08/09/2022

College Students and Laundry

It is back-to-school time, and many of my friends are sending their kids off for their first year of college.  It will not be long before we send Gray off to college, and I worry about his ability to adjust to life on his own given how much I do for him.  Over the years I have tried teaching him to do laundry, but with his schedule and my schedule we never stick to it long term.

Thankfully, I still have two more years to teach him, but it is likely that I will let life get in the way.  If that is the case, I will just send him a link to this post and give him a bunch of quarters.  If you have put off teaching your college bound kid how to do laundry, pass this along so they do not bring their dirty clothes to you every weekend.  

1. Check all care labels.  Separate out items that need to be hand washed or dry cleaned.  This would also be a good time to check pockets.
2. As you sort, pre-treat spots or stains.
3. Place bath towels and bed linens in a separate pile.  They can withstand the highest temperatures and most aggressive cycles.  Plus, they can sometimes get tangled in with smaller more delicate pieces.
4. Separate remaining items into darks, lights, and whites
5. Turn treasured pieces and blue jeans inside out.  This will help reduce the chance of color loss.
6. Zip all zippers.  This will help reduce snagging on other garments.
7. Place delicate items into mesh laundry bags.
8. Loosely place items in the washing machine.  Never overload the machine because clothes will not come clean if there is not enough room to agitate.
9. Select cycle, water temperature, and detergent according to the care label’s directions when washing garments.
10. Once the cycle is finished, check to see if spots have been removed before placing clothes in the dryer.  If the spot remains, do not put the item in the dryer.  The heat will set the stain.  Instead, place it to the side to re-treat and wash again.
11. Clean the lint trap before putting clothes in the dryer.
12. Select the dryer time and temperature according to the care label’s directions
13. Since garments dry at different rates, keep like drying requirements together.
14. Be sure not to overload the dryer.  If the dryer is overloaded, it will cause some items to over dry and others to remain damp.
15. Remove clothes from the dyer as soon as the cycle is completed and either properly fold or hang on appropriate hangers so that winkles do not start forming.

Of course, another option is to utilize A Cleaner World’s Wash and Fold Laundry Service, and knowing my son, I’ll just hope he goes to college near an A Cleaner World location.