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Making laundry cost efficient


plain jane
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We recently moved into a rental due to relocation for dh's job and not wanting to purchase in an area that we do not know. I wanted to be able to get a feel for the area and where we would like to be before committing to buy.  This is our first time renting and I have to say it's odd. :)

 

The house, while nice, has an old top loading machine.  I don't care how it looks and it seems to get the clothes reasonably clean but I have two concerns: the electric costs to run the machine and the number of loads I need to run per day.  We are on a well here so there are no water costs (but there are the electric costs to run the well).  In our old front loading machine I typically did 1 load per day every day of the week. That machine, I would venture a guess can fit a good 1/3 more laundry in it, if not more.  Here, I find that I am having to run 1 load per day with 2 every other day due to the smaller size of the top loader and not being able to stuff clothes in.   I'm concerned that the costs of doing this many more loads in an inefficient machine are going to add up.

 

I'm considering checking out Craigslist and purchasing an inexpensive front loading washer from someone who has recently upgraded theirs but a quick look shows that we would be spending about $300 or slightly more for a decent front loader, much higher if we want anything fancy.

 

Since we only plan to be here a year (although I could take my machine with me and/or sell it at the time of move) does it make economical sense to change to a front loading machine or should I just suck it up and use the old top loader?  I do like that this top loader can have a load done in 20min tops while the front loader took just over an hour.  That part is nice, but I don't know the electricity cost difference between the two.  Are the savings of the front loaders mostly in water (not as much a concern on a well) or electric costs as well?

 

I'm trying to figure out how to leave as cheaply as possible so we can sack money away for a family vacation before we buy our new home next year. :)

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We recently moved into a rental due to relocation for dh's job and not wanting to purchase in an area that we do not know. I wanted to be able to get a feel for the area and where we would like to be before committing to buy. This is our first time renting and I have to say it's odd. :)

 

The house, while nice, has an old top loading machine. I don't care how it looks and it seems to get the clothes reasonably clean but I have two concerns: the electric costs to run the machine and the number of loads I need to run per day. We are on a well here so there are no water costs (but there are the electric costs to run the well). In our old front loading machine I typically did 1 load per day every day of the week. That machine, I would venture a guess can fit a good 1/3 more laundry in it, if not more. Here, I find that I am having to run 1 load per day with 2 every other day due to the smaller size of the top loader and not being able to stuff clothes in. I'm concerned that the costs of doing this many more loads in an inefficient machine are going to add up.

 

I'm considering checking out Craigslist and purchasing an inexpensive front loading washer from someone who has recently upgraded theirs but a quick look shows that we would be spending about $300 or slightly more for a decent front loader, much higher if we want anything fancy.

 

Since we only plan to be here a year (although I could take my machine with me and/or sell it at the time of move) does it make economical sense to change to a front loading machine or should I just suck it up and use the old top loader? I do like that this top loader can have a load done in 20min tops while the front loader took just over an hour. That part is nice, but I don't know the electricity cost difference between the two. Are the savings of the front loaders mostly in water (not as much a concern on a well) or electric costs as well?

 

I'm trying to figure out how to leave as cheaply as possible so we can sack money away for a family vacation before we buy our new home next year. :)

I would be wary of getting a front loader off Craigslist. I think they would keep it if they liked it. Since you don't plan to be there long, I would stick it out. How many kids do you have that you have that many loads of laundry? I don't remember my mom doing that much laundry when we had 6 kids living at home and boys who played baseball every day on the summer.

 

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I mean this gently, but if you are stessed out about the electrical costs of running an extra load of laundry a day, this points to way bigger issues going on.

 

Calculating the cost per load of laundry is easy enough to do, and there are a number of websites to do the math for you.

 

If you are on well water, something else to consider is the impact on your laterals...

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Is it possible to wear stuff more than once?  I don't mean stuff like underwear, but jeans?  Of course that depends on how dirty your kids get.  Mine don't tend to so they wear stuff more than once.  I do and so does DH.  That really cuts down on laundry.

 

I think I'd either stick it out or buy a brand new one and take it with you.  I wouldn't bother with a used one on Craigslist.  Those front loaders are very heavy too so you may end up hiring someone to move it if you can't manage it yourself.

 

 

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Here's a calculator for figuring how much it costs you per year to do your laundry: http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/laundry.html

 

I don't see how you could recoup the cost of a machine in the year that you would be there, so it seems pointless to buy one.  I agree with pp---worrying over the cost of a few extra loads of laundry a week wouldn't be my primary concern if I were trying to save money and there are ways to cut down on the number of loads you are doing.  You don't mention if you use a dryer or hang your clothes---hanging your clothes would save more in electricity than changing washing machines.

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Is it possible to wear stuff more than once?  I don't mean stuff like underwear, but jeans?  Of course that depends on how dirty your kids get.  Mine don't tend to so they wear stuff more than once.  I do and so does DH.  That really cuts down on laundry.

 

I think I'd either stick it out or buy a brand new one and take it with you.  I wouldn't bother with a used one on Craigslist.  Those front loaders are very heavy too so you may end up hiring someone to move it if you can't manage it yourself.

 

Yes, we typically wear jeans and shirts more than once.  Still, in a week I will do:

 

1 load towels (includes hand towels and dish cloths)

1 load baby laundry (sometimes more)

1 load of boy clothes

1 load of girl clothes

1 load of bedsheets (not the same sheets weekly, but rotation averages 1 load of sheets/blankets per week, plus I have bed wetters :( so sometimes it's a couple of sheets/blankets per week)

1 load of dh and my clothes, sometimes 2 depending on how I sort ( I wash whites and blacks separately but not weekly and jeans and other things, averages 1 load per week)

 

^^ again, those are with the large front loader that we had for years.  I hang all my laundry and when I did a load in the front loader I would need to racks to hang.  Now, I can fit an entire load on 3/4 of a rack so I know I am getting a whole lot less in.

 

Lots of the kids clothes get really dirty from farm chores and running through mud and dirt.  They also get dirty for riding horses and quads etc.  I try to have outside clothes for them but still need to wash them as well.

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Here's a calculator for figuring how much it costs you per year to do your laundry: http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/laundry.html

 

I don't see how you could recoup the cost of a machine in the year that you would be there, so it seems pointless to buy one.  I agree with pp---worrying over the cost of a few extra loads of laundry a week wouldn't be my primary concern if I were trying to save money and there are ways to cut down on the number of loads you are doing.  You don't mention if you use a dryer or hang your clothes---hanging your clothes would save more in electricity than changing washing machines.

 

 

I will check out that calculator, thanks. 

 

I hang all of our laundry to dry and have for years.  The only things that go in the dryer are towels (once per week) and baby clothes because they're too small and I hate crispy baby clothes.  I also can't hack crispy towels.  I've tried several tips to try and reduce the crispness of them, but finally decided that the cost of the dryer was worth the enjoyable towels.  :)

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I don't think you're doing a whole lot of laundry but there are things I wash more often. I don't like using towels more than twice so I do towels every other day. All sheets every week. We might wear jeans twice if they weren't worn all day but most everything else gets washed after one wearing. All that said, I wouldn't trade out the washer for such a short period of time. Plus, will the landlord even let you move their machine?

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Sounds like you did 7 loads a week before but are doing 10 now.   Could you hand wash things that don't get really dirty? I'm sure I could hand wash all my shirts, all the pj's (except bedwetter's), and when our kids were little, I could have hand washed all the shirts that weren't visibly dirty. 

 

I'd probably also consider having the kids wear the same clothes to do chores/ride horses for more than one day. That could keep their 'inside clothes' clean to wear for two or more days, while only having one set of dirty outside clothes. 

 

Having said all that, I'm not sure three additional loads of laundry a week are going to cost that much. 

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Few things...

That sounds like a really small top loader. You might adding a couple more items per load. Inside the lid should list some sort of guideline of capacity.

 

Well water can affect how clean clothes seem to be.

 

Running the older machine for 20 minutes versus 60 minutes for the front loader should equal things out, imo.

 

Might it be worth the effort to use a laundromat from time to time?

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I'd give anything to switch back to a top loader from my front loader, my house can't fit it because we have our laundry stacked under the stairs.

 

Those top loaders get the clothes more clean and with less effort comparing them in my own homes - and even in an area where water is expensive I'd say I run loads again about half the time with my front loader, especially diapers and towels, where the top loader always did it in one shot.

 

Energy efficiency can be helped in other areas, but laundry is a comparably small consumer, even with the most inefficient 70's top loader (love those things!).

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Yes, we typically wear jeans and shirts more than once.  Still, in a week I will do:

 

1 load towels (includes hand towels and dish cloths)

1 load baby laundry (sometimes more)

1 load of boy clothes

1 load of girl clothes

1 load of bedsheets (not the same sheets weekly, but rotation averages 1 load of sheets/blankets per week, plus I have bed wetters :( so sometimes it's a couple of sheets/blankets per week)

1 load of dh and my clothes, sometimes 2 depending on how I sort ( I wash whites and blacks separately but not weekly and jeans and other things, averages 1 load per week)

 

^^ again, those are with the large front loader that we had for years.  I hang all my laundry and when I did a load in the front loader I would need to racks to hang.  Now, I can fit an entire load on 3/4 of a rack so I know I am getting a whole lot less in.

 

Lots of the kids clothes get really dirty from farm chores and running through mud and dirt.  They also get dirty for riding horses and quads etc.  I try to have outside clothes for them but still need to wash them as well.

 

Sounds like you are very reasonable really. 

 

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I'd give anything to switch back to a top loader from my front loader, my house can't fit it because we have our laundry stacked under the stairs.

 

Those top loaders get the clothes more clean and with less effort comparing them in my own homes - and even in an area where water is expensive I'd say I run loads again about half the time with my front loader, especially diapers and towels, where the top loader always did it in one shot.

 

Energy efficiency can be helped in other areas, but laundry is a comparably small consumer, even with the most inefficient 70's top loader (love those things!).

 

Oh see I love my front loader.  I think it does a great job and probably the biggest difference I notice is how much less soap I use.  I was surprised by that aspect.

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Before you buy something else, you will want to contact the landlord to make sure they are ok with you switching out the sets.  Especially with well water, you want to make sure that the larger capacity isn't a problem.  

 

Honestly, I doubt that you will save $300 in one year.  That would be $2 per load for 150 additional loads. Unless you have some really expensive electricity costs, I wouldn't bother. Especially buying a used washer, you have no idea how long it will last.  I figure, a used washer isn't likely to last too long anyways so while you could take it with you, who knows what kind of life span it will have.

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Have you factored in the much shorter cycle times for a top loader? You could come out ahead or break even since you're not paying for the water.

 

By my calculations 7 loads took 10 hours but 10 loads takes 3 hours and 20 minutes.

Edited by KungFuPanda
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