build-up in knits and the colors turn chalky; and it weakens the fabric.
>I’ve read somewhere that with the new washing machines, one would need less detergents 😀 but of course, the new machines costs more!
my youngest doesnt like using the same pairs of socks, such that the socks box is like a salad bowl! she wont make my life easy.